The Great Hilsa Mystery

Ravi Ila Bhatt

If there is one thing the people of Kolkata love more than football, it is fresh fish. Whether it is a crispy Maachh Bhaat lunch or a rich Sarse Ilish dinner, the fish on the plate absolutely has to be sweet, tender, and perfectly fresh.
For generations, a famous fishing company in Kolkata, run by a man named Joydeep Babu, supplied the city with the finest Hilsa and Rohu caught right from the nearby Hooghly River. But as Kolkata grew, the waters close to the city ran out of fish. To feed the hungry city, Joydeep Babu had to buy much bigger trawlers. His fishermen had to sail deep into the rough waters of the Bay of Bengal, far away from home.
The problem was, the further the fishermen went, the longer it took them to return to the Babu Ghat docks. By the time the boats docked, the fish had been dead for days. When the local maachhwala sold them at the Gariahat market, the grandmothers of Kolkata took one sniff and wrinkled their noses. "This fish has lost its sweetness!" they complained. Joydeep Babu's business began to crash.
To fix this, Joydeep Babu installed massive, high-tech freezers on his trawlers. The fishermen caught the fish and instantly froze them. Now, they could stay out at sea for weeks! But the clever foodies of Kolkata could not be fooled. The moment the fish was fried, they noticed it was rubbery. "Frozen fish is not real fish!" the customers shouted.
Desperate, Joydeep Babu spent a lot of money to install giant water tanks on his boats instead. The fishermen caught the fish and kept them swimming in the tanks. "Live fish will mean fresh fish!" Joydeep Babu thought happily. But during the long, slow journey back to Kolkata, the fish grew tired, lazy, and bored in the cramped tanks. They stopped swimming and just floated around idly. When they reached the markets, they tasted dull and lifeless. Joydeep Babu was facing a massive crisis.
Finally, he called his smartest marine biologist, a young woman named Riya. Riya smiled and said, "Joydeep Babu, the fish are losing their flavor because they have no challenge. They get comfortable and give up."
She suggested a wild, crazy idea. The next time the trawlers went out, they filled the tanks with live Hilsa just like before. But right before sailing back, Riya dropped a small, harmless but very active baby shark into each tank!
The little shark was too small to eat all the fish, but it was hungry enough to chase them around. Suddenly, the Hilsa had to swim for their lives! They zipped, zipped, and leaped across the tank, their hearts pumping and their fins working overtime. They were constantly challenged, active, and alert for the entire journey.
When the boats arrived at the Kolkata docks, the fish were bursting with life and energy. That evening, when the fish hit the hot mustard oil in Kolkata kitchens, the aroma was magical. The grandmothers smiled, the children ate extra rice, and Joydeep Babu’s business was saved!
Moral
In our life new challenges Keeps us Active. If you steadily win challenges, you are happy. These challenges keeps you energized. g