Tushar was packing up for the day. Almost all of his assignments were near completion and he was getting ready for a week-long holiday.
It was his first year away from home and he was feeling quite homesick. He was missing his family so much and was always looking for a reason to be with his parents. Every festival in the last few months had left him craving for the celebration with his family and for his weak point - the home-made delicacies.
This time, he got his leave sanctioned well in advance, booked his tickets, did shopping for Mom and Papa, and was just waiting for the next week to pass. This 15th of January, he would be with his family, celebrating Makar Sankrant and enjoying Mom-made sweets - Gool Poli and Til Vadi.
Thinking of his holiday plans, Tushar habitually refreshed his Inbox before shutting down his computer. A couple of new e-mails appeared. He ignored the weekly maintenance notices from the IT Department and proceeded to check the last e-mail. It was from his manager, probably asking him to submit the next week's schedule in advance.
Tushar opened the e-mail with the subject - “Urgent and Important!”
From: madhav@in2solutions..com
To: tushar@in2solutions..com, sandip@in2solutions..com
Cc: vaishali@in2solutions..com
Date: Friday, January 10, 2020, 5:57 PM
Subject: Urgent and Important!
Team,
Just to update you, I will be leaving for the 3-day conference on Monday. We have been invited for another conference in the same city next week. I would extend my stay and cover both the conferences. I will be back by the 25th of this month.
Tushar,
Received your presentation. Appreciate your efforts and skill in pulling out all the details so fast. This is going to help me a lot in the Outsourcing Managers' Conference! I would also like you to handle the client visit in my absence next week. I will be available through e-mails and phone, in case you need any help.
Regards,
Madhav K
Manager – Operations
In2Solutions Pvt. Ltd.
Tushar read and re-read the e-mail in disbelief. All his plans were ruined in a few seconds. The holiday planning, the train booking, the festival shopping, all in vain! He re-read the e-mail to see if he could find a way out.
Madhav, his manager, would be out of office; and Sandip or Vaishali, his colleagues, were too new to handle a client visit. This obviously compelled him to cancel his leave and stay back with the work. He sat there for some more time thinking about all his plans. When he could not think of any solution, he just replied to the e-mail with an “Ok”, shut his PC down and left for home.
Back home, Tushar called up his parents to inform them of the change in the plan. Mom was very disappointed to hear that his leave was cancelled. She had planned to prepare his favourite Gool Poli for the Sankrant festival. But now, he was telling her that he would not come.
Tushar avoided talking in detail with his mother, as he himself was quite upset. He cut the conversation short and switched on the laptop to check his personal e-mails. While going through his Inbox, he could not keep his favourite food out of his mind. He opened a new window and googled “gool poli”.
Along with many links to Gool Poli recipes, he found something different. It read - “Khawakee - Love of Eating: Gool Poli on order...”
Being curious, Tushar clicked on the link and whoa! He was taken to the world of special festival delicacies. Puran Poli, Khava Poli, and yes, his favourite Gool Poli, too! He saw the actual product photographs and decided to call them first thing in the morning.
“Hello, is it Khawakee?”
“Yes, what do you want to order?”
“I found you on the internet while searching for Gool Poli's. Can I order them for Sankrant next week?”
“Sure! You must have checked the rates and other details online. How many Poli's would you like to order?”
“I'd like to have 20 Poli's... No, make it 30, my roommates would also have. 30 Gool Poli's that is. Where do I collect them from?”
“We have a takeaway center near Swargate. But if you wish, we can send home delivery to you on the15th. Please Whatsapp your name and address.”
“What? You'll deliver them at my place? Can't believe it! I'm not ordering pizza. It's Gool Poli, right?”
“Yes, you will receive your order at your place! We deliver Gool Poli, Puran Poli, and many other fresh items, at your doorstep. We also have a good range of Maharashtrian meal items. Everything prepared on advance order and in a truly homely manner.”
“And what about the payment?”
“You can pay online. We accept payment on GPay, Paytm, UPI, or Bank Transfer. Will share the details on your Whatsapp number.”
“My goodness! So happy to hear that. Have to tell mom 'bout this! Will send you my address right away...”
“Yes, please!”
Tushar sent his address, contact number, and confirmed his order details. As soon as this call ended, he called up his mom to tell her what he had found out. 'Someone was going to prepare Gool Poli's for him on order!' She couldn't believe what he was telling her. But, she was happy to hear her son's cheerful voice.
“Let's hope you get what you want,” was all she said.
Tushar was so excited about next Wednesday, the Sankrant festival, that he forgot everything about his ruined holiday plans and he resumed to work on Monday.
The client visit went well. Tushar received loads of appreciation both from the client and his manager. The client approved their proposal for the new project later in the same week. Tushar, along with his colleagues, got quite busy and had almost forgotten about the festival...
On Wednesday, the 15th of January, Tushar received his order of 30 Gool Poli's. He was so happy to see those nicely packed sets of fresh mouth-watering Poli's that he just couldn't wait to taste them. His roommates, too, liked the tasty Poli's and Tushar called up his mom to tell her how happy he was. He also called up Khawakee later in the day.
“Hello, this is Tushar.”
“Hello, thanks for your order. Hope you liked our Poli's.”
“Absolutely! All of us liked them and would love to order more. Do you prepare these Poli's after the Sankrant festival?”
“Yes, all of these items are prepared and delivered throughout the year.”
“Wow, that's great! Then I would like to order 30 Gool Poli's for the next month, when I leave for my hometown. I want them for my mom. I'll confirm the date once my leave is sanctioned. Is that okay?”
“Sure, please place your order a couple of days in advance. That helps us prepare the items specially for you!”
“Yes, will do. Thanks, Khawakee!”
Did you book your order for Gool Poli's? Makar Sankrant is on the 14th of January this year.
Khawakee 9552580321
