THROWN OUT OF THE CLUB

KOLKTA: MARCH 23
Rajen Bali and I are invited to dinner at Kolkata's Tollygunge Country Club. Rajen believes that the dress code is casual. I don't do casual. I have scruff or smart. Smart is bespoke trousers tailored in dark blue cotton at an attic sweat shop in Cochin's Jew Town. My navy shirt is hand-woven cotton (support the artisan) from the Rajastahn State Kadi Emporium in Jaisalmer. Add polished black brogues and a touch of hair gel and I look the works. Our host's wife and teen daughter are equally smart. So is Rajen. Only our host is scruff in a curly-collared short-sleeve sports shirt with a logo and boat shoes. So who gets us banned from the club restaurant and bars? Me. My shirt is Indian. It doesn't have a collar. Collars are obligatory. We eat in a no-doors shed with the mosquitoes.