The lane wasn’t more than two-and-a-half feet wide and if someone came from the opposite direction, you had to flatten yourself against the wall to let them pass.
That was the first super-narrow lane I was negotiating on the occasion because there are quite a few of them around Baithakkhana Road and that’s where I was.
I wouldn’t have given it a second thought if I hadn’t noticed a door on this lane that had a number followed by “Potoldanga Street”.
My lips instantly curved into a smile as I remembered the area’s most famous resident – Tenida, Narayan Gangopadhyay’s immortal creation that has had generations going “di la grandi mephistopheles yak yak”! Though the character of Tenida was fictional, Narayan Gangopadhyay had created him based on his landlord, Probhat Mukherjee.
Everyone loved the big-talking leader of the group of four youths, who’s claim to fame, among other things, was his extremely sharp nose (khnarar moto naak). Even though he was terrible in academics, the three (Pyalaram, Habul and Kyabla) admired Tenida for his honesty, spunk and insatiable appetite!
I called out to my friend who was a few steps ahead of me. “Hey! We’re in the locality of Tenida!”
“Yes, that’s my grandpa.” A voice said from behind me.
I spun around to see a little girl not more than nine, walking towards me with a satchel on her back. My eyes immediately went to her nose, where a pair of black- framed spectacles were perched. It wasn’t anything like Tenida’s legendary peak!
“Are you serious?” I asked incredulously.
“Yes!”
She said it so sincerely that I didn’t find any reason not to believe her. Perhaps I wanted to believe her.
I looked at my friend with a surprised- cum- thrilled smile on my face and he returned the same expression. I had a hundred questions to ask the little girl but I didn’t know where to start.
But when I turned back again, she was gone.