It was a balmy afternoon in Bangalore when I walked across the Miller Tank road with my sister. The usual sister banter of taunts and jokes was on, when all of a sudden, my sister mutters an expletive and heads off into a side lane. I am puzzled by her behaviour and am wondering if she is finally mad enough to be admitted, when she beckons me urgently. Before I can turn around and mutter 'Watz-ze-prablem', I have two companions in front of me. Dressed in Saris, clapping their hands and asking me for money. I cringe. For that has become the customary reaction to these people. They are eunuchs.

I realize I do not have change and I try to wave them off. But they are well prepared for that also.

"Don't worry," one of them says, "I have change."

I almost smile.

Yeah, right! Now they have a change service. I look to my clever sister and they catch my look and one of them goes over to her. My sister is even more fierce in telling that she has no change. But 'No' is definitely not the answer they are looking for.

They begin clapping their hands and try to bless us on our foreheads. We try to back off to no avail. I decide I might actually have to part with the hundred bucks I have, when I see dearest Sis handing over twenty bucks to them with a grimace. The lady even has the guts to look at them with an expectant expression for some change back. But the Saris have disappeared as abruptly as they came.

We walk with a scowl.

"I thought they only caught the guys, you know." I said.

"No, here, they just prey on anybody. A lot of them jaywalk outside the college gate and the girls usually have a tough time dodging them."

Then i begin to wonder if the paltry sum of twenty rupees is all that 'they' might get today. They do not have an occupation. Where must they be living? What do they do on days they don't get any money? Are they forced to live like this? Beggars are always given alms with sympathy and pity, does anybody really pity them?

Then, I think it could be a fault on their part also. Has anyone made an effort to break the social stigma and start ventures of their own? But then, who would be willing to finance them? So far, their main claim to fame has been in the brunt of jokes and taunts.

But I think that it is all a matter of choices......