About how it was for us in Bengaluru. Shanthi talks about the 60's & 70's. A new series!?

Shanthi Srikanth promptly sent me about how life was in the 60's and 70's in Namma Bengaluru. I took sometime looking for some pictures of rangoli and a jataka bandi (horse carriage!).  And flowers too!

"Good idea to change the topic of your blog from Corona to City Bengaluru. Brings back a flood of memories.

The fragrance of parijatha , mallige, sampige  etc that vied with that of wet mud as the front yard of homes got watered still comes back fresh to me. Women or young girls then adorned the entrance to their homes deftly with chukke rangoli  to geometric perfection. Not to forget the aroma of filter coffee that wafted along with the Geethaaradhana that aired on the radio sets of practically every home. 

Walking was not a conscious physical exercise then as we walked practically everywhere, sometimes to nowhere too! What fun it was to keep walking aimlessly with friends with no persistent honking of vehicles! 

I miss our family jaunts in the jataka bandis ...it was great fun as the driver of this bandi used to  size up the group, then allot places within the bandi expertly  balancing the weight. Many a time 10 - 12 of us used to stuff ourselves in one bandi as we sang and travelled from Chamarajpet  to City Market during summer for a yeleneeru party (tender coconut).

Family picnics meant a full day out at Lalbagh, with lunch and snacks packed from home. What we ate hardly mattered as the joy of playing and chatting was more important. Masala dosa at MTR was a rare treat.

Since houses nestled close together, women often earmarked the steps in front of one particular house  as a Katte ( Kaverammaanna Katte, Seethammana Katte...) and congregated there every evening for chitchat, until it was time to light lamps in the pooja room or go to the nearby temple for harikathe. (Harikathe is a discourse using stories from our scripts! Singing is an integral part of it.)

The " Steel Paathre Saaman" guy would entice the women for extra congregations during afternoons. Old and discarded clothes that had been collected assiduously over months would come out and the women would bargain hard for bigger and more fancy steel vessels. (A street vendor who sold stainless steel vessels)

I wonder if anyone remembers that we bought salt from a guy who would bring a huge load of the white  crystalline stuff in a hand pulled cart. It wasn't considered unsafe to buy and eat ice candy or cut mango,guava or oranges sold at roadside carts. 

Kids these days don't know the joy of playing jootaata, lagori , kalla- seepaayi, (Thief-police!) skipping, etc in front of houses or a playground that existed almost in every neighbourhood. Gully and street cricket was common and it produced some star players too. 

 Ramanavami was a time to enjoy classical music concerts at Fort High School...we would gorge on mandakki  poori  (puffed rice.) or congress kadalekayi  (Peanuts) while enjoying the music. One could go on and on about the charm and delight of Bengaluru...

Despite the garden city transforming to a garbage city, despite glass and cement overthrowing its greenery and quaint  independent houses or bungalows, despite the roads being riddled with potholes, despite its beautiful lakes disappearing, despite so many undesirable things that plague the city due to unbridled growth, Bengaluru still retains its salubrious weather for most part of the year. 

Thanks to the untiring efforts and perseverance of activists and  local groups, the erosion is being contained to some extent. There's so much more to Bengaluru that I wish many ,many true blue Bengalureans contribute to this blog...will be a great trip down memory lane to live through myriad memories of this great city."

Jataka Bandi. No hood as it is now only for goods!
A few left!

Rangoli. Not on soil though.

Mallige

Parijata

Sampige. The trees grow tall. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAa5Dp2TXcs

Lagori is one of the oldest and most popular game played in india. 

Jootata is a game of chase!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9h5d5BY3bc4

 The article below tells us how their numbers declined.

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/why-horse-driven-jhatkas-have-disappeared-from-bengaluru-streets/articleshow/64401321.cms?from=mdr

There would be many stories about Jataka Bandi. Hope to see them.

It was a pleasant surprise to receive an email from Puran. I have included it here in the main body of this blog!

"Dear Srinidhi

Our friend Chandramouli is right. Let your blog radiate hope not despair. To begin with stop being self conscious and calling it ramblings. If you do not have confidence in your word, why would others? 

Bengaluru has a body but it also has a heart and a mind. Above all it has a soul. Don’t just focus on the lower limbs , show us the soul. 

I have never met Shrikant, but  was very happy to go through his experience of despair and hope. Ask him to write what motivated him he recite Mrityunjai mantra? 

Also, Bangalore has  Tara. A woman with a beautiful melodious voice. Let her singing of bhajans (and other songs) bring some joy in our life. Cheer up. 🙏

Puran

PS. I tried writing the above within the blog but it did not seem to work. Share it if you wish.

Puran "