Watching a movie in theater ...

Watching 'Jungle Book' at the age of eight, along with my mother and her friend and her children; is the earliest of my memories on watching a movie. I vividly remember that we all were treated to Gold Spot, a soft drink; which provided a cartoon character as a stamp behind the soft drink's cap. Each of us were happy to receive a character each which also invited discussion on their individual traits. The movie itself is a distant memory but the entire experience of selecting one of the three frocks, dressing with care, hiring a rickshaw, standing in a queue to buy the movie tickets, enjoying the treats, crying at the slightest discomfort to the hero and finally returning home in a rickshaw; is what is my earliest memory of watching a movie in a theater.

This experience was even more enhanced after attending college. Instead of the theater and the treats, the general issue was elaborate planning, forming a group, arranging for transport, pooling pocket money, bunking classes and then finally going to the theater where comments and teasing were the accepted norms. It is even more interesting to mention the fact that every year the 'Traditional Day' was celebrated in the college which saw everybody in their best attire, looking their best. Our class used to go to the movie on such days where we all would be cynosure of all eyes. The important aspect of this situation is not the movie or the treats but managing your traditional dress, trying to look your best, asserting your individuality in a group and finally bringing your personality out into the world. The entire experience was retold to the family with lot of excitement.

After completing education, individuals who later took up jobs, would plan for movies along with their colleagues strictly after office hours. Here the concept of bunking office is nearly non existent. People in such situations go for enjoying the movie; the concept of elaborate planning, managing yourself etc, takes a backseat. Buying the luxuries offered by a multiplex is more lucrative than the actual story of the movie. The fun part of the movie shifts the focus to the point where situations or people get associated with the central characters of the movie. Couples visiting such places are more into imagining themselves as hero or heroines and spinning their own yarn.

The entire individual focused experience takes a tumble after the birth of kid(s). Watching movie becomes more of an ordeal when the kid(s) are of kindergarten age. The constant nagging fear as to when a kid may start bawling, completely smashes the silence of the mind and the movie hall. A more comfortable situation is when your kid allows you to watch the movie provided you answer all their questions. So the focus now shifts to more of a question answer round for the kids and parents where at times you feel happy when the movie ends. Having enjoyed (or got traumatized) all these forms of movie watching, I have now shifted to another gear altogether where I am watching children's films like Minions, ice age etc. or sci fi films like Gravity, Interstellar etc.

My teenage daughter now makes plan for movies along with her friends which is appreciated by me and my husband. The difficult part is in understanding how my daughter and her friends spent the three hours at the theater. Her narrative of the film's story and of their group is jumbled up to the point that we almost lose track of who is who in the entire experience. So, after watching 'Welcome Back', my daughter took to narrating the story; in between trying to tell about herself and her friends. Till date, I neither felt the need to watch the same movie nor have I understood the movie; not because its confusing, but because I could make neither head nor tail of my daughter's narrative. One thing that I am happy and content about is the fact that I enjoyed the entire experience of watching movie through the eyes and perspective of a new generation.

Soft to touch

Anika was busy planning summer vacations for her two children aged 9 and 4 years old, when the shrill voice of her maid jolted her from her thoughts and brought her to the present where the advertisement on 'Mahindra Holidays' was being played. "Kai ga bai, apla desh kiti chhan distoe !" Indeed, Anika agreed, with the diversity of flora and fauna, the assimilation of Indian traditions and festivals into the local people and the presence of tours & travels to cater to the customers' needs; the places to visit kept on their marching stride. The advertisement beautifully captured the feel of sand for the bare feet and the exclamation of amusement at watching the conch shell moving and tumbling towards the sea.

The pleasing visual and her energy channelized into planning the summer vacation, Anika drifted back the memory into her childhood; that always cropped up now and then while watching her children grow. The cooker's sharp whistle followed by the hot steam jet, brought Anika as a nine year old visiting her grandparents during the hot summer season of Nagpur; which is known for its heat, oranges and the zero mile stone. The vacations spent along with cousin brothers and sisters and most importantly eating mangoes and plucking guavas from the tree, added excitement, jubilation and contentment in spending the day, carefree. The wait for getting a sweet cigarette (a sweet mint chocolate) from grandfather was always fulfilled on arriving at the big house and brushing teeth. All kids would love the pampering shown by grandmother who prepared delicacies ranging from 'sheera', laddoos, chivada, etc.

The afternoons would invite lot of imagination and innovation from Anika and her cousins in whiling away time. Their favorite activity was to water the guava tree first for it was their best source of interest and then they would water the lemon tree that grandma instructed to water. The watering activity itself invited lot of fun and frolic which ensured that all would get a second bath. At times, instead of watering the plants, the kids found it thrilling to burn papers and dig up stones from the garden; which was big and full of promise of providing nature's surprises. The garden also was home to a litter of puppies, a month old.

The evenings saw friends getting together and playing outdoor games; where boys and girls played various games in different groups. The nights; at 8:00 pm were interesting for grandpa would tell engrossing stories which all children listened with rapt attention. Grandpa ensured that the characters in the story were named after his grand children so that all would learn the good manners and behavior. After the story telling, it would be the duty of all kids to make arrangements for sleeping outside below the open starlit sky where cots were already laid out; mattresses and covers had to be put. This was the best experience as the exhaustion of the day, heat of summers and the breeze of the night would ensure a sound sleep for the kids. Anika would sleep near to her grandpa as her sister was small and would be near to their mother. Grandpa would not let his grandson to sleep near him as they would be playing football in their sleep and kick him really bad. And so Anika would be snug near her grandpa. The early morning light would always wake her up and one day, she found herself listening to the sound of the puppies. Excited, she went towards them and brought them to her cot, placing them between herself and grandpa. The comfort and warmth of the bed, ensured more sleep for Anika and the puppies. In the morning, grandpa would wake up touching the soft fur of the puppies and he would be surprised as to how they got there. He was very loving and caring towards the animals and he would be pleased to see his grand daughter behind the mischief and would proudly say that he wakes up in the morning after touching something soft.

Anika remembers her grandpa's way of informing everyone of getting pleasantly surprised and the memory touches a chord in her heart that reminds her that it is now she who has touched something soft.

I am my maid's maid !!

It is a luxury for any working woman to have a house help at home. There is a symbiotic relationship between the woman of the house and the maid servant, that develops over a period of time and bonds the two women together. Though it is a boss employee association, I think we all agree that in a short span of time the two women welcome this association for their mutual interest and eventually respect each other. Maybe, at times, there are misunderstandings or ill feelings due to employee boss issue but finally, no one can do without the other. 

I am no exception to the above universal rule. My maid whom we call 'maushi'; is an elderly lady who amazes me with her energy and dedication. She has always helped me out whenever there have been adjustments related to her and my working hours or taking a day off for taking care of other problems. In turn, I have to follow her instructions on the resources she uses or demands. At times she also treats us by bringing fresh vegetables grown in her farm. Must say there is nothing more relishing than eating vegetables that have been hand picked and also a rarity in most cities. The taste and feel is heavenly. From my side, I gift her with a few necessities to make her living more easier. She is a part of our family and we all are polite and friendly with her. 

We all cherish such a gem of a person and especially try to adjust to any inconvenience caused due to her absence. So, when a few days back, Maushi informed us that she will not be coming for a week as she needs to work in her fields, we all distributed the tasks among ourselves. The distributed tasks were not much of a bother as we did them as per our schedule, though at the end of the week, I must say that our enthusiasm dwindled and we got bored. The next day our maushi was to resume her duty so all thoughts were diverted to her and her hard labour in the fields. We all wondered how tiring it must be to work in the fields after doing household chores. Her tired and rough hands in our imagination had a big impact; we all did the dishes and other things so that our maushi would not have to put in much effort. 

This practice of not burdening our maushi has resulted in us doing the household chores and I feel that I am my maushi's maid. This thought at times amuses me and at times it gives me a sense of satisfaction.