Dehradun, Dec. 30 -- Tulika Singh Roy

'Hey diddle-diddle, the cat and the fiddle, the cow jumped over the moon!' With twinges in the hinges, I understand this ditty much better now. Every few years, a new con artist appears in town, flaunts wealth and seduces the upper echelon. He infiltrates their ranks, throws great parties, charms the pants off old biddies, and seduces their offspring. He lets them take a peep at the gold pots buried under the proverbial rainbow.

Then one fine morning, he vanishes. It is his version of the Bangkok act. Only much later do folks find 'so much gone with the thief'; not just money, but daughters, too, were frequently reported 'missing'.

The visiting card proclaimed 'International Tea Taster', and it mar...