Bihari Sandwich

The state of Bihar, bordered by two other ancient centers of religion, namely Uttar Pradesh in the west and Nepal in the north, was once a land of culture, learning and prosperity. In contemporary India, it has grown infamous for its crippled human and economic situation, resulting in wide-spread crime and corruption. Regrettably the following joke is politically incorrect.

While in Bodh Gaya, we stopped at a small café-restaurant for a snack — two cheese tomato sandwiches and a bottle of coke. It took a fair half an hour for the sandwiches to come around. Waiting for the meal, we went all philosophical and finally solved the grand riddle:

How many Biharis does it take to make a sandwich, and why does it take so long?

First Bihari takes the order.
Second Bihari checks the order against available ingredients.
Third Bihari goes to steal some toast.
Fourth Bihari goes to steal some tomatos.
Fifth Bihari goes to steal some cheese.
Sixth Bihari goes to steal some butter.
Seventh Bihari makes the sandwich.
Eighth Bihari steals the ready sandwich.
Ninth Bihari apprehends the sandwich thief.
Tenth Bihari begins to beat him up.
Eighth Bihari threatens to call the police.
Sixth and seventh Bihari laugh like never before.
Eighth Bihari bribes tenth Bihari to stop the beating.
Ninth Bihari insists on receiving a commission.
Eleventh Bihari recovers the sandwich and brings it to the counter.
Twelfth Bihari picks it up and serves it to your table.

The entire process takes twelve Biharis and thirty something minutes. The amount and value of ingredients may extend delivery time, as expensive ingredients may attract theft already in the production phase, and therefore lost ingredients need to sometimes be re-stolen before the meal can be completed.