Aba you dashain ra tyo dashain ma aakash patal ko farak cha. Last October I was engrossed in Ruskin Bond and Iyer, I was wailing as usual– how I don’t have time to write and all that. I do wail a lot, just go through the entries in the blog. But coming to the point. This was my first Dashain away from home, I was gloomy all day long until yesterday evening when I accidentally got to watch ‘Raavan dahan’ and I burnt all my woes with the effigy. My first Ramlila in action, the feeling was ecstatic, I sat down with a group of kids, hooted at the Raavan and Ram and even took pictures with the semi actors later.Sadly I wasn’t carrying my own camera then.
Well, the sound of the fireworks were too loud for my ears, after all I hate sound pollution and I’m all for soundless fireworks. I closed my ears and hid behind a couple who couldn’t help but squeeze each other and shout at the top of their lungs.But one fine gigantic gesture and all my gloominess was gone. All these years, I had this desire deep inside to watch this gigantic Raavan being burnt to ashes and yes my fantasy was materialized.
All day I was hung with a hangover from last night, I felt as if I had purposefully opened my own Pandora’s box of woes and then after the lovely ceremony I was happy to realize I had burnt all those bad dreams and haunting accidents a long time ago. There was no going back. Ashes of some reminiscent disaster could never break me down. I had left all I had to and there was no worry about where I was.
Sadly, I couldn’t help remembering home. Turns out I celebrated Dashami dinner with one of the yuckiest meals I have cooked so far. I can’t explain what was wrong with the ‘soupy noodles’. It didn’t taste right, it was more than bland, as if the meal itself was sorry about being cooked. Eating it was missing food. I know I would have eaten dal, bhat and bodi ko tarkari rather than the sad soupy noodles any day. For once in my life I wouldn’t complain. But it was some adventure.
The pictures below however are from a visit to CR Park. The visit was a disaster, there was nothing really happening. If not for the idols of Durga, there was nothing to even ogle at. It was so not worth going to but the pics did turn out nice. So here is my Dashami 2011 in pictures.
Durga mata ki jai
Jai Jai
A cloth hanging with Mata's beautiful features outside the Park.
Suddenly I'm gloomy. The pandora' s box is open...
