It was the first time Anuradha was seeing a fair. Her fiancé Ansh had insisted that she accompany him. Having been born and brought up in South Bombay, a mela was a new experience for her.
The fair was crowded. A typical fair that you would see in small towns, complete with the giant wheels, merry-go-rounds and hawkers. Only, this was not a small town. It was a suburb of Mumbai.
In a corner, there were stalls selling knick-knacks, handicrafts and so on. But there was one stall that caught her attention. On the table was an old camera. Old was an understatement; it was archaic. It was the kind where the camera looked like a box mounted on a stand, a flash that looked like a mini umbrella fitted with a light bulb, and the photographer needed to dive under a black hood to click a picture. She had seen such cameras only in very old B&W movies. The camera stand stood next to the table. A placard sat next to this camera, reading “Get a photograph for just 25 paisa”. It was this placard that had caught her notice. She walked up to the old man sitting behind the counter. He looked almost as old as the camera itself. There were no visitors at this stall, so Anuradha strolled up to take a better look at the camera and the person sitting behind it.
“Excuse me. I don’t want to sound rude, but does this camera work?”, she couldn’t resist asking.
“Why, yes. I can take your picture if you want, but please make sure you have the right change”, replied the old man.
Ansh joined her. “Is this some kind of joke? Who takes photographs with this camera anymore!” he remarked.
The old man glanced at him, then continued speaking to Anuradha. “You see, this is my grandfather’s camera. I take pictures and develop it using my own equipment. You will get the pictures in a week’s time.
This was too much for Ansh. But he decided to be a bit more tactful this time.
“Baba, in this century who would want to wait a week for a picture of such poor quality, taken with a camera that looks like a century old.”
“Son, if I had to provide you with a high quality picture, I would not be doing it for 25 paisa. I would ask you for a higher price as well.
You hear people complaining all around you about the increased price of commodities, increase in the cost of living. Here I am, ready to provide you a service at the most reduced price you can imagine. And yet there are no takers. Do you understand what this means?”
“That people want to spend money, in spite of complaining about it”, replied Anuradha, more to herself than anyone else.
“Right! I have been sitting here since morning and most people who come to this stall walk away as soon as they see the price. This shows that, even though people complain, they are willing to pay. Not just because things are more expensive, but because a higher price convinces them of the quality. Think about it”, the old man concluded with a smile.
Disclaimer: Analyzing the technical details is strictly forbidden. You can, however, ponder over the thought that the story tries to convey (hint: re-read the last line, does it apply to you?)
