ATITHI, TUM KAB JAOGE??????????

I took the kids to see this new flick yesterday as it is good, clean family entertainment. On coming back from the movie some thoughts sprung up involuntarily about ''atithis'' and their likes. My maternal grandfather was a well-known figure in Kanpur. Some of my traits ,or should i say most of them, have clearly been inherited from my mother's headstrong ancestors. With great enthusiasm he built a house which my family inhabits till date.
But their peace of mind is constantly thwarted by the ''atithis'' in our house.
One of them stays right above us since decades now .The lucky chap does not pay any rent. He only has to deposit the paltry sum of Rs.300 in the court as the house is governed by rent control laws. Thanks to our judicial system he enjoys a safe co-habitation which is almost free of cost.He dictates where we should park our car, whether we should lock the main gate or not, whether we can repair the leaking roof or not, even whether we can access the roof-top or not. The last straw was when he lately called up and mother and asked for a settlement , if she would agree to pay him a substantial amount of money. Reminds me of the Seema Biiswas ad on television where a court case is going on for years..........''chalta rahe....chalta rahe.....''
"justice delayed is clearly justice denied''.........but who will explain this to the makers of the law or better still those who implement and execute it. My grandfather also constructed a separate block for his special guests. Little did he know it would be occupied by people who knew the real translation of ''atith devo bhav''. Someone who refuses to move out once he safely lodges himself under your roof. So for those who wish to invest their hard-earned money into the construction of a house, my sincere advice would be not do it. Instead, be smart, go live in someone else's house and then conveniently develop amnesia and forget to move out. After all ''atithi bhagwan hota hai''.