Unlikely,Unlucky,Unsuccessful

In Calcutta winter is the time for clearance sales. New stocks
arrive sometime in March and the winter months of December, January and
February are utilized by shops to get rid of last year's goods. Just
about everything is available at unbelievable prices. People from all
classes throng the various markets to make all kinds of purchases. One
of the areas which a lot of middle-class families visit during this
time is New Market. Situated in central Calcutta it is a great place
for buying garments. New Market is not really a market. The name is
used to describe a complex where a lot of unconnected shops sell a lot
of goods. There may have been an 'Old Market' somewhere but nobody
seems to know where it is now. Today is the 1st of January. The entire
city is on the streets to celebrate new year's day. A few hundred of
them are present in New Market eager to take advantage of the winter
sale. As always about a dozen policemen are patrolling the area to
ensure safety and security.
Ramsons is one of the first shops you see as you enter New Market. It
was around six pm. Two ladies entered Ramsons. Both were well-dressed.
The facial resemblance and difference in age seemed to indicate that
they were mother and daughter. As soon as they entered the shop the
younger lady said, 'When is Jimmy's flight leaving tomorrow, mummy?'
The other lady said, 'I think its one am. International flights always
start late at night.'. Though the employees of Ramsons did not show it
they were very impressed. One of them asked the older woman, 'What can
I do for you?' The lady told him a long story about her son Jimmy who
was going abroad. She said they were doing some last minute shopping
for him. Just then the younger girl who was called Jill asked to go to
the toilet. But before she went to the washroom she moved all over the
shop, sometimes away from everyone's eyes. When Jill came out she went
straight to her mother and said, 'But Mama we have to buy his shoes.'
The mother had already chosen ten shirts for Jimmy. She told the owner
of Ramsons that she would come back in ten minutes to collect the
clothes. Before leaving the shop mummy said to Jill, 'You have put on a
lot of weight lately.'. Jill smiled sheepishly. The shop next to
Ramsons was Rata Shoes. They sold the best shoes that were available in
Calcutta city. Jill and her mother entered Rata Shoes. Shoes were
displayed all over the shop on racks. Jill and her mother appeared to
check every single pair. It was as if they were going to buy shoes for
all of Calcutta. After they had moved from one end of the shop to
another the manager approached them. 'Madam, are you looking for
something?', he asked. Jill's mother said, 'Do you keep hunter's
boots?'. 'I am sorry madam,', the middle-aged manager said, 'If you
want hunter's boots you have to go to our Esplanade branch.' The two
ladies were preparing to leave when the doorman remarked, 'Madam has a
big handbag.' Skipper Furnishings is the next shop they went to. This
is one of the grandest shops in all of Calcutta. As mother and daughter
entered Skipper they appeared to be in awe of its magnificent
interiors. They went straight to the curtains section. Quite grandly,
Jill's mother declared that she wanted the best material available.
After seeing at least twenty samples she turned to Jill and said,
'Jilly, we must check whether the curtains match the upholstery of our
car.' She then explained the matter to the shop assistant. He cut off
ten metres of the material and handed it over to her. She went out of
the shop and after a while Jill said that her mother had left the car
keys with her. Jill was about to come out of Skipper when a policewoman
grasped her hand. Another police personnel was holding the hand of her
mother. Their game was up.
Little by little their story was narrated to everyone present. At
Ramsons Jill had entered the toilet with ten dresses all of which she
wore one over the other. Her mother had pilfered ten pairs of shoes at
Rata Shoes which she kept in her handbag. The duo was about to show a
clean pair of heels with ten metres of premium quality curtain material
when the police was alerted. It was the management of Ramsons that had
called the police. At first both Jill and her mother repeatedly said
that they had only been shopping for Jimmy who was leaving tonight. In
fact they complained that the police had been harassing them. However
when the deputy commissioner of police spoke to them the two ladies
broke down. They revealed that Jill's rich father had died a year
before leaving everything to his alcoholic son Jimmy. After trying this
and that they had resorted to stealing valuable goods from shops to
feed themselves.