Alu Parata and Saag Panneer

Talking about G 63/5 has had me think more and more of Sarala athai related memories. In the last blog I had mentioned one of her friends' names was Sarala (that is true and she had 3 sons also but she did not live in our block). The aunty that lived in our block was Sarasamma aunty or Sarasakka like Athai called her.

Well coming to this post. For those of you that have lived in HVF Estate Avadi or have been there to visit, you know there is only one bus from the Estate to the outside world. No guesses for what it is - it was Route 65-B from Ambattur Industrial Estate to Poonamallee. So if you need to go to Ambattur and from there to Anna Nagar or other places in the City or if you needed to go the other direction to downtown Avadi, this was the only mode of transportation. I am talking the bicycle or scooter days - so if you had to go somewhere outside of the Estate, you had to wait out for the bus. I believe the frquency was every 40 minutes or so. I remember so many days waiting for the bus in front of the Vijayantha Nursery School.Later 61-A would sometimes make a detour via these areas. However if you lived close to the HVF Hospital, you had a further choice of about 3 buses of the 61 series. These came from ICF or Parrys Corner(also known as Broadway) and went up to IAF or Ayapakkam or Pattabiram. There is a reason for all this and a connection to the topic :-) Give me a minute (or ten) to get to that.

Those were also the days where eating out was a exception rather the norm it is today. Most families cooked fresh meals and ate at home almost all the time. If there was visiting family or you had to go into the "city" you had an opportunity to eat out. Even that for a tambram family like ours meant idli,dosa,vada,pongal, poori etc. And to top it all there was NO hotel(that is how we used to refer to restaurants) in HVF Estate. There was one near the pan shop left to the Township office (near the Vijayantha Auditorium), but was mostly closed or changing ownership and did not even have much of a menu. There was this tea shop near the Vijanatha Institute that sold some fried stuff like bajji, bonda, those little samosas you could buy for 15 paise..but that was it. Of course you could get a variety of snacks in the Bakery(run by Kushia Begum's family - Kushia was my mother's student) or these other 2 places I mentioned. So really I had not heard of things like Alu Parata or Saag Panneer until Sarala Athai got married and went to New Delhi and started coming back home during summer.

She used to make Samosas, Alu Tikki, Bhel Chaat, Alu Chaat, Chana masala, Alu parata, Panneer dishes and a wide variety of "North Indian" cuisine that put Vijay and me in seventh heaven. Those were also the days that you could not just stop at a super market(there was none) and buy panneer. All these dishes took days of planning and Sarala Athai made a grand production of the entire event - planning to cooking to consuming it. I do not know which impressed me more - her ability to turn this mundane task into a grand event or her culinary skills. Both I guess. I still remember watching her make the Alu Parata. Do you think I am a foodie - well who isn't?

And those days I was so addicted to potato chips and "mixture". So she would give me 1 Rupees and 10 paise to buy 50 grams of Potato Chips almost daily and a "biscuit" that had cream filling in the center and was pink from Kushia Begum's bakery whenever she came to visit.

When she came from New Delhi she would pack pooris and tomato chutney and this Karela dish (that I am still trying to master) for her 36 hour journey in GT (Grand Trunk) express or TamilNadu express. She always made enough so she will have leftovers for Vijay and me when she landed. It is hard to describe how tasty this day old food was. Again I do not know if it is the food or the love that Sarala Athai showered on us. She even came to the New Delhi airport with this exact same menu in 1998 when Mani and I were enroute to the US. And I remember we ate it in France and I was telling Mani how it tasted exactly the same.

She would buy us gifts - pencils that did not have to be sharpened, school bags, shoes, litle trinket - we felt like kings and queens for days after that. So why am I making a big deal of all this is what you are wondering right? After all uncles and aunts spoil their nieces and nephews. What is the big deal is that she did not have enough to have luxuries in her life. She had to sew and sell arts and crafts to supplement her family's income. She toiled for hours on her sewing machine so she could earn extra so they can have a better lifestyle. But what little she had, she made sure Vijay and I had our share of it. Even as little children we had an awareness of it and that is why all this was so special. That is why Sarala Athai is so special. And she will always be...

Remember in the last blog, I said I used to cry whenever she left for New Delhi after spending a few weeks of summer with us. And how she teases me that I do not do that anymore since I am an adult. I think this time when she leaves I am going to cry. I am going to cry for a loonng time - in fact the tears and the pain of separation has already started for me. Because this time when she leaves, I am afraid I will never see her again. She will forever live in my memories and now for eternity in the world wide web.

Yes, regretfully my dear Sarala Athai is suffering from liver cancer and it is terminal and she has a few months to go before bidding her final adieu. Knowing her, it will be in style. It will be a dramatic grand finale. I have 5 athais, I love them all, but I am not beyond saying I love you the most Sarala Athai(Sampoornam was her real name). Everytime somebody says "Athai" anywhere in the world, it is your name and your face that comes to my memory. I remember your lullaby to me and Vijay when I was 3 - Athai madi methai adi...I cry everytime I hear that song. It is always a tune that is playing in my head....God Speed and hope you are feeling well now Athai.

Block G 63

G 63 Block

The times of innocence and fun.

The singlemost traumatic event I can remember when we lived at Block G63 was Sarala Athai's wedding.

To understand why it was traumatic, I need to give you a sneak overview into who Sarala Athai is. Sarala Athai was the last of my dad's sisters, who was unmarried at that time and living with us. We had several grooms come to "see her" and several dejections for her because of her birthstart "Moolam". If you are a TamBram and grew up in a TamBram household like mine, you will understand what I mean.

But in spite of all these setbacks (she was 22 when I was born and 28 by the time she got married), she filled her days and those around her with laughter and joy. She never really let her dejection show - she was always bubbly, had so many good friends like Parveen's mom, Noorjahan aunty, Suseela Aunty, Sarala aunty(her namesake), Jayanthy Aunty and spent quiet some time with all of them. You can imagine, first me and then Vijay were always accompanying her, door to door in that block, enjoying being with her and enjoying how well loved she was.

Our neighbors across the door were Parveen's mom(I never really knew her real name), Khasim uncle, Parveen, Shereen, Munnawar, Anwar, Ansar, Apsar and Munni. They shared their 600 odd sq ft space amongst all these people and had even "sublet" their quarters to another family - Noorjahan aunty, Kamal uncle, Saleem, Rahmath and Banu for a while. I loved to go over to their house, learn from Parveen and Shereen akka and play with Munni and just smell the aromas of a muslim household. They were visited always by Parveen's aunt, Grover aunty and I used to also play with their son Arif. Sarala Athai and generally the H.V.F. Estate atmosphere knew no difference based on caste, creed, religion or other criteria. We lived like one big family in a block. My grandma used to send "bathchanam(savories)" over to their house for every major festival.

Right down from us lived Shantha aunty, Pillai uncle and Sunil. Shantha aunty was also athai's close friend. Diagonally down were Suseela aunty and her family of 3 girls - Sumathi, Banu and Manju. Then next to them was Jayanthy aunty(she had a son Praveen and daughter(her name eludes me right now, we used to call her "Moli")) who both went on to be medicos and next to her was Sarala aunty who had 3 grown sons.

They did crafts together (Sarala Athai is very artistic - there is nothing that is impossible for her), exchanged recipes, played "soli" or "dhayam" or just enjoyed being around each other. I can still remember those times and the fun I saw happen. We were not allowed to eat in anybody's house (TamBram reference again). Sarala athai was so slight in enforcing this rule on us. If one of the auntys' offer us something to eat, she would tell us "By all means, go ahead and eat it" while all the time her eyes would warn us "kabardhaar". We would very politely say "No Aunty, we just ate" or "we are not hungry" or something like that. I remember this even stretched after she got married and went to Delhi and would come home for visits and we would go visiting her friends.

Well, let's come to the traumatic event. My Babu Athimber came to "see Sarala Athai". Everything else worked out and they were married. Moment of joy right - right!!! I used to not even talk to him initially because he took her away from me, all the way to New Delhi!!! I cried everytime she came to visit and went back. She kind of still expects me to do that, even though I am 40 :-)))

I know childhood is precious and those moments are lovely to recall for everybody - but when I think back, I am suprised I can remember all this vividly given my age at that time - 0 to 6. Then we moved to the G40 block and we will take our journey from there next time.

This is how it started...

My journey with my one and only sibling. The indomitable Major(Retd) Vishnu Vijay Viswanathan, B.A,B.L, PGIRPM (XLRI)!!!

Yesterday was Rakshabandhan - no matter how much distance has separated us, my only brother and I have always maintained a very close, strong bond. Even when he was in the special elite forces as a Major and was in some unmentionable part of Kashmir, I always found a way to reach a Rakhi to him. His well being and joyous life are of the utmost importance to me. For my Avadi friends, you know who I am talking about - the one and only Vishnu Vijay or Vijay like most of you know him.

My earliest memories of my childhood in Avadi are around his birth. We used to live in G 63/5. A 600 odd Sq Ft one bedroom apartment "quarters" where my mom, dad, myself, my unmarried aunt (Sarala Athai), my unmarried uncles (Murthy Chithappa, Balu Chithappa) and my grandparents all lived in sweet harmony. There might have been a dearth of space, there was never a dearth of love or harmony in that household.

I must have been about 2 yrs and 9 months old. I was preparing to get in to school for my L.K.G (I took life pretty seriously even then, boon or bane, only time can tell). So talk comes around the impending arrival of the "Great" one. I go, "It is hard enough to concentrate in this house, now there is going to be this baby that is constantly going to cry and how am I going to be able to do well in school" ? ha ha ha - too much for an almost 3 year old ? Well, you know me!!!

In those days there was no technology available to tell you the gender of the expected child. I was rooting for a sister. My ever indulgent dad was playing along with it. Then the "Great" one arrives. My dad knows it is not the sister I am looking forward to. He comes home and I hop along the front bar of his bi-cycle and we pedal along to the H.V.F Hospital (apparently there was a lot of drama around the birth itself that my 3 year old brain must have simply skipped). My dad starts to talk to me about the ill-effects of a "sister". How I will have to share everything - clothes, jewellery, hair pins, make-up yada yada. And with a brother I will have totally exclusive rights over what is mine. And how much he will protect me and defend me in later life. Within the 5 minutes ride to the hospital, my dad had convinced me that I really wanted, no needed a brother. And then magically I am greeting a brother. I was so impressed how my dad could make it happen just like that. Later - I realized I had been fooled by a master story teller. I learned that story so well that years later I repeated it to my daughter when she wanted a sister and I knew we were having a baby boy.

Anyways, not to take away from this story. It was love at first sight. I was so proud of my baby brother. He was way too fair skinned to my darker complexion and so chubby and had this beautiful head of curly, dark hair. He looked so angelic and was faster than me in learning so many baby and infant skills. He gave his bottle way before I did(comparitive ages), was potty trained before I was at the age and was my mom's apple of the eye. All this should have triggered sibling rivalry, but it was never so. Probably because of the adulation with which he regarded me. Exists to this day and I am so greatful for that. Probably because I had a similar singular attention from my dad. I do not think we really felt any sibling rivalry between each other. He was so content to let me take the limelight. He is so bright in his own regard and is the best of the best, but he was always so content to take the backseat. I was the de-facto spokesperson of the two of us. I took care of his needs, championed for things he needed with my parents and generally took him under my wings.

I could not have asked for a better brother than Vijay. I am so thankful to God for bringing him in to my life. Together we had so many adventures at Avadi. Did we never fight? who are you kidding - of course we did. For this and that and even today because we both have pretty strong opinions. And I never give up reminding him who is older :-) But even through all that and the distance that separates us geographically, the bond is always there. Like Fevicol. The journey that started in this sleepy hamlet called Avadi...

Why Chronicles of Avadi? Why now?

Turning 40 this year has been a big adjustment for me. For those of you that know me from my Avadi Days, you know it is not vanity or a factor of aging.

For me it has been about a year of reflection.

Of places I have been, things I have done and where I need to go. Of nostalgia from a wonderful, memorable childhood, thru adolescence and meeting my beloved husband to adulthood and the responsibilities. Of more morbid things like mortality. Suddenly I realize there will soon come a day when I will be an urn of ashes being immersed in some water body in some part of the world...but before that -

The woods are lovely, dark, and deep, But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep.

What better way can there be than remembering the most happiest childhood any kid could ask for? In a idyllic, dreamlike, slow moving, friends filled place called Avadi.Hmmm just saying that name strikes a feeling of intense nostalgia. Stirs a kind of longing "andha naalum vandhidaadho".

This idea came to me quiet suddenly while I was getting ready to sleep last night. Part of me was "Why now"?(I was going to call it "Avadi Days" in memory of one of my favorite author's iconic work "Malgudi Days", but decided I was too small in comparison and that would actually be quiet insulting to R.K.Narayan), but part of me was "Why not?". So here you go.

In this blogpost I am going to try and capture those wonderful moments, times that still fill me with inner joy and peace. Stay tuned.