Ramani, he says, is walking around in the flower garden at her father’s palace, dreaming of Kamadeva. The sevantige, mandaara, kakada, roja, jaaji mallige, kanakambara, bilikanagile, kempukanagile, kendasampige, kedige, chenduhoovu, sugandaraja and bevu flowers are in full bloom on shrubs and trees all around her, while the fountain in the middle of the garden has a kendaavare floating blissfully. Bees are busily buzzing from flower to flower, collecting nectar, while the kogile is singing her heart out amidst the green leaves of the kendasampige tree.

As Ramani looks at the beauty around her, her heart aches with the need to see Kamadeva. Her eyes land on the red glory of the tender mango flowers and the bright green parrot that is sitting there, squawking. She senses, rather than sees, a bee that is hungrily drinking up all the nectar from one of the flowers on a low-hanging branch. The bee, disturbed by her presence, flies to Ramani and buzzes around her flower-like eyes.

Unlike other girls, she is not scared. She smiles at the bee, which she knows is Kamadeva in disguise. He has heard her heartfelt desire and come to her. The garden around her becomes Deyi Baidethi’s, the flowers change shape and become nagakanye, ananyamohini, suramohika, jayatilake, amarasugandi. The air is fragrant with dizzying smells as the bee turns into the man of her dreams. Ramani smiles with joy as Kamadeva picks a swetasanchari to blow all the pollen at her. She blooms red-gold like the suryavamsi and Kamadeva’s bow-veena strums out an unending melody in behag raga.

Sometimes Annaiah runs out of steam. Leaving Ramani and Kamadeva to their fates, he starts discussing the price of Veeranna’s new steel coffee filter, which makes coffee that is not half as good as that made in the old way, with a cloth piece. Discussion turns to crop prices or the electricity and wiring that Byregowda started, which Puttaswamegowda is now setting up across the village. The villagers are perfectly willing to listen to Annaiah’s views on these things, for his knowledge is vast and he explains things so well.

Some of the young people start a discussion on the Gokak chaluvali and the need to make Kannada the official language of the state and medium of instruction in schools. The older folk don’t see what the problem is. What is the need to make Kannada the state language? Everyone knows it and all the children have even learnt how to read and write it, thanks to all these government schools.