When we moved here, fifteen years ago, phoning Salem was an event: One had to book a trunk call from Karumandurai. Hot on our heels, STD came to Karumandurai. And now as everyone who visits us now knows, Karumandurai boasts of four (or is it five?) cell phone towers.

Call us old-fashioned if you will, but we preferred our chunky WLL phone; and surrendering it a couple of months ago was a watershed event. We had hoped for a chunky desk phone which would use a GSM SIM card, and I have window-shopped in Salem but never had any luck. "Adha yaaru vanguvanga, saar?" ("Who would buy it saar?") was the refrain.

And on April fool's day, when I visited Sensar Mobiles, the fancy cell-phone shop in Karumandurai (In one period of 45 minutes waiting in the shop last month, I saw 6 cell phones being bought; and all of them smart-phones costing over Rs.3500), with Badri, we thought, No harm in trying.

And, for less than the price of the cheapest cell phone in the shop, voila: