she settled down with tea and mithai for a comfortable chat as i buzzed around preparing to leave for office i let her talk on since it seemed to give her some sense of satisfaction even as i tried to focus on the daily arrangements for home and kids before stepping out for the daytwice i almost tripped on tommy squatting next to her tension visible in every last hair on his body as he silently begged for a morsel strange how a dachshund can develop spaniel eyes when he hopes and pleadsnot averse to sharing with kommy as she insists on calling him amma as we call her must ask her real name droned on thankfully not requiring any response my ears however perked up when i heard kuttewali and then billiwaali repeated quite often in the monologue whom could she possibly be referring to as the dogowner or catowner i wondered amma gave me a strange look that was a telling comment on my dumbness and then helpfully explained kuttewaali it seems is how the daily maids in the colony refer to a lady who keeps 34 dogs in her house and correspondingly billiwaali is a woman who has pet catsso this was how the colonys daily help referred to the women of households they worked for they never seem to remember house numbers nor know the names of families they work with so i guess they have to work out some manner of referralswith an eye on kommy i fearfully asked amma what they called me icringed at the idea of being called kommywali or something worse than that i knew i shouldnt have asked but lets say curiosity got the better of me amma displayed her diplomatic side and assured me arrey you are hamaari madamji thats what we call younot appeased at all and highly suspicious by now i dont know what got over me and i insisted cajoled and threatened till a sheepish amma now rather wary gave in she took a sip of her now fast turning cold tea delaying tactics i thought my brain running around in circles with mindnumbing possibilities as my toes curled in anticipated embarrassment with a resigned look on her face amma said madamji yours is the only house that has a peepul tree growing next to it ok dont stop now i wanted to screamso madamji amma started getting up ready for flight i supposed so we call you woh peepul ke ped waali i rocked back on my heels not knowing whether to laugh or cry this was the same tree i had been warned against by many when we moved house with whispered suggestions of getting rid of it as living under the shelter of a peepul isnt considered auspicious however i let my sense of right prevail and today in an ironic twist that tree had become my identityamma shifted to delhi from a village in bihar to help her daughter