The Curious Antique Shop

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I live close to my school and walk back home every day after classes. Usually, I take the shortest route on my return. This has often led me to wonder about the shops and people that lie on the other longer routes. I once shared my curiosity with a friend, who said that he knew of a row of antique shops on the way and that they were worth a look. He said that there were other shops too but couldn’t recollect what they sold. His selective memory didn’t surprise me, as I knew of his close bond with antique pieces. His father was an antiquarian with a large collection of antiques at home. Intrigued, I took the opportunity to go by the less-taken road back home yesterday. 

The antique shop had an inconspicuous look with a broken, slanted board. The board had something vague inscribed on it, which I could decipher as ‘Roy’s Antiques’. Piqued, I opened the door and entered.  

I saw rows of animal & human skeletons arranged on the walls. The stuffed zebra, horse, monkey, stag, and deer were intimidating. There was also a jar with a dead anaconda preserved in formalin. It reminded me of my biology teacher, Mr Dawson’s, laboratory in school. I sensed the human skeleton staring hard at me and did my best to remain calm. The other objects inside the shop were equally spooky, and I wished I hadn’t entered.

As I approached the sales counter, an old, frail man greeted me. His toothless smile complemented the antique collection in his shop. He welcomed me and asked if I’d like to buy something. 

I was visiting the shop out of sheer curiosity. I had not planned to buy anything, so I replied by saying I was just a window shopper. He grinned once again and asked me to window-shop to my hearts content. 

Once done with the large display of human and animal skeletons, I bid goodbye to the old shopkeeper and left. I heaved a sigh of relief, as I wasn’t sure if I’d come out in one piece, unlike the antique pieces I had just seen.

As I was walking back home, I remembered that my friend had mentioned not one but many other other such shops on the road. So I looked and found, to my surprise, five antique shops arranged neatly in a row. But having just been to one of them, I hadn’t the guts to enter another. I let them be and hurried back home. 

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Published by Kanishka Uncensored

I was born and schooled in Hyderabad. I am grateful to my school for encouraging me to question the status quo and think out-of-the-box. I graduated in mathematics from Bhavan’s Vivekananda College. I joined TV9 Telugu, a Telugu news channel, soon thereafter. I was a Reporter first and a content manager later. I quit TV9 after thirteen years and shifted to Bangalore. I first worked at the Rangoli Metro Art Centre. A year later, I found myself at the Srishti Institute of Art, Design & Technology. I also pursued a creative writing course from Symbiosis, Pune. I am now an Assistant Manager at Ample Technologies. I chose to become a journalist as I was good at English, especially writing. But TV9's demanding work environment gave me no time. So upon quitting, I created a blog. I composed movie reviews, political comments and analysed Television advertisements. My article on the evolution of Axe Deo Sprays was a hit. Anveshi, a Hyderabad based NGO, invited me to speak on the topic. My article also serves as a guide for students of an English teaching course at EFLU. While I enjoy writing, I am aware that I need to strike a balance between my passion and a steady job. I thus depend on Ample Technologies for money and write for my pleasure otherwise. I would suggest to fresh graduates to focus on settling financially first. It is never too late to do what you like doing, provided you are economically sound.

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