He looked back to see if he could spot Nivedhan. He had disappeared from the benches of his boat. Ishar sighed.
"Everyone, look for someone who seems like they might know about villages," he said.
"Oh, you mean a person like that?" Naren said, pointing to a person who fitted every stereotype of India's classic paanwalas.
"Truth to be told, he wasn't that hard to spot…you should've opened your eyes a bit more properly before commanding orders."
Everyone tried hard to hide their snickers.
Ishar gave Naren an 'I-will-kill-you' glare from the side of his eyes and started walking towards the paanwala.
"Excuse me. Do you know any information about a village or a remote place as such where we can stay? I-err- need it for a cultural and tradition project so I can research about the village."
The paanwala looked up and gave a lopsided grin. Unlike many paanwalas, his teeth were so unnaturally shiny and white that Ishar began to feel insecure about his own teeth.
"Just outside the stretches of the coast, about 50 kilometers from here, is the Aralam village, which sits slightly inside the forest. It is a place of rich culture and heritage. You'll also find a place to stay there…however each cottage can only fit 8 members. How many people are there?"
Ishar did a head count- Me, Pratap, Naren, Anjani, Gargi, Karan, Aniket.
"There are seven people," he said with finality.
"Perfect!" replied the paanwala, "I'll arrange the cottage immediately. Until when do you want it?"
Ishar let a guilty look conquer his face. "Well, it's a bit of a rush, but we need it…right now?"