A Small Sankranti Souvenir!

The phone started beeping incessantly a day earlier with notifications. Messages were pouring in from enthusiastic well-wishers who wanted to be the first to wish you on  Makar Sankranti. There were lovely images of kites, til and gud laddoos (traditional sweets made with sesame seeds and jaggery on Sankranti), haldi-kumkum, flowers, sugarcane, and other related items associated with this festival. On the day of the festival, there was a tsunami of much more of the same. 

Notwithstanding the frenetic activity on the phone, my mind wandered back to the time when Sankranti meant visiting relatives and friends on a cool January day, touching the feet of elders and receiving til-gud laddoos or barfis from them along with the friendly refrain: til gul ghya, goad goad bola (take til gul and talk sweetly).

If a family had had a wedding or the birth of a baby in the months preceding this festival, then the new bride or the new baby would be adorned with jewellery made using halwa (small spiky balls made by coating sesame seeds with sugar syrup on low heat for a long time, a laborious process as the stirring is done using one's fingers). The whiter and spikier the halwa, the better. The bride would usually wear a black saree--otherwise taboo on auspicious occasions--and the white ornaments would stand out beautifully on that.

Sometimes, a kind relative living in a distant town would send a few balls of halwa sealed in a plastic bag kept inside a postal envelope. What fun it was to open that envelope, read the hand-written letter and relish the sweet!

Neighbourhood ladies used to exchange clay pots filled with fresh green peas, sugarcane pieces, ber, and other seasonal fruits and vegetables. It was wonderful to lay your hands on one of these and enjoy the winter goodies. Ladies would also exchange small items of personal or household use as gifts. Bangles, combs, soaps, hair clips, safety pins, pens, postage stamps, inland letters. There used to be a great deal of excitement and anticipation surrounding these gifts.

Such simple times! What makes these memories precious are the personal interactions when wishing someone on an auspicious day. There is always space for these memories. No need to delete them, unlike the ones we keep deleting from our phones every now and then lest their storage space is full!

Delhi In January: Rajpath Beckons!

Delhi is in the grip of the harshest phase of winter. Not just nights, but even the days are very cold. Sometimes the sun does not appear for days together. It is hard to do one's routine chores as everything seems to take twice as much time. Your fingers and toes go numb and the shivering doesn't stop. There is no let up in the foggy conditions. An occasional winter shower of rain worsens the misery of those who cannot bear with this weather. The sun is very much sought after, having lost its ferocity of the summer months. People are seen huddling in a small patch of sun-if they are lucky enough to find one-just outside their homes, on footpaths, in parks or just about anywhere. The roadside tea stalls do brisk business. A hot cup of tea is welcome any time of the day.

The month of January brings with it Lohri which is a fun festival that marks the beginning of the end of winter. Traditionally a harvest festival, it is celebrated by farmers in Punjab and Haryana. Delhi is not far and Lohri is very much a part of the festive calendar in the city. It brings joy to those who are weary of the chilly season, for celebration involves singing and dancing around a bonfire. Now nothing can be more welcome than a warm bonfire and the customary good food associated with this particular festival. Families and friends get together and relish sweets made with sesame seeds and jaggery, roasted peanuts, popcorn, makke ki roti and sarson ka saag.

The majestic Rajpath gets ready for the biggest spectacle of the year. Preparations start well ahead of time. One can see workers busy at putting up some structures on both sides of this splendid avenue months before the event. They are erecting stands where spectators sit for watching the grand Republic Day Parade. The imposing Rashtrapati Bhavan, South Block, North Block and the entire Rajpath all the way up to the impressive India Gate wears a festive look as the day approaches.

Photo by Antônio Milena, CC-BY-3.0-br

Most of us have been watching the Parade on TV for many years. I managed to watch it live from the Rajpath only once. You have to start really early, leave your car at a faraway parking lot and walk the rest of the distance to your designated seat. There are strict security checks and one is not allowed to carry anything to the venue. There is excitement in the air as people dressed in colourful woollens take their seats waiting eagerly for the Parade to begin.

Photo by Antônio Milena, CC-BY-3.0-br

The homage to the unknown soldier at the Amar Jawan Jyoti under the India Gate, the smart march past by various regiments of the Armed Forces, incredible stunts on motorbikes by daredevil military personnel, National Bravery Award-winning children seated ceremoniously on elephants, attractive floats from various states, energetic dances by school children and the spectacular flypast by Air Force aircraft are all familiar images etched on our collective memory. It sure is an exhilarating experience to be there when the Republic Day Parade progresses down the Rajpath on a cool winter morning in Delhi.

Photo by Amit Kumar CC-BY-SA-3.0

Equally uplifting is the Beating Retreat Ceremony held at the sprawling Vijay Chowk three days after the Republic Day. It marks the end of the Republic Day celebrations. It is a beautiful ceremony that starts in the late afternoon and ends at dusk. Military bands play martial tunes and other compositions with such energy that they echo in your mind long after the event is over. The ceremony ends with the magnificent buildings on Raisina Hills being lit up just when the sun is about to set. A truly magical and memorable way to draw curtains on the Republic Day festivities.