THE HIDDEN TRUTH

From the good ol' days two things are common amongst many of us- The Phantom Comics and The Horlicks (Novaltin for some). 

Phantom was a classic character- The Ghost Who Walks. Mr Walker, as he was known in Denkali, was an avid milk drinker. Clad in a long coat, trademark hat and dark glasses, Walker would walk into the city's Bar, order a tall glass of Milk and then beat the hell out of goons. His trademark rings would leave an indelible ink mark on the face of the goon and the print of the punch always remained. Walker would then merge into his jungle den where his trusted friends including the Dwarf King Gurran and majestic Diana would energise Walker into their own Phantom. We never saw the eyes of the Phantom and his occassional forays without his mask (and of course with lovely Diana into his private beachfront!) only revealed his chiseled physique and muscular frame. The beauty of the Phantom episodes was that each Phantom deeply resembled his predecessor and the theory of genomes never mattered! Who , then does not want to be a Phantom and have a progeny which is an exact copy of the father.

           

The stories of Phantom and his strength Milk became legends of our childhood. Each Phantom Comics was read many times over and then excahnged with seniors in school who would then part with their older Phantoms. A glass of Milk with Novaltin/Horlicks was cherished as we imagined the Phantom episodes. Novaltin/Horlicks were prized products and were preferred over the Coca Cola. All families could not even afford these products and at times the parents had to be pestered to get the new box. The unadulterated milk appeared great when the Novaltin/Horlicks mixed with it. The empty metal boxes of Novaltin/Horlicks were then used for storing the kitchen items. I wondered, how the ladies could open the correct box to take out the required item!! It is also true that those days , the boxes were limited as the kitchen items were limited and food choice was limited. But still, the credit goes to the kitchen managers for identifying items even in dark and stored in the same novaltin/horlicks boxes!

         

A visit to relative's house where Novaltin/Horlicks was not served was a pain as the milk had to be taken without the flavor. On such days, only the image of The Phantom forced us to gulp down that milk. Milk remained the paranoia for Indian mothers from times immemorial. We grew on the milk and continue to drink milk, but now added with other variants like Mango, Roohafza, Badam Powder, Coffee et. al.

          

Times are changing again. We have become Phantoms in our own rights and in our own lives. We have our own dens and our own dense jungles where we live in our own caves. However, we could not emulate The Phantom completely. Our food and drinking habits are very different from him. We idolised him but did not follow his habits. As Phantom always said- It is never too late to become good. It is now the time to get back to The Phantom habits. The Novaltin is not coming back to the Markets but Horlicks has surely made a return in various avatars. A glass of Milk is surely not available in today's Bars, but it is very much available in homes. The jungle King's habits are refreshing and energising. Phantom did not have a Smart Phone either- still he reached at the Right Place at the Right Time and delivered that Big Punch. Phew, Phantom- You Rocked Man.

      

So, time to change and get back The Phantom Habits- albeit with the Smart Phone in tow because today's jungles are more denser and it is difficult to find our addresses. So, get that glass of milk with Horlicks-if it is good for children, then surely it is good for adults too.

Cheers