“Ammalu, at least in the presence of guests, will you please give me respect and behave as an obedient wife”
“Certainly. Tell me what I should do”
“Comb my hairs, hug and say smilingly, sportively, smartly, ‘ I love you’ and open the car door for me to get in and wait till I get in, with folded hands etc”
“But, you have no hairs on your head for me to comb nor a car for me to open the door!”
“Just act, Ammalu, act. Pretend. Do you think every wife who says, ‘I love you’, really loves her husband ? Just act”
“Ok. Wait a minute please. Our baby is crying. Let me go and feed her”
“Our baby? You feeding ? At this age? Have you gone mad old woman?”
“Don’t get alarmed. I was only acting. Just acting”
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I want to give you my everything , Ammalu”
“Haven’t you done it already? Now I’m too old, man!”
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“I should not have married. What do you think, Ammalu?
“I think it was good that I married. Otherwise, how pitiable would have been your position!”
“What is there? I would have lived happily”
“Life, for you, without me ? If my return from the temple is delayed by 2 minutes, you peep twenty times through the front gate. If there is a delay of 3 minutes for me to come out after my bath, you knock ten times on the door”
“See the number has gone down from 20 to 10. That shows my interest in you is also coming down ”
“No, it only shows that you are aware that the bathroom has no door at the back”
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” Ammalu, while organizing Vishukkani, keep 3 pieces of one Rupee coins in a silver cup. One Rupee for you and the rest for Ammini and Nair if they come to take my blessings tomorrow morning”
“Even for your close friend Ammini, you will give only one Rupee as kaineetam!”
“When it comes to the question of parting with money, I don’t differentiate between a wife, however old she is and a friend, however close she might be”
“No wonder she told me yesterday,” instead of coming to collect SP Sir’s one Rupee kaineettam, I can go to KKAS”
“KKAS, what is that?”
“That is a new commercial service to outcome the mosquito menace, Kerala Kosu adi samgham.You simply go with empty hands,stretching your palms straight and clap with a ‘thud’ sound. At least a dozen Mosquitos get trapped, die and drop. You are paid a Rupee per mosquito, caught and killed, on the spot. No investment, no efforts, at least a thousand Rupees income in an hour”