Antara Echoes

One more Ganesh Chathurthi has come and gone. My earliest recollections of Ganesh puja was when I was about 8-10 years. Awoken by 5:30 a.m we used to accompany dad to mwm market to bring home our very own Ganesha idol. It used to be a ritual by itself with me & my sister enjoying every minute of it. Since mwm market used to be a stone's throw away appa used to take a brisk walk and we used to prance behind him in our pattu pavadai's holding the brass plate in which the coveted idol would rest. I recollect vividly how the colorful marketplace with glittering idols, the paper crowns swishing in the cool morning breeze and the smell of fresh roses & jasmine in the air would usher in the festive mood. Sis & me used to always have this major grouse as appa used to always insist on purchasing a clay idol of Ganesha against the colourful ones stacked in different alluring poses. We used to secretly think appa was stingy and used to try a number of tricks to veer him toward...

We as a country don't think too much of Identity cards and information security, is known for a fact but I did not think these things are treated with so much alacrity out here. Someone I know of and who is quite well-educated threw away her passport just because she never used it and it got expired! Another lady who is a teacher in a reputed school in Bangalore tore away her SSLC marks sheet as it had got a worn out and yet another person has two Electoral cards - one was issued in his popular nickname by how he was addressed by his friends and then he got another issued in his official legal name. These are real people who are well-educated and are holding respected positions in the society. Wonder how worse things could get if we go further into the hinterlands. There are so many who hardly feel the need to apply & get a PAN card or even understand the importance of these legal identity proofs. And to prove my point, this was taken from one of the suburbs in Bangalore - So m...

Every time someone talks about babies and the tough parenting involved they are quick to talk about changing umpteen nappies and of sleepless nights. But what is actually more excruciatingly tough and which nobody seems to talk about is - about feeding them. Almost right from the time they are born, be it breastfeeding or formula and then progressing to the next stage of baby food and then slowly graduate them to adultfood is no small matter at all. Believe me. Each stage comes with its own set of problems that one would hardly have ever foreseen. You thought babies will cry when they are hungry? Yes, they will apart from wailing for a host of other things. You thought they will open their cute little mouths and ask to be fed? A Big NO! Babies love to test your patience. Stock it well. As they grow their feeding habits gets to be even more adventurous. Most parenting books say - strap them on to their high chairs and give them finger food to play around and slowly spoonfeed them. This...