Here I am, standing in the sparkling new SONY showroom which has recently opened near my house. I had a plan since sometime to buy a 2000W music system. I am interested in just a reliable deck, not too loud which plays VCDs too. No, i don't want it to play MP3 because I am strictly against music piracy and I have yet to come across an original MP3 CD. The showroom provided me with a wide choice, from a simple 100W PMPO output stereo to 10,000W home theatre system. But I know what is my need and more importantly my budget.

Just as I was wondering where would I find my product I was greeted by a warm 'Good Morning'. Standing by my side was a crisply dressed young man. He was one of those charming salesman which you find a plenty, from these showrooms to streets, selling everything from soaps to cars. After half an hour of brainwashing session with this salesman, I was in possession of 'it'. The deck offered me much more than I wanted. It was 3300W, 3-VCD player and did not come at no extra cost. I had to shell out one and a half times my pre-planned budget. And I thought only government had a budget deficit. Yes, it played MP3 too!

Walking back to the parking lot, followed by a person carrying my deck, both of us were sweating profusely. He because of the weight of the deck and I because of its price or was it the weather? Thankfully you don't have to carry the product yourself to your car after spending a fortune on it. After placing it on back seat and assuring myself that it was safe there, I set out back to home. While concentrating on driving I kept wondering on where would I keep the deck. In my room or in the common living room?

Knock! Knock! It broke my thoughts. A man, knuckling the window of my car, on an intersection. It was a long red light. He was a salesman too, selling tissue papers for car. The shabby clothes he was wearing it seemed hadn't been washed since months, very much like him. He offered to sell me 2 packs for Rs 40. I remember last time buying one for Rs 40. That was a good deal, but how can I purchase anything from a shabbily dressed salesman selling on road, hawker to be precise. By the time light turned green he was offering them at 4 for Rs 40. He was almost pleading and I was tempted too by the bargain. But still he was not the kind of person I would buy something from.

As I started moving again so did my thought process. But I was not thinking of the music system anymore. My mind was occupied by the thought of the incident that just took place. Why had I not bought the tissue paper eventhough I was needing it for my car and more importantly it was offered at a throw away price. The salesman in the showroom convinced me that I would enjoy listening to 3300W music system more than 2000W system, eventhough I would rarely ever be playing it at full volume. Still I was convinced to shell out more than it deserved. I was also convinced to have an extra feature of MP3 playback not withstanding the fact that i would never be using it. Value addition in true sense!

What precisely was the difference between the two salesmen? May be one was selling inside an airconditioned showroom but then the other was selling under a much wider roof. Maybe it was the difference in their physical appearance, but the they were not the product themselves whose appearance should have mattered. Maybe it was the product itself, a deck on one hand and tissue paper on another. But the music system i bought was not what i needed and the tissue paper i didn't buy was what i needed even more at that price. Finally I convinced myself it was the government. The government had passed a bill recently which made it illegal to buy and sell goods from a hawker at traffic intersections. Yes, it was a satisfactory explanation. So, I had done nothing wrong in letting go a good deal and devoiding a poor person from earning a livelihood for himself. Afterall I am a law abiding citizen.

Halt! In Delhi one cannot drive for 5 minutes at a stretch without getting to next intersection. Another red light. Another knock on my car window. But not another hawker. A beggar this time. Suddenly I realized many common things between the beggar and the hawker. Both were shabbily dressed, both targeting their customers at intersections, both making their customers feel as if they are giving maximum value for money. The beggar started by saying that may you have a good job. Seeing me unmoved I was blessed with a beautiful wife too! It ascertained one thing, that the customer is king.

By now I was sure of one thing that there is definitely a relationship between the light going green and my mind ticking. This time it was the beggar who engrossed my thoughts. The beggar too was a salesman. The difference was the product. He was selling blessings and his story of poverty and grief. His story that he hadn't had anything to eat since last two days failed to move me. Was it because I thought he was lying or was it because I thought he was not earning the right way. I am a very principled man and do not support or encourage begging. He should do some work, something honorable. Had the beggar been doing something more respectable I would have definitely helped him. Why is he begging? He should do something. May be he can start by selling tissue papers at traffic intersection.