Encroachment

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I am always shocked how the temples in Mumbai start occupying more and more space and more and more followers. The one at Shivaji Park one of the rare open spaces in the heart of Mumbai has one such temple. It started as a real small shrine then a bigger one. Some years back more renovation and more garden space encroached into. Then they cemented the area around.Then shoe racks were added, then some benches and area to sit with potted plants. Now you have hawkers selling flowers and prasad. Shivaji on the horse is confined to a dark iron railing,hardly seen with all the temple expansion.
Near my house at the turning, we have a small Shiva temple under a tree. Now it is marble, it has four large pillars, a red and white fancy canopy. When they celebrate Shivratri, politician s sons come to attend it. The whole street is lit up in fairy lights. Temple decorated with orchids, gone are the days of gende ke phool or marigold. Dinner is provided to all who visit.Forgot to mention, the chawls near it are now SRA buildings. The nice thing is lets be grateful people are praying. The corner could have been infested with drug peddlers, consumers or God knows what. So am I supposed to be grateful for this encroachment for a good cause and who decides which cause is good?
Did i tell you that Tesu flower, the holi one, is called Palash in Hindi. An Aunt who read the blog in Dhanbad said so. Thank you. I liked Palash Sen music when he launched.
Mothers dont come to fetch their small children on time at the building gate when the school bus comes. I wonder what mettle are these mothers made of.
There are so many muncipal and convent schools on the way to Pranaya s school. All children look so happy when I see them from the bus. What happens to adults? Where does the smile, the playfulness and the bonhomie go?
Children talk of making a house bigger than Abhishek Bachhan s. They want to be chidren s doctor, swimming teacher, astronaut and pilot. Mine wants to be a stuntwoman and teach art to children.One of them asked me , what does Pranaya want to be when she grows up. That got me thinking.......Finally, I said an entrepreneur a business woman. Saara apna , apne bacche pe thop diya.Is that encroachment?
What do I really want to be????????????

Comments

  1. JaideepMarch 27, 2009 at 7:13 AM

    I remember a BA ad which said "Children walk to school, and run on the way back home"

    ReplyDelete
  2. MallikaMarch 28, 2009 at 5:48 AM

    Few lines by Khalil Gibran fm THE PROPHET
    He said,
    Your children are not your children,they are the sons and daughters of life's longing for itself.
    They come thru you but not from you,
    And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.
    Well written post by you. Keep it up.

    ReplyDelete

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