6.15 P.M.

Bumping along in a rickshaw, down the very long Productivity Road, at 6.15 p.m., is a chance to view things from this vantage point of relative comfort - the open sides of the rickshaw catch the passing breeze and provide an unimpeded view of street life at this magical hour.  The sun has almost set. a blazing ball of orange and a few scattered monsoon clouds are tinged with pink.  The air has cooled and the light is betwixt and between.  Productivity Road is parallel to a major trunk road and by contrast has an informality - a special atmosphere.   The energy has gone out of the day, people stand and chat and yet the road still bustles, in a laid back, cheerful, 'end of the day', sort of way.  Shops are beginning to light up, their goods spilling out onto uneven pavements.  It's the Garba season and many ad hoc stalls have been set up displaying garba dresses, with their wide, colourful skirts and shiny borders, glittering in the lamp light.  Bodices are laid out, embroidered and embellished with mirrors.  Jewelry and all the paraphernalia associated with the season is displayed.  Bright festive lights decorate some shop fronts.   Dogs wander in and out - one defecates, its back flexed into an exaggerated curve. Two peasant girls in shabby clothes, holding bunches of brightly coloured balloons aloft, make their way homeward.