He must have been in his 60s. Age was telling on him, but it appeared that he was trying to keep ageing at bay. Despite his grey hair and receding hairline, he seemed keen to look young and smart. Let me simply call him S.K.

I saw him for the first time at a wedding reception. He was sitting at a round table in an obscure corner of the spacious lawn. I can’t say whether he chose the place or it was a coincidence. The remaining five chairs were later occupied by merry-making youngsters, all strangers to him.

Surely, the elderly person was out of sync with the young men, but he did not seem uncomfortable in their company. He sat quietly in a pensive mood, not communicating with anybody. Obviously, he did not mind being a loner in the big crowd of guests.

I was seated along with two others at a table from where I was getting a good view of S.K. For some strange reason I was struck by that frail figure. There was something unusual about him that had aroused my curiosity. He appeared to be the odd man out. I was wondering whether I had ever met him. S.K. was appropriately dressed for the occasion in a grey suit with a matching necktie and a hanky peeping out of his jacket’s upper pocket.

The evening’s weather did not warrant a suit. But then some allowance could be made for an old person like him, wanting to flaunt his favourite dress on special occasions.

I continued to observe him. He gave the impression of being a retired class II government officer with a high sense of dress. It was a different matter that his overused suit was worn out.

The waiters carrying trays of snacks and beverages hovered all over the place. S.K. made it a point to not miss any of the eatables. The waiters, for their part, also paid full attention to the well dressed senior citizen and ensured that he was properly served.

The marriage rituals were in full swing with kids dancing to the tune of blaring music. After a while, the banquet was thrown open. As it happens, the crowd, including S.K., quickly surged towards the stack of full plates. My group followed. While having my food, I came face to face with S.K. who was precariously holding his plate which was loaded with a pyramid of rice, chicken and other items.

Aware of my surveillance on him, he avoided eye contact with me and moved away. Not having any intention of embarrassing him, I also took a 360 degree turn. But we met again at the sweet dish counters where S.K. was enjoying all the varieties including hot jalebis (a deep-fried Indian sweet) and ice cream at the same time.

We retreated to our seats watching and discussing the goings on. Suddenly, I noticed commotion near the exit. Poor S.K. was in trouble. Some half a dozen persons from the host’s side were angrily questioning him about his credentials.

“Who are you? Who invited you here?” a youngster was angrily asking him in a high-pitched voice like a prosecutor in court. The young men would have been harsher to S.K. but his suit, the tie and the hanky in the jacket’s upper pocket saved the situation. After all, from all angles, he looked like a respectable senior citizen.

One young man said the caterers had told the hosts that the old man had been going to such receptions uninvited and enjoying dinners.

S.K. did not respond to the questions and did not react to the humiliation that was being heaped upon him. He just stood silently. His plight moved me. I shooed away his tormentors, made him comfortable in a chair and asked him to take me into confidence on the issue.

His story was like this. His wife died early after a protracted serious ailment that crippled his finances. They had no issue to support him in his old age. S.K. became a loner. As long as he was serving as a low salaried middle level official in the municipality, food was not much of a problem. But following his retirement, his advancing age posed many problems, mainly cooking.

Despite his being honest to the core, circumstances compelled him to resort to the unpleasant practice of sneaking into such functions for a lunch or dinner which he could have only during marriage season and the like. His worn out suit helped him gain easy access.

The other option for him was to watch the mouth-watering dishes from a distance and then go home and to bed on an empty stomach.

Lalit Raizada is a journalist based in India.