When cash was king!

India has gone digital. Today, cash transactions are few and far between. Even for those rare occasions when you need cash, you walk up to the nearest ATM.

What a sea change from the days when you went to a bank to withdraw cash! Back then, as child, a visit to the bank, was a momentous event.

It followed a fixed regimen. Once it was your turn at the counter, you scrutinized the cashier attentively. He counted the notes with such ease! Off and on, a dab on a wet sponge, and his fingers moved even faster.

Soon, he gave back a sheaf of rupee notes to mother. His counting was not enough. Sitting on the sofa opposite the cashier, mother recounted the same bunch. The purpose was unclear. Firstly, there was no precedent to an error on the cashier’s part. Secondly, even if he did, how were you going to prove his mistake?

Nevertheless, you sat on the sofa, and waited as mother counted. Your attention was drawn to the security guard by the door. He looked stern, in his stiff uniform, with a rifle slung over the shoulder. “Is his rifle real?” you asked. Mother did not answer. She only raised her voice, “Fifty-one, fifty-two, fifty-three...”

But curiosity could not be contained. “Is his rifle loaded or he has to fill it with bullets?” you enquired. This time, you had successfully derailed the counting. “Can’t you keep quiet for at least 5 minutes?” mother asked, all exasperated.  The counting had to start from scratch once more.

When you left the bank with the wad of notes, it felt as if, you were carrying an enormous booty on the head. You walked all alert, as though thieves lay in the waiting, just for you! You heaved a sigh of relief, only when you reached home!

Dealing with loose cash had its share of prickly situations. You had no idea about its origin, but one fine day, you were stuck with a torn rupee note. Anytime you handed the note to the shopkeeper, he returned it with a look of disdain! With the note cello-taped, you tried in several places, with no success. All devious ideas came to mind, to pass the note on the sly, to an unwary candidate, and wash your hands off!

May be, you could drop it in the temple “hundi”. After all, God in his infinite grace, should accept it. Sister came up with counterarguments, “If you give that note to God, he will give you back in kind. He will shower you with only torn notes!” Imagination ran riot- how the entire home would soon be filled with torn rupee notes as retribution for this act.

Sometimes, you got a rupee note with an intimate message from some Rajesh to some Neha.  The mind now had enough material for wool-gathering! You wondered why Rajesh had to write on a rupee note instead of telling Neha directly. The best option was to send the note off in the next transaction. That way, you maximized the chances of the note reaching Neha. May be, the note never reached. May be, the note reached, many decades later, by when, Neha had started wearing dentures! But you did your bit, and allowed a greater power, to chart its way, through the note.

Digitization is surely the way forward. But we will miss the days when cash was king, and the rupee note had such riveting stories to narrate!