Author: Archana

Once a Physiotherapist now a Wordsmith. Field Botanist. Bonsai. Proud Indian. Fauji Wife. Doting Mother and Mother-in-law. Devoted Grandmother. Reluctant Cook. Happiest on a road less travelled. 60s are the new 40s ;-)
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Sacred Groves (Devrai)

My first visit to a Devrai (as sacredgroves are called in Maharashtra) was both scary and exhilarating. Scary because I was walking over a thick carpet of dead leaves not knowing what lay or lived underneath with the sunlight barely filtering to the ground throughthe dense tree canopy. Exhilarating because I had the opportunity to see decades old trees that had survived Man’s relentless tree cutting due to unshaken faith in the residing deity in that forest. Some trees looked so huge that the cement statue was possibly installed later… So what came first, the idol or the trees?? 

The sequence is immaterial, the preservation of species is what matters.This has happened because according to folklore one is not supposed to take away anything from a devrai, no flowers, leaves, twigs, seeds.. nothing. That may have helped protect these trees from being destroyed in the insidiously growing cement jungle and kept it out of the clutches of the money-minded “land lobby”.



Loth, a tree seen in a devrai near Pune

Vatoli


The only sounds to be heard were our feet crunching on the leaves, birds chirping as they possibly discussed our presence in the devrai with their brethren(friend or foe?) and insects that set up the ocassional crescendo ending in an abrupt silence. The silence compelled us to stop meaningless discussions and focus on the beauty that lay before us.
 
Next time you are driving on a high way, do take time to walk through one and let the pervading peace seep into your very soul.
Visit these links to learn more about sacred groves in India and their locations:
http://www.ecoheritage.cpreec.org/innerpageof.php?$mFJyBfKPkE6
http://edugreen.teri.res.in/explore/forestry/groves.htm
Cheers!

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Here they come…

Come September and my eyes are uncontrollably drawn to the stately Buccha trees that soar up to five storeys high… Its the blooming season for Millingtonia hortensis, locally called Buccha. There are several Buccha trees on my daily walk/cycling route and these are just about breaking into their first blooms. The next couple of months promise to be a fragrant delight for all those walking/ living near this tree…

According to the book “Trees of Pune” this is an exotic tree originating in Burma. Yet they grow quite comfortably in Pune and in plenty, with most trees lining our main streets… The tube like flowers can be easily woven (pleated) into a veni (like a small garland) . Millingtonia hortensis belongs to the Bignoniaceae family and rarely fruits in Pune but I am told that fruiting does occur in Mumbai.

One shower or a strong breeze and the white flowers come drizzling down, a beautiful sight resembling a shower of stars!! Walking is a pleasure while Buccha is in bloom and every morning there is a veritable flower carpet under the tree.

Am I going overboard with this description? I dont think so. If you haven’t already noticed this lovely blossom then do so…. you will not be disappointed!
Cheers!

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Ganesha in our lives

2011 Ganesheshotsav in Pune was marked by heavy rains and a river in spate for over 3 days in a row. That is not something fresh in our memories. Inflation, security issues, poor roads not withstanding people celebrated with gusto either by bringing home the Ganesh idol or in a community celebration in their neighbourhood.

While the Mutha River is a trickle for the best part of the year, environmental activists cry themselves hoarse about pollution and disregard for whatever water does flow there. This reaches a cresendo in this festival as tradition requires the idol to be immersed. The debate begins right from the type of idol rather the material from which it is made- idols made from ‘shadu chi mati‘ (a type of river mud) are said to be the appropriate ones and they are supposed to dissolve easily when immersed. The other popular material is Plaster of Paris and idols made of this may not dissolve. This not only creates a religious issue of semi dissolved and water soaked idols that have to disposed off later but the water is said to get polluted. The ‘nirmalya‘ or floral offerings have to disposed off as well.
Most people have accepted the idea of recycling and do give the nirmalya at special collection boxes kept for the purpose. But idols is another story. We noticed an interesting phenomenon at one visarjan ghat today:
The approach to the river was lined on both sides with placard bearing activists: those on my right urged people to immerse idols in the specially built ‘howd‘ (water tanks) and those on the left urged immersion in the river. Personnel from the Fire Brigade were at hand to actually immerse the idols in water.
While official figures will be known later, for the half hour that we spent, most people chose to opt for the River. The two photos below speak for themselves.
Most immersions ther were of small idols (usually of individuals or families) or slightly bigger ones (probably a community celebration) and probably the situation may have been different later, we were there quite early at around 3PM.
I know of families who immerse the idol at home itself (the ones made of shadu chi mati). They claim it dissolves in a couple of hours and they use the water in their plants and for neighbourhood trees. The nirmalya is recycled at home itself.
Ganesha is the Sukhkarta, Dukhaharta,Vighnaharta .
After 11 days, we miss him at home.
Ganapati Bappa Moraya, Pudhachya varshi lavkar ya!
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Fishy encounter

This was on fishy encounter where the enjoyment has continued for a long time…
Let me explain.
For days we meant to visit a restaurant called Masemari on Tilak Road (it belongs to Lalan Sarang- an eminent actress in Marathi theatre) and specialises in coastal Maharashtrian fish cuisine. Somehow the thought of reaching the crowded congested Tilak Road had successfully sent us to other eating joints in the city.

However on this particular day we set off on our two wheeler determined to net this catch!!
Masemari situated a few steps off Tilak Road (near Hotel Girija) and we could park right outside the hotel itself but the by lanes had plenty of empty space. This seemed like a good start (oh yes it was, just read till the end…)

There is a fairly big model of a ship on the gate which was quite clear in the dark but may be interesting at daytime. Being Shravan, there wasn’t much of a rush.

The restaurant is not very big and is quite cozy. The wall decorations leave you in no doubt of its food specialty! While I knew of some Konkani food preparations I was not quite prepared for this huge range. The staff was both courteous and knowledgeable about their offerings. They helped clear our confusion and we finalised our order. Sol kadhi was a must, Pomphret and butter garlic Mussels followed accompanied by Vade and Amboli. We wanted to order more but there is only so much that two persons can consume however tasty it may be…

I heavily recommend all fish lovers to vist this restaurant. They deliver at home in a three kilometer radius.

Here is the best part.. I reviewed this restaurant on Zomato (we had referred to this website for the address) and I WON the weekly prize in their Write for a Bite review contest!
This has encouraged me to try out new restaurants and yes review them as well.
You can too. Visit Zomato.com
Enjoy!

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Corruption in our daily lives…

Any newspaper, TV channel that we currently turn to is in an reporting -overdrive about Anna Hazare’s fast and the youth ‘involvement’ that is sweeping the country. I am not qualified to comment about the Jan Lokpal or its government version. However as an ordinary citizen I have faced situations that demanded ‘Laxmi darshan’ or similar to expedite any work I may have.

Let me elaborate.
The commonest one that each one of us probably is guilty of is ‘making deals with God’ when our wish is fulfilled. This may mean a visit to the particular place of worship, offerings (in the form of cash in the hundi/coconut etc), lighting candles/offering a ‘chadar’, some people walk (for several kilometers) to the temple and so on. The offerings vary subject to the ‘size’ of the wish granted and deep pockets of the recipient!
We had offered a pooja at small temple (the residing deity was claimed to fulfill devotees wishes) outside our base in Assam when we finally received our luggage after two months. The truck was delayed and its owner simply could not trace it. It had all our earthy possessions and their loss would have set us back by a princely sum. Besides spending huge amounts on STD (this was way before the current telecom revolution) we really could not do anything. More about that another time..
Coming back to my point, what are we to consider such offerings as? Or is this to be excused as its not made to a living person?
We often pay a few hundred rupees at government offices to ‘hasten’ our work. Pay a couple of hundred to avoid the ‘test’ prior to a learning (driving) license, add a few blue/green/ red notes to the designated amount to ‘facilitate’ easy registration of property, avoid paying a fine when driving through a red signal and so on… We justify these as saying that the agent makes some money and we are actually helping provide a livelihood to someone. Sounds a bit far fetched but yes, I have heard these arguments.
Come election day (either for state or central or local level) many people (this includes those other than in the ‘youth’ category) take off for a weekend break or holiday and do not vote. ‘What difference does it make?’, ‘Will my vote make any difference?’ are some reasons to justify this flight from exercising their duty. Some claim that we need electoral reforms. When a particular doctor’s treatment fails to provide relief to our complaints, we change the doctor. Politically, voting is one way to make a change.
Anna’s fast has driven India’s youth and middle class away from their AC offices/ homes furnished with newly gained affluence onto the street to raise a voice against the corruption menace. I hope it forces them to think and think hard about corruption. I would like to see this ‘josh’ sustained into the future, much after the current matter is resolved.
The new law (in whatever form) will work on larger issues but what about our daily lives. Are we ready to make sacrifices, face hardships just so we don’t pay anything under the table? Are we ready to pay the fine for our vehicle not having a valid PUC certificate? Are we ready to stand in queues for a domicile certificate and ready for it being rejected?
My apprehensions about corruption were totally unjustified when we re-entered civil life after our stint in the Services. We could get whatever licenses, agreements we needed without greasing any palms. Of course it meant repeated trips, standing in queues but we received our documents before our Patience snapped. That experience only restored my faith in the system.
Those following global developments will agree that foreign and western ‘rich’ nations face corruption as well (it may take different forms). While many readily point accusatory fingers at India and our systems, its for us, to repair any faults. If we don’t do so, who will?
Its when each one of us (ok let me not be ambitious- lets keep that most of us) vows not to grease palms, not to use money to expedite our work that Anna’s agitation will have long lasting meaning and make a fundamental change in our though processes.

Does this sound too simplistic? Probably yes. But small wins will add up to huge gains. Else it will be like having beautiful house thats being eaten up from inside by white ants. Or a lovely attractive physical body being eaten up by diabetes and heart disease.

Before I end, this is a good time to recap the inspiring timeless ad by Times of India:
Tum Chalo Toh Hindustan Chale. Watch it here (at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?)v=pFs5vWxW-vc
Jai Hind!
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Street food surprises

We have been reading and drooling about street food delicacies available in Pune during the holy month of Ramzan. Never really made the effort of actually going out to sample the goodies. Last week however it was Determination with a capital D that drove us away from our computers and out on the streets.

The article in Sakaal served as a starting point and after consulting Google ‘Baba’ for local maps, we zeroed in on Babajaan chowk in Camp…

We reached there just as the last rays of the sun disappeared from the horizon. Camp with its low rise British era buildings was bathed in a warm golden glow. The determined would be dazzled by the glimpse of the changing colours of the Shravan evening sky, that is, if you could tear your eyes away from dodging kamikaze two and four wheeler traffic..

While we had a general idea of its location, asking shopkeepers and cart vendors was unavoidable. They probably thought we were gluttons of the worst kind, who kept asking for ‘biryani kuthe milel?’ (where can we get biryani?).

Hence the sight of the covered pandal and wafting aromas at Babajaan chowk reassured the surging gastric juices that a return to varan bhaat was not imminent!

My apprehensions about cleanliness were largely unfounded (for the time and day of our visit). Various stalls were arranged in the periphery with several seating arrangements in the centre along with the cashier and coupon seller. One could consult the menu with him or better still, take a walk around the stalls and check out what was on offer. In our case, we ended up getting more confused as to what we wanted to eat. Finally one could only consume so much and importantly our trip was self sponsored! So indulging on dishes we did not want to eat was out of question!

There were kababs of many kinds all sizzling and spattering on coal beds. Aromas from the biryanis and kebabs and rotis and parathas of different kinds rose up to engulf and smother us. They competed as it were to be on our order list! And the meal was completed with delicious phirni and doodhi halwa!

Some difficult decisions finally made, we got our food packed and headed home though eating there was not uninviting. Prices were reasonable and the experience was ‘priceless’!

Before Id, do make it a point to check out these khau galli’s, you will be pleasantly surprised!

Other areas you can explore are Rasta Peth and near Azam campus.

Yenjoy!
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Music to our ears

Its been a long long time since my last post! And I have been shaken out of my lethargy by some really outstanding news, information that I would like to share with those who may not have already read about it.

Music lovers its time to rejoice again!

While we have been moaning about the demise of WorldSpace Satellite Radio, activities were on behind the scenes. This online article on VCC circle (http://www.vccircle.com/500/news/timbre-media-to-ring-in-%E2%80%98worldspace-radio%E2%80%99-once-again) has brought back the smile to our faces, cheered the heart and generally got most of us in a thoroughly upbeat mood.

A newly formed Bangalore-based company Timbre Media will soon start broadcasting music as we knew and loved on WorldSpace. Formed by a dedicated group of ex-WorldSpace personnel, the company will deliver music to us via the broadband Internet, DTH and cable. Their efforts are indeed commendable as they have gone great lengths to get this project off the ground. This is another article on the topic (http://business.in.com/article/tipoff/worldspace-radio-is-back/26912/1).

Of course this means we can now freely sell our old WorldSpace antennae and receivers as scrap as that equipment will be useless here. But who’s complaining?

The joy of listening to uninterrupted ad-free radio is what most erstwhile-WorldSpace subscribers will willingly take up.
This is indeed music to our ears!
Cheers!

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Sinhagad (again)

Sinhagad holds a special place in the hearts of Punekars and I dont mean for its history. If one has not been there, its simply not done. And I do not mean driving up in a vehicle to this hill located at about 25kms from the city. Nah! That’s for non-Punekars! Any self respecting Pune resident will climb up the about 800m (please recheck for precise figure).

Note: its a good idea to double click and view these images…
We had not ‘logged’ a visit for a long time and could finally trek up only recently. The climb up and down was as exhilarating as always. However this time I did find several interesting developments…

For a start the base was swarming with cars with no space to park even at 630AM. This probably is a good sign of people preferring the outdoors… The path that leads up now boasts of solar powered lamps. These must be tremendously useful for several Sinhagad enthusiasts who go up as early at 530AM. You see the true Sinhagad ‘fans’ take the first early morning bus from Swargate, climb up and then come down to the fort- in time to board a bus on its return journey.

As soon as you reach the top the vendors tempt you with dahi, buttermilk, roasted bhutta, nimbu pani, groundnuts, mangoes and cucumbers – all of which I must add are excellent to revive an exhausted trekker! Further ahead one can savour pithla bhakri, bhajee.

Over the years their offerings have remained the same. I cannot say if this a success of desi over FMCG but the cost to transport packaged goods to the peak and then manually carry them to stalls cannot be an attractive proposition for marketers. You see, despite a tarred road going up to the top of Sinhagad, one has to walk all the way inside.

These vendors physically carry their ingredients on their shoulders or head to their stalls so visitors can enjoy a piping hot meal. This dissuaded us from arguing about the price of a cup of tea or dahi!

Looking around I was pleasantly surprised to find the area quite clean, no garbage and surprisingly was free of the usual unpleasant odours. I did not peer into the valleys or the undergrowth but that surely must have had a wonderful plastic collection! But I did find signs that Homo sapiens have not lost their ability to damage nature- note the engraving on the Agave.

The climb down is tougher than going up, or may be as tough. If you are lucky you can get ride downhill in a jeep. All in all, a trek up is highly recommended in this season or the next for that matter!
Dont delay!
Ciao!

This is the link to my earlier post about Sinhagad: https://yenforblue.com/2008/04/sinhagad-calling.html

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The big fat Indian wedding…

May is the wedding season for us Maharashtrians… The wedding ceremony itself may have withstood the test of time but that’s about all. Everything else related to weddings is nothing like what was seen probably about 60 years ago. The event is totally ‘nationalised’ for want of another word as celebrations are spread over many days with tid bids added from wedding festivities of other states. So now we have a dedicated ‘mehendi’ some even have ‘sangeet‘ something quite unknown in this area- during weddings at least (and I don’t mean the barat)!

Prime time telly serials have increased our exposure to such events (though I am told some Hindi serials increasingly portray stories about Marathi families) and hey why not! As most families now have one or two kids, there is every reason to ‘celebrate’ in this manner. Splurging on flowers, clothes, jewelery and food seems the order of the day…

An upcoming wedding means women may go on a crash diet to best show off their zari and crepes and are not keen to lose it all in the high-calorie, deep-fried, sugar rich menus that such events usually offer. Others may have ‘weighty’ issues like diabetes, cholesterol (an increasingly common condition among Indians) hence again will not really ‘tuck into’ meals. Gone are the days when the hosts would go round to serve their guests – the exercise mostly consisted of them ‘coaxing’ (the closest possible English equivalent I can think for the Marathi word आग्रह) the protesting individual to eat some more of the sweet. So one often found the occasional guest ‘manfully’ demolishing a plateful of jalebis or several bowls of shrikhand while the ‘lucky’ others had long cleaned out their plates. Instead we now have buffets which has is own plus and minus points…

Most Maharashtrian weddings stick to our typical menu for the wedding lunch। Yet come reception time and most weddings offer a bewildering range of foods ranging from Italian, Chinese, north and south Indian delicacies, chaat, salad bar, fruit and desert spreads.

At some recent events, I found most guests had helped themselves to few preparations and some stalls were almost ignored. I shudder to think of the extent of leftovers at such events. Considering cost of food, is it really morally and ethically correct to be a party to such wastage? Are we worried about being called as ‘less hospitable’ if we offer fewer but well-prepared dishes? Are these ostentatious food spreads meant to be some kind of a statement about our social or economic status?

Do we have the ‘courage’ to stand apart from the crowd?
These are difficult questions with even more difficult answers.
But they demand some introspection…
All the best!

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Take a break…

Konkan has emerged as a popular weekend getaway for people from western Maharashtra and those from other parts as well. The west coast of Maharashtra is well known for its beaches and mangoes and cashews and temples. That’s for tourists. Konkan is a rich bio diverse habitat and there are over 1500 endemic species growing here. Despite being quite near we had never managed to visit that coastal belt other tourist destinations always won hands down..

So when the first opportunity presented itself in form of a study tour to the Konkan I did not hesitate for a second.

And there we were a motley group of nature lovers right from over 60 years-young to twenty something-years old. Armed with sturdy shoes, caps, water bottles, lens’, cameras, field guides and most of all knowledgeable instructors, we trudged across hill and vale, sand and stone in the blazing May noon sun, We looked at and learnt about the majestic tall and at times small flora growing there. Each told its own story, held its own place in the history of the evolution of the plant kingdom. Even a tiny pool of water on a depression on a rock held a tiny ecosystem.

As they say, to really ‘find’ good material for a bonsai, the place to look is not the front rows of nursery plant displays. One has to check out the trees languishing at the back that no one really bothers about. Similarly to see diverse habitats and plant types, move away from the tourist attractions on a beach to the low tide, near the rocks and the edge of the sand. And then see what treasure awaits you!

The bare rock was a lateritic plateau that was seemingly bare. Note ‘seemingly’. One shower was all it will take to get the hidden herbs to spring to life. The monsoon months are said to be a pure delight with a changing colourful kaleidoscope every week as each and every plant blooms. The same phenomenon is seen at Kaas pathar- an otherwise bare stony region.

And how can one forget mangoes? and cashews? Several residents of Konkan have thrown open their homes or some have created spaces specifically for ‘city folk’ so as to get a ‘taste’ of living among mango trees – inside a mango grove…

Many villages in India have what are called ‘sacred groves’ (devrai). Its a subtle method to conserve nature and biodiversity. We did walk through a couple of them and the experience is quite something. There are parts where the sunlight does not reach the soil even as the air is filled with bird and insect sounds. Clamber over rocks, several inches thick layers of dead leaves and twigs to reach an amazing buttressed roots of Ficus nervosa or a dry looking fern called Dryneria or orchids blooming unassumingly high on tree branches, just to name a few…

The bottom line: do visit foreign lands, other parts of India but before that take your next holiday to visit the interiors of your own state and try to understand local culture. There is much to learn…
Cheers!

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