Life is easy kya karein

I am no bra burning feminist. Actually this bra burning is a western concept. In India, lot of places  the Saree was a complete garment, not worn with blouse or petticoat. Why am I talking all this is because I went to some undergarments shops in my area. When I was in my teens, my mother and Aunt used to buy undergarments for me in Jharia and Dhanbad. I was not taken to the store and neither did I want to go to buy it. My Aunt chose the size and pattern and that was the best. The shops had no trial rooms. If you did not like the stuff, you had to go back again to return it. I do not know if they asked for any explanations for the return of the undergarment. In south Mumbai, where my college and hostels were, it was very easy to go and buy. Salesmen showed you and there was a trial room. The bras were cotton . We only wore white. Black were few and considered sexy but did not match with most clothes. Black was not so much in fashion back then in India. We never wore matching sets...

Saat Aasra Manmala Mandir is a place I cross every day. It is a Swayambhu temple.  Swayambhu loosely translated means self manifested. India has lots of temples where a stone or a Linga is worshipped and that form has just come from the earth. Years back, there was a Manmala tank  which was a pond near the temple. Now only a small well remains as a memory of the water body. I visit the temple often on my way back from Yog. The temple is kept very dirty at all times. I have actually had altercations with the priest asking him to keep the premise clean. He doesn't throw anything old from the temple. The cloth on the idols, the coconuts which are offered, old diyas, old rags, brooms, old tins, old pipes. All this is kept inside the main temple facing the Gods including the Pandit's dirty unwashed trousers. The Banyan tree inside the compound has been  half chopped. Every time I visit this temple, I get hassled. I go because I am religious and spiritual. I get upset and tell...

I go for the Yog class in the morning. One man who is not a teacher takes the prayers or Pranayam in the absence of the teacher. He was teaching some women students. He makes a lot of mistakes in conducting the class or taking the Pranayam. I told him a couple of times that his instructions were wrong and we could not follow his Marathi. On checking with a fellow student, she said it was not clear and his language was inappropriate. We did not like his body language and the way he went little closer to the students than required. The students whom he was teaching were okay with it. We both talked about how he was constantly looking at those women and how they had no issues with it. I told the main teacher about this. The main teacher said everyone makes mistakes when they start teaching. The man was instructed not to come to the women's side and teach them. This man did not want to teach the male students. We could see him pursuing his own Aasan after that.  In our class, eve...

Sounds have memories. The train whistle has very distinct memory for me.  Going to the Jharia railway station which was more like a 'Phatak' or a railway crossing. I think it was a goods train with two compartments added for the coal miners. This was after Satyanarayan mandir in Jharia. From our house, we had to cross 'Nal wali galli' which means a lane with a tap. It had some public taps for people to fill water and carry to their house. A narrow drain in the centre with clean water flowing. The lane was the cleaner of the lot in Jharia. I remember the sound of the water from the taps. As a child, the train whistle filled me with excitement. It meant a journey to a fun place. The train seemed like the only mode of transport to get out of the coalfield town. We went to drop people and receive people at the railway station. The whistle got more endorsed in the mind with the Hindi film song ' Gaadi bula rah hai, seeti baja rahi hai" . We sang this song for al...

My new pink Adidas sneakers got stolen from outside my house. I had kept them in the covered shoe rack outside the house. They were my most precious shoes. I loved them. The most comfortable pair I  ever possessed. I bought these shoes after hunting a lot in Hong Kong and trying a whole lot of brands. For me sports shoes have to be comfortable and look good. Most footwear follow one of the two criteria. Why is it always comfort versus good looks? I do not do any sports activity. My Yog class is very simple and we do not wear shoes for the class. I just use the sneakers when I have long walks to take. With children going to school in two different timings, walking as a form of exercise, is a luxury I cannot afford. Shoes are worn to go and buy vegetables from the market, walk back from the Dry Cleaners with a whole lot of laundry and newly washed curtains, carrying bag full of groceries. In these times, the sneakers protect my feet and give them a grip even on the semi wet pavemen...

I went to Shivaji Park after a long time. The bamboos are in place to make the Pujo Pandal. The Bengal Club is undergoing major repair work. Ma Kaali was taking her siesta amidst all the construction. I love the smell of cement and water. I can be in the space of construction. Simply love the knocking by the workers on the walls, the breaking, the repairing, the new coat of cement and the fresh coat of paint. In Paint, I like the smell of 'Chuna' which is lime. Earlier most shops and houses put 'Chuna' with a dash of 'neel' to give the walls a white sparkly feel. Neel is a blue powder which we used to keep our white clothes, really white. Every year, some more of the Shivaji Park green is taken away. A new room has come up behind the Police Chowky. The Ganesh Mandir has done another round of massive encroachment and tiled the park further six feet. This is to give more space to the flower hawkers. The Balasaheb memorial has this flame burning for no rhyme or r...

Plaza Cinema at Dadar has been an iconic landmark to the local Mumbaikar. Earlier days when people traveled by bus and trains and so many cars did not exist, Plaza was the middle point of Mumbai. Mumbai map is more or less a straight line and Plaza cinema at Dadar was treated as a mid point. From there you moved to the suburbs. When I used to visit my Masi (my Mother's sister)at Chembur from the hostel, once the bus crossed Plaza, I felt I was almost close to Masi's house. Her house symbolised love, care and warmth for me. Plaza Cinema is at a circle where three roads meet. You can travel between central and western suburbs from this circle. You can also switch from Dadar East to West near Plaza. It connects South Mumbai to the suburbs. The Cinema hall was known for screening Marathi movies. The building has a circular facade with sculptures of men and women dancing in erotic poses. When they painted it a few years back, the sculptures on the walls were painted golden yellow....