Celebrating Festivals-From the memory bank, to the memory bank

It is that time of the year again...when we clean our homes, spend more money on filling it up again, give up our fitness regimes and just live it up (read as: eat anything and everything...)!!! With Diwali just round the corner, the memories of festivals celebrated in India are flooding me.

The government is tolerant and we are allowed to celebrate our festivals here but unlike India, there are no holidays for the same. While adults can still take off from their work, the kids do not really have that option...so this Diwali, which is falling on a week day, will only have the muted puja and sweets ceremony and we can only have fun on the weekend.

I can only remember our own Dusshera holidays followed by three straight days off on Diwali...the weather would be changing, the festivity already in the air, the peanuts being roasted and for sure their shells decorating every cinema hall and Ram Lila pandal, warm woollens being taken out of their trunks and cupboards for airing and some sunlight; smelling of moth balls even days after....it was a beautiful time of the year.

We were crazy about Ram Lila, the enactment of Lord Ram's life until he comes back home with Sita ji, after 14 years in the woods, and all that happens in between. It was the same story that we had heard since we were born, but still, the Ram Lila was a kind of a theatre...different groups performing it at different locations, and each one with its own reputation.; only there were no female actors. Every day, we would try to go to different Ram Lila to see and judge which one was the best...and sometimes, we had our very own Ram Lila too- the children of the neighbourhood would decide to do one for the neighbourhood families.

Dusshera would be celebrated at home (now referred to as my mom's home), perched at the top floor looking at the crowds below- primarily men, women and children from nearby villages and the local labour; and at the huge effigy of Raavan in the sports stadium a few blocks away. We would all first watch all the jhaankis of various Ram Lila committees and the brightly dressed women with their fluorescent ribbons and at least 10 cms long orange coloured vermillion in their head parting. The balloon man, the chaat vendor, the spicy cucumber and radish vendor, the pakore wala, the jalebi wala- they all lined the stadium and the roads leading to it, making the most of the sea of humans coming to see the burning of the evil.

After the effigy was burnt with great noise and gaiety, and everyone started going back home, we looked forward to the coming home of our very own Ram ji, to take his blessings. We also believed that if you could bring a half burnt wooden piece from the effigy of Raavan, no thieves would ever pay you a visit.

Our ecofriendly Raavan effigy this year, made from a juice carton and old printouts

Now, we make our own effigy, do our own dahan (the burning) (this year, we spent the whole matchbox trying to do this as the wind was too strong in the evening)! and clean up th mess too afterwards...and my children have no idea about Ram Lila. But one of the most beautiful memories of my Dusshera away from home is of watching a big group of Bengalis on Durga Pujo at Puranmal restaurant...they were coming from the temple and were dressed traditionally - with big round deep red bindis, heavy jewellery, kohled eyes, and fine silk- i was mesmerised. That sight  made me too want to dress up for the occassion...and wish i was home, celebrating the most looked forward to festivals.

The 'dahan' in 2007- ignore the date printed in the picture- we didn't realise it had to be fixed!



 Diwali has always been more about shopping for gifts and new clothes and sweets and decorations and in India, fire crackers too. There would be a special pooja, to coax the goddess of wealth, Lakshmi, to grace our home, followed by firecrackers well past our bed time. The next morning would be spent cleaning up the wax from the candles and removing the diyas to be relit that evening...

 Now, we try to create the same memories for our kids, engaging in everything other than firecrackers (they are illegal here, and if you do find them at someone's party, you are breaking the law by lighting them!!!!). It is time to create some new memories (yippee!!!!) We are just 10 days away from the rangoli, the lights, new diyas, material for pooja, sweets, savouries for guests, gifts, new clothes (the only time of the year when kids willingly wear the traditional clothes!), meeting and greeting...and something to buy on Dhanteras!


Happy Festive Season and Happy  Memories everyone!!!