Grandma’s Golu

My grandmother has been keeping Golu at her home for less than a decade, except couple of years due to grandfather’s illness and demise, she follows the custom of arranging dolls yearly during the Navaratri festival.  Navaratri, which means nine nights, is a Hindu festival celebrated in devotion of the goddess of power, wealth and knowledge  and the end of the festival (10th day) is celebrated as Vijayadashami or Dussehra.

This year she couldn’t get support from anyone in setting up stairs  for arranging the dolls, so she just filled dolls on cupboard, table and on floor. The dolls are a collection from her various trips to north Indian states and some other decorative items are handmade by grandma. Here I share some photos on grandmother’s Golu this year and the images were shot by mom with camera.  

Here's a set of two south indian customs of marriage (on left) and first tonsure and ear boring of a child (on right).

A set of playing cricket

A rural setting of village and market

This looks like a setting of forest and tribal lifestyle

Ayudha Poojai Thoughts

Ayudha Poojai is a festival occasion that was so delightful once and full of joy, in the presence of my late maternal uncle, and the celebration take place at my uncle’s car workshop right in front of our courtyard. Begin in year 1990 at the courtyard of our house, he headed the workshop till his last breath in Dec 2001, where ended all our celebrations, though my younger maternal uncle led the workshop which is in condition of almost closed, no one could replace his place and an anticipation itself is wrong. Generous is one word I could describe about him and his personality is something unique and could be among an million but destiny gave him short life.  

Ayudha Poojai is a festival celebrated at the workplaces and houses wherever people deals with mechanical devices or machines and it is a festival related to prosperity and worshipping of the goddess of wealth, Lakshmi. Ayudha Poojai is a festival time to remember quite my uncle, because it is him occupies our thoughts during this occasion or hearing the word Ayudha Poojai is irresistible recollecting the memories of his presence and dearness we hold. I thought of writing something about the festival celebrated but everything I think about the festival reads his face in flashes as memories.

The spirit of Ayudha Poojai is long lost or missed but thinking of past make sense and this time the festival came around the weekend, though every day is not unusual to me, with the thought of people celebrating around I felt cherish. Today my cousin conducts Ayudha Poojai at his bike service centre and yesterday my brother celebrated at his gym/fitness centre attended by parents and few close relatives/friends.  I see there’s less in celebration or spirit prevail among people or at work places it exists plainly a formality or divine worship unlike those days which was a celebration of whole and keeping festival at core the activities surrounds it bring cheers. I’m glad for my conscious mind-set that gets caught fire through sparking thoughts.

Skywatch Friday

Sunset sky on Madipakkam - Velachery road during a recent ride around the area. 

Looking over the Madipakkam lake (in lack of water) and skywatch.  

Linking this post with Skywatch Friday

NEET Impersonation

NEET impersonation had come to light through a couple of cases registered following found evidence. NEET is an all India entrance exam to pursue medicine in India and there’s already a dispute across the country in implementation of NEET exam esp. Tamil Nadu is against this rule and some lives were lost due to lack of makeup to the exam. But this is nothing to do with the impersonation which is punishable whatever the case or makeable and what really surprise was the students involved in impersonation were sons of Doctors! And the doctors themselves were behind all this conspiracy.  No wonder at the people involving in impersonation and this is something could happen at any department or course of exam with incapable candidates, but being doctors and well known about the significance of the course and preciousness of lives execution is malicious and crime.

I think it’s the social pressure had made these doctors to approach impersonation for their children’s NEET exam. There’s a general thought among people to anticipate a doctor’s child to become a doctor and doctors themselves see it has a status or pride to produce a successor had dragged them into the pit of impersonation. It’s not necessary for a doctor’s son or daughter to come up in life as a doctor because no one can decide their intention, ability or passion to be same. I see there’s a pressure always on individuals, forcing them to do beyond their excellence or anticipate what they underserved rather knowing anything about them or their individuality. And comparison is another dragon ready to fire-breath to blow them completely out of the world. Many a life lose or accidents happen because of unqualified professionals (and I know every work has its parts of risk) but with underserved the causes are easier. This impersonation is a black mark that going to chase them for their life and spoil the carrier.

Destruction of water sources and Madipakkam Lake visit

First time, drive through the Madipakkam, Pallikaranai (marshland) and Sholinganallur-Akkarai (the extended areas of south Chennai) road after 2015 flood and really fed up seeing how things changed around esp. multi-storeyed buildings on the places where some water bodies or marshes existed not long ago. I’m never against development but what kind of development or cost matters and destroying a water body or lake or marshes could never gift anything to society… everyone knows the importance of fresh water and preserving the ground table water could never compete with any other. The December 2015 had greatly flooded the entire areas mentioned above and countless were rescued through boats and uplifted by helicopters, as well food dropped from same and the main reason for submerge of houses up to first floor were because of  the construction on lakes and marshes. I had seen the transformation of these places from marsh grasslands to concrete grounds and had felt sad many a time how the water sources had turned to concrete blocks. It’s apparent that without government approval these are impossible… corruption, improper planning had made an unbalanced development and whatever reason we built in front us to justify, the nature rules out quite.

The Sunday outing had been disappointing seeing the disappearance of water bodies to concrete blocks and building and the only console was to see couple of lakes being dredged and waiting for the freshwater (though i doubt) from the upcoming monsoon. I stopped at the Madipakkam Lake view road for some time, and while having a coffee, I could see people relaxing in benches and taking walks on the paved public walk along the road and the lake. On the other side or east bank of the lake have rows of palms trees, which is a common sighting around the lakes in Tamil Nadu once, as these trees helps preserve ground water near and around lakes even during dry seasons.  The Madipakkam Lake is also dry right now, where kids playing cricket but I wish it was maintained clean.

From there we went past the Pallikaranai marsh and it was another place to put me upset. The weather on Sunday was pleasant, and just coming out of a noon shower (rain),   I enjoyed a super cool ride through rolled down windows. But it wasn’t same nearing the Pallikaranai marsh on Radial road, and we’re forced to close the windows quickly as it smelt very unpleasant. The very reason for the bad smell was, the Chennai dumping yard is located at the heart of marshland and I was shocked to see how speedily the garbage dump is swallowing the shallow marsh that’s home to many species of aquatic, fishes and birds. I have seen flamingos and pelicans in large numbers during migration season (October-May) and I would say, still it’s a best place for bird watch and I could see couple of watch towers but I really wonder how could one watch birds there when even standing for a minute is hazard to health! The Sholinganallur-Akkarai road passes through Buckingham channel is another spot I had seen birds and it’s an open landscape adjoining the channel is another groundwater preserving area sliding into the same pit.

Pallikaranai marshland rapidly filled up by garbage dump, creating a great environmental destructive