Indian hospitality is famous all over the world. In India, we often treat a guest like a god. We don’t mind taking discomforts ourselves, but we do not allow our guests to feel a shortage of anything. It is always pleasant to have guests who are considerate and friendly. But sometimes visitors turn out to be unpleasant, taking undue advantage of the host’s kindness. Something like this happened to us last summer.

Living in a small flat in crowded Mumbai makes it difficult to host visitors even for a few hours. But when the stay stretches into several days, it feels almost unbearable. In the first week of May, we received a letter from my father’s cousin in Bengaluru. He mentioned that he had some urgent work in Mumbai and wished to stay with us for a couple of days. Father was happy, as he had not met his cousin for more than ten years. Mother and we three children were not so excited. Father’s joy too vanished when, at Mumbai C.S.T., he found that his cousin Shyamlal had brought along his wife Kusum and their son Sumit.

From the moment they arrived, our three guests settled in as if the house belonged to them. We children were moved out of our room and had to sleep in the drawing-cum-dining room. Kusum made herself comfortable in my parents’ bedroom, spreading luggage all over. Sumit, a spoiled child, tore up our comics and even broke some of my younger brother’s toys. Mother spent her time sulking in the kitchen, while we tried to stay away at our friends’ homes as much as possible. By the second evening, even father was upset and restless, but he could do nothing.

Finally, we children decided to act. Without telling our parents, we tried to discipline Sumit. I pinched him twice when he scribbled in my schoolbooks and my sister scolded him for meddling with her things. By the third day, Sumit kept complaining to his parents and soon Kusumand Shyamlal were annoyed. That very evening, they packed their bags and left. The farewell was cold and formal. Though we knew we had broken the tradition of being endlessly patient with guests, we could not hide our relief. The moment the taxi drove them away, peace returned to our house and we were thankful for the departure of those unwelcome visitors.