These Laughter Chefs on TV remind me of my wife in our kitchen, yaar, trying a new recipe while I'm fixing the old radio. She'll chuckle when the jeera pops too much, saying it dances like Amitabh in his young days. It's a small joy, but when ghee is so costly, such laughter in the house feels like a real blessing, more filling than any rich dish.

My neighbour's grandson had to move to a city school after their village school shut, yaar, and now his mother spends three hours and half her pension on the bus fare and tuitions – tell me, how is a family to build any savings like this? The talk at the chaupal always comes back to this: when the young ones leave, it's not just a class that closes, it feels like the heart of the place grows weaker.