Gurus and the ’Guru’ mantra of the Banarasis By Meera Vohra Banarasis addressing each other as ‘Guru’ may appear strange to outsiders but interacting with them from close quarters one feels that the title fits them like a glove in this case like a gamcha ( the universal accessory of Banaras (istaan). This ‘guru’ nomenclature has not been given to them in charity or as some divine prasad, which they usually attribute their entire eyebrow raising quests but certainly not this quality of being called a ‘guru’. It is a hard earned title as you see varieties of them adding the right touch of Banarasipan to the city. The street smart gurus These gurus are found in rampant numbers especially on roads or lanes. The traffic moves at a snail’s pace but these gurus refuse to slow down. They will find a way through even the most smothering traffic bottlenecks and often be the reason behind such jams. Making use of the device called brake only happens when a collision is inevitable. Banging t...