I LOST MY LIFE COMPANION SONIA ON HER 75TH BIRTHDAY - FEB 19, 2023

 VISITING PRIVATE PLACE OF WORSHIP IN MY NATIVE VILLAGE IN CHAMBA, HIMACHAL PRADESH, AFTER 66 YEARS

In 1956 when I was about 10 years old, I visited this quaint looking private place of worship in my ancestral village named Gungias in Tehsil Churah of Chamba district in Himachal Pradesh. My father's elder brothers Mahant Ram and Kesru Ram were the custodians of this little private family shrine located in the darkest corner of a ground-floor cowshed and performed pujas there on special occasions. I have very faint memories of my last visit there 66 years ago, so when I visited it this year on June 6, 2022, I was deeply excited.

When I entered the old cowshed, I noticed a cow and her calf tethered to wooden stakes near the entrance.They were clearly visible in the light coming in through the open door, but beyond them, it was pitch-dark in the windowless basement. I tried to locate the position of the little shrine in the gloomy corner, but to no avail. I even tried using the in-built torch in my mobile, but it was too dim to show anything. My nephew Madho asked to wait a moment and then returned from his house holding in his hand a powerful flashlight. He immediately shone it into the dark corner to reveal what I have captured here with a DSLR camera, using its in-built flashlight. It is not all that bright, but shows enough details which I have labelled for the convenience of my readers.

If my memory can be trusted, I recall being awfully scared whenever I visited this 'shrine' in company with my Tayaji (uncle). While performing puja, he would ignite resinous thin splinters of pinewood on an iron stand for light, burn raw dhoop (natural incense) in an earthen bowl, chant some incomprehensible prayer in local dialect, blow on a conch shell and conclude the ceremony by ringing the metallic bell repeatedly. 

Having seen those objects of puja after such a long time, it took me some time to identify and label them. As a student and teacher of languages, I now realize there was something pagan about this method of worship which scared me.

REVIEW OF THE ‘KINDRED’ BY ALPNA DAS SHARMA

Writing a story within the parameters of a writing contest on a specified theme is a challenge unto itself. Dr Alpna Das Sharma, however, has met the challenge with a fair amount of individual and original creativity. The plot is credible and contemporary with ample scope for an emotions-rich narrative. The first-person narrator Anish reaches the depth of his family secret by retracing the path to the origin of his dilemma beginning 5 years ago and haunting him relentlessly all those years.

The mandatory 5 characters Alpna has evolved in the story are the narrator’s elder sister Anya, his parents, the house-keeper at their ancestral home, doctors at the surrogacy clinic, salesman at the bakery, manager of the orphanage and, of course, his twin sister Anamika. The delineation of these characters is objective, unbiased and realistic. His parents are representatives of a generation of post-independence Indians who moved from small towns to metros in search of their dreams and made it big. His reclusive but artistically talented sister Anya with her cynical and sinister sense of humour is the stereotypical representative of the global generation of disillusioned youth – questioning, questing and quarrelsome. Being a conscious party to the family secret of her parents’ decision to beget an offspring through surrogacy has hurt and embittered Anya deeply to shape her into an individual that she is. Her embitterment gets further intensified when her parents abandon the girl child begotten as a twin sibling in their surrogacy venture. In my assessment, she is the most authentic and realistic character in the story.

The resolution of a family secret and the author’s plot ends on a positive note. The reunion of separated twin siblings results in a deeper bonding between the two. The psycho-emotional dilemmas tormenting all the characters in the story are decisively resolved.

Dr Alpna Das Sharma has succeeded in convincing me that there is a real ‘Kindred Café’ in the outskirts of Mussoorie run by partially identical twins Anish and Anamika where I intend to dine one day when the pandemic is over!       

May 4, 2020

The third phase of lock-down has started today.
It is now mandatory to wear a face mask if you go out to buy groceries and other essential items such as medicines and so on. I have started using a face mask a school student living in my neighbourhood has made for me. Wearing a mask is not a comfortable experience. I immediately remove it the moment I'm back home after visiting the market. Then I wash it along with my hands. My wife and our domestic help have made it a habit to wash all vegetables and fruit we bring home from the market.
During the second phase of lock-down, we were constantly updated about the magnitude of the pandemic all over the world through media. 
The most depressing scenario in the second phase of lock-down has been the plight of millions of migrant workers returning to their native States in whichever way they can -- mostly walking. It wrenches one's heart to see these people trudging homeward like zombies. There is no effective system or mechanism to help them in their plight. It is all senseless disorder and chaos. Administration has failed completely in putting into place an effective system to deal with the grave situation created by mass migration of workers to their home States.

                                                                                        Picture Credit: aljazeera.com  

April 14, 2020

The first phase of lock-down is over. The second phase begins tomorrow.
Things changed drastically during lock-down phase one. 'Stay home, stay safe' became the mantra.
Everything except grocery and vegetable shops is closed. 
I have been venturing out to these shops once or twice a week. Most of the roads in my town are now partially blocked with concertina wire fences manned round the clock by stern-faced cops wearing face masks. I did not wear a face mask during the first lock-down phase, but stood obediently inside one of the chalk circles marked outside grocery and vegetable shops to maintain social distance.  
During the lock-down phase one, I kept myself busy with some photography, reading, browsing social media and online newspapers and watching news on TV. 
All online newspapers and TV news channels have nothing else but Covid-19. Data and statistics, both local and global. Reports on exodus of jobless migrant workers from metros and other places to their own villages and towns in UP, Bihar, West Bengal, Odisha, Jharkhand, Rajasthan and elsewhere. People walking on foot in the absence of buses and trains. A grim scenario. What has lock-down phase two in store for the world? 
The upside to the lock-down is the reduction in pollution levels all over the country. With reduced vehicular movement and closure of pollution emitting industries, the air ambience has turned pure and clean, making it possible to enjoy the view of Dhauladhar mountains in Himachal Pradesh visible from Jalandhar city in Panjab.

   

 

THOUGHTS, MUSINGS AND REFLECTIONS ON 2020 AD AS A LANDMARK YEAR

March 25, 2020

I turned 74 on March 22, 2020.
Like always, my birthday this year too did not hold the promise of a celebration.
But then, living in this age of social media, I take it for granted that many of my Facebook friends would plaster birthday messages on my timeline using worn-out cliches. I also do exactly the same on their birthdays.
On my birthday this year, I found out in the afternoon that there was no liquor in the house. So I went out to the nearest liquor store and found it closed. Somewhat surprised, I asked a shop-keeper why it was closed. He told me that the government had shut down all liquor shops with immediate effect owing to corona virus pandemic that had hit the entire world.
So I went home and did not have my usual evening drink before dinner. Not having it on my birthday did not upset me at all because I don't celebrate my birthday with a drink.
From today onward, the country has gone into the first phase of lock-down.
I know there would be no liquor during the lock-down, but I'm not upset about it.
I like my drink, but I am no alcoholic.

***

SAACH PASS VISIT 2016
Saach Pass is the toughest pass in Himachal Pradesh. It is higher than the famed Rohtang Pass in Manali Region. It stands at an altitude of 14530 ft. in district Chamba. The pass leads the way to Pangi tribal valley.
The road to the pass in a rough dirt road flanked by ice walls.
Here are some pictures of the area.