Paaassshttt!!!

Its been a really long time since I wrote anything on my blog....but the idea for this posting has been in my mind for a very long time now....

Happened to catch up with a few relatives of mine today...n I was amazed at how ignorant I was of stuff happening in and around me for the past coupla months....

Blame it on sheer laziness or an overdose of assessments or the longing to do a whole lotta other stuff(hehehe...I can almost smell the fumes out of Shila n Pravs:))....

These relatives comprise of an old couple....n a not so old couple....our topics of conversations ranged from adulteration in food..to how the times have changed from what they used to be in the past....to how expensive things r these days.....did u know that 1 kg of sona masooori rice costs close to 40 bucks or about how our children actually grow up exposed to sooo much of pollution....adulteration.....work related ailments......

I was updated on how apples were waxed or as to how the dhania powder u use to cook...could actually have crushed wood...not to forget the grapes or the other vegetables....that are loaded with pesticides...n about the amount of lead and chromium ...in the food that we eat these days...or about the use of chemicals to give the vegetables...a farm fresh look n feel.......n I was wondering....How come I was sooo ignorant of all this or was it just that I accept these things as a part of the FAST life these days...n dont really care anymore!!

Thats when my relatives told me that way back in the 60s and the 70s....things were so much better..they were always used to eating stuff...that was fresh...healthy....n naturally pure....with hardly any traces of adulteration....

When I listen to them speak....I must confess that my mind always starts off with a Black n White Movie scene....where in I am imagining them young..I must admit...I always imagine the ladies to be these beautiful elegant ppal.... do all the things that they would start talking about:)

N somehow all my scenes have cycles in the background... n all the ladies wearing kajal with those pointed leads:).... n ofcourse all of them in sarees.... n the roads deserted...rivers everywhere....very few human beings around...at any given point of time:)

They spoke about the times when a decent house in B'lore used to cost 30 bucks a month....tomato ..10paise per kg .... rice ..90 paise per kg....

They spoke of times when they used to travel long distances....as cars were a luxury ...buses rare....ferries...common....ya..ya...this story has its background in Kerala atleast for now.....

I love listening to stories that my parents narrate from their childhood.....stories of how they used to live together with all their cousins n aunts n uncles together in one single house ...truly living up to the joint family system....the wonderful times spent ....playing with cousins....the kind of bonding that they shared ......or the kind of upbringing that they had...d funtimes spent in scaling mango trees or jackfruit trees...till date....my sis n me...chide my mother to her everlasting love for these fruits...or about the amount of joy ...she takes in ripping a jackfruit apart...n making wonderful "ada"...which is a jackfruit+jaggery+rice powder n ofcourse COCONUT dish....or jackfruit jam...or jackfruit chips......

I am told when my mother was 18 months old.....being an adventurous kid that she was...had ventured into the kitchen all by herself...n had gulped the hot n spicy fish curry kept in the kitchen...n when the elders went looking for her...found her ..teary eyed...n still licking the dish:)...n till date...they tease my mother about this incident......n r shell-shocked to hear that my mother gave up on fish....nearly 15 years ago!!

Or about the times...my mother ...in yet another adventure....once went venturing onto the terrace all by herself ...when she was hardly one...n had to be rushed down....by watchful neighbours.....I was wondering.....when I was asked ..the name of my tenants by a relative....all I mouthed back was that ....I dont know!!....All this after they have been staying @ my place for over a year now....

My mother narrates stories of how they used to always bathe in the rivers...or how learning to swim....was a matter of survival.....Today that river is sooo polluted that no1 dares go anywhere close to it!!

She tells us that they used to walk close to around 25-30 kms in a day to reach the closest school...or about how they had to manage errands at home....n schoolwork ....all through their teenage years.....

To think that...in those days...there was no TV...no mobile....no mixie...no grinder...I can go on...n on...But life was simple.....Time was aplenty.....n relationships....strong.....

I am told...u just walk into anybody's kitchen...n grab what you want to eat....n for that matter...everybody in the village knew the other way too well!!

When I walk with my grandmother down the streets of Kerala..a ten minutes walk to the temple ...actually takes about half an hour....coz by the time...my grandmother is done enquiring about the welfare of everybody who crosses our path or after they are done quizzing my grandmother..if I was Vijaya's(my mother's name) daughter..n about the striking resemblance v shared....n about what I was doing...n about how my sister was finding Mumbai...there are times when I have wondered that helllloo....they know sooo much about me....n ...I fail to even recognize them.....Imagine doing this...when many a times...their very first question is.."Ariyo"...meaning"Do you know me?"!!!

After my parents moved to B'lore...as my father was offered a transfer from Allahabad to B'lore....n they were delighted ...coz it was closer home(Kerala) than Allahabad was!!

U should hear the way my Amma sums up the expenses they had to bear on a monthly basis....or about the outings they used to take....or about the times she used to spend understanding the language here...n d ways n manners of the ppal here....

Imagine an eighteen year old....who has never stepped out of Kerala.......n finds herself in namma Bengalooru.....taken to watch a Kannada movie.....n still manages to get a foothold of whats happening in the story...ya..ya..the movie was "Ondhu Kanasu"....thanks to the acting calibre n prowess of the leading pair....

She claims to have walked over fields.....which BTW is ur Mathikere area now.....to get my sister to school....n back....

Thats when she bonded with the other kid's mothers.....who used to take care of my sister....when I was born...n when my mother used to be in the hospital....

Y did I write sooo much....about the past....simply coz I made the mistake of comparing it with mine till date:)