Dharda Ganesh is a village in the Shivpuri district of the state of Madhya Pradesh. It is more than an hour’s drive from main district headquarter or Shivpuri urban and one has to navigate many bumpy roads and stretches which hardly have roads. The village looks like a typical village in the state of Madhya Pradesh having cluster of mud huts, roofed with thatch or earthen tiles, narrow paths laded with mud and water (if it rains) which leads to the outside world. Probably times had a little effect on these villages.
I happen to be on some work and was at the same village. But it was interesting visit for me as I had an opportunity to visit shop of Kirori Mal. Kirori Mal is a barber. His shop is just at the entrance of the village, outside the Panchayat Bhawan. It was a make shift of shop with few inches above the ground, one had to climb to enter the same.
Probably he seems to be a huge fan of Bollywood. The walls of his shop were lacquered with the photographs of all the major known actresses. May be it was an added attraction to his shop for the clients who come for a haircut or for shave and sometimes had to wait for their turn. He was self confessed fan of Salman Khan. But I was bit puzzled as I could not see Salman Khan on the walls so got bit inquisitive. I dared ask him where is Salman Khan ?. He looked in my eyes and then guided his finger towards his wall clock, which was hanging on the wall of shop. There was the Khan!! Captured in the wall clock! Actually he had made a cut out of the Salman Khan and had replaced it with second’s needle of the wall clock. Instead of ‘seconds’ needle on the clock it was Salman Khan’s photograph cut in shape of it. Quite an interesting way to use photographs which is supposedly his idol. So it was Salman Khan on the move that too every second!! Not only Bollywood actress but moving Salman Khan attracted his young clients of the village to visit his shop every now and then.
- anil
