E-Paper
Those were the days
What is it about Delhi monsoon that makes you feel so nostalgic? I remember the time when almost everyone I knew enjoyed fresh lunch that consisted of ‘fulkas’ with ‘desi ghee’ dripping off the edges and a big piece of ‘aam ka achar’. Anuya Ulpe writes.
What is it about Delhi monsoon that makes you feel so nostalgic? I remember the time when almost everyone I knew enjoyed fresh lunch that consisted of ‘fulkas’ with ‘desi ghee’ dripping off the edges and a big piece of ‘aam ka achar’. The grown-ups ate onions and green chillies with hot ‘fulkas’.
There was something about those lunches that has not left our lives even today. I don’t know anyone who gorges on ‘fulkas’ or mango pickles these days. Today, lunch is complete only if it is a fancy three-course meal followed by a sweet dish. For entertainment, we have the idiot box on high volume, exhibiting people with culinary or feet-tapping skills put to a rigorous test. The more intense the competition gets, the more we gulp down.
And, yes, those lovely chirping sounds. Where are those sparrows that used to play around with their never-ending chirpings? And then those lazy afternoons as we listened to Jagjit Singh and old Bollywood melodies. There was something very comforting and calming about the noontime sounds. The voices on the FM almost became the voice of our conscience.
There was no sense of haste, yet we made the most of the day. Even though our routine was predictable, we looked forward to it. We had the weekly Sri Krishna and Mahabharat ki Katha to give us all the entertainment we needed. These programmes were our daily dose of much-needed divine wisdom. On the other hand, we kids woke up to the antics of Tom & Jerry day after day. That was our daily wake-up call! The day didn’t get a jumpstart until Jerry had kicked Tom’s behind.
Years later now, every time we stand in the kitchen watching our ‘fulkas’ blow up on the pan, not only do we miss the sultry days but also the blaring radio. The ‘lovelorn’ mango pickle sits on the shelf out of our reach, ‘gaping’ at us. The innocence of the animated tomfoolery no more marks our day. That is just one of many things we have left behind.
