‘He is a beggar but a bastard too! He will find his high and will soon be sloshed on one of the footpaths. Everyone knows such people in this lane. But the visitors and those who come here for shopping do give these people some money.’ Ali then explained all about whiteners and thinners which were sniffed and known as ‘handkerchief addictions’. As marijuana and heroin were very expensive, these drug addicts sustained themselves on whiteners and thinners.

After hearing all this, Qasim replied with a lot of innocence, ‘Indeed, Allah takes care of all.’

Mohammad Ali immediately responded, ‘Is Allah that …?’

‘If Allah doesn’t give them, then who does? He is the provider. Isn’t he?’ Qasim said in his defence.

‘Allah has also given us brains. Understood?’ Ali responded.

Asrar interrupted Mohammad Ali and reminded him that he had to talk about his employment. Mohammad Ali took out the Haathi-chhaap tobacco and licked a little choona and stuck it in his mouth on one side. He started talking about his work.

He told them that his boss was a businessman who dealt in artificial diamonds. He imported them from China. Cubic zirconia was the most exotic artificial diamond which looked exactly like the real one. Looking at the inquisitive and confused eyes of Asrar, he repeated that cubic zirconia was an artificial diamond, also referred to as CZ. It had the same shine, hardness and look as real diamonds. Asrar shook his head. Mohammad Ali said that CZ was so like the real diamond that it was very easy to fool people. Only an expert or a jeweller could spot the difference. Qasim also listened to Ali with the utmost interest. He added that after CZ, moissanite is the second kind of fake diamond. It was used to fool those greedy to buy diamonds at a lower price. Asrar replied with a simple ‘Okay’. Mohammad Ali looked at them for a moment and said that his boss said that the fake diamonds, even though similar in appearance, could never lower the value of a real diamond.

Every real diamond had its own uniqueness. It had its own rays of light that touched the heart. Every diamond had its own spirit. After praising real diamonds, Ali told them ways to recognize an artificial one. Qasim seemed more interested in knowing the methods of recognizing a fake rather than knowing more about real ones. He impatiently asked, ‘Tell, tell.’ Ali spat out the tobacco and explained that the diamond had to be placed on a newspaper. If it was a CZ, reading the print would not be a problem but if it could not be read then it was a real diamond. Asrar was impressed by Mohammad Ali’s knowledge.