Indiam Mom in Paris!

Shiksha is a no fuss cook in London.
Wraps, pastas, sandwiches, smoothies ...
but when she comes home, she only has desi food.
When she met me in Paris this time, I suggested that we could look for some nice Indian restaurants.
But she shrugged it off saying she did not want to waste a weekend in Paris, seeking Indian khaana.
And we lived it up ... the French dream of creamy coffee 'n flaky croissants, or wine 'n more, at every pavement cafe.
After the best two days ever, we found ourselves at the Railway Station, from where she had to take the train back to London.
Happy discovery that nammu Saravana Bhavan was just opposite the station and we had time to kill.
So we settled down in a noisy, busy, very familiar Saravana Bhavan and ordered a dosa for Shik.
It made me so happy to watch her calmly eat her saada dosa.

Then of course, it was time for her to board her train and as usual, I embarassed her, by weeping uncontrollably. I can never stop myself, much to her horror!!!
If someone asked me what the highlight of my trip to Gay Paree was, setting aside the museums, the galleries, a wonder of the world, the divine wine ...
it would have to be that peaceful moment in Saravana Bhavan, when I finally got to see my jigar-ka-tukda tucking into desi food.
Like they say, you can take a girl to Paris, but you can't take the Indian Mom out of her!!!

The diamond earrings

30 saal baad, her zest for life, her love for dressing up, with lots of jewellery, the amazing stories ...
continue to fascinate me!
I spy diamonds on her earlobes, winking brightly at me.
My mother-in-law narrates this amazing kahani:
Her father worked for the Maharaja Of Mysore and knew Sir C.V. Raman and his family. Lady Raman (as my m-i-l calls her), was very fond of my Saas, then a 14 yr old girl.
Buying diamond earrings is serious business in the South. The reputation, the 'porutham', the cut ...
M-I-L's Father bumped into C.V.Raman and his wife at the diamond store, where they had come to pick up a pair of diamond earrings, which C.V.R. had carefully researched and reserved for Lady Raman.
When he found out that diamonds were being bought for my Maamiyaar, he promptly handed the earrings to her Dad.
Both C.V.R and Lady Raman were so so fond of my mother-in-law, they wanted her to have the earrings which had been so carefully picked out.
So there you are ...
My m-i-l proudly sports diamond earrings, carefully picked out by Sir C.V.Raman and his wife!!!

Ajeeb dastaan hai yeh ...

This song will always remind me of ...

the aroma of camphor and agarbatti from the Pooja room, Amma leisurely reading the newspaper and her stack of Tamizh magazines, with her collection of purane hindi film geet playing, humming along with this magical melody ...

and we would always at some point, end up bursting into helpless laughter, when we remembered a dialogue from the film.

Only Tamizh speaking folk will understand the humor of this ...

The hero, Rajkumar, of 'Jaani' fame, is a doctor in the film. He sternly tells his wife, who refuses to open the door for someone, asking for the doctor, in the middle of the night,

"Raat ke baarah baje bhi, koi hamari kundi khat-khataye,
toh hamey jaana hi padega! !!"

Life 'n Loss ...

Life & Loss has taught me:
That you will never understand loss, no matter how much you empathize & sympathize with others, until it actually happens to you.
That every harsh word exchanged with a loved one, will come back to haunt you when they are not around.
That, in time, you will pick up the pieces and move on, but a permanent & nagging heart ache will reside in your being forever.
That what you are left with are memories … so make the time & take the effort to create them. A casual outing, a shopping trip, some photo opportunities, a quiet moment listening to music, hanging around in the kitchen, stalking relatives on facebook ...

That all your parents wanted was for you to stay healthy & happy (&wealthy, I think!) & what would make them happiest would be for you to move forward and ensure that your kids get the benefit of the same liberated, uplifting upbringing that you were fortunate to have.
That your Parents were also a couple who shared a deep bond, which defied "death do you apart".
That if there was ever a right time to use that sense of humor, you inherited, in abundance, from the most wonderful parents, it is right here, right now …
That clichéd inspirational quote:
“Live, Laugh, Love” … now I understand!

Meet the Parents, Amma style!

I had the coolest Mom.

When Ashok and I decided to get married, my feisty Amma enthusiastically went on a pilgrimage with my to-be-in-laws,
to "Meet The Parents" and to get to know them better.

They came back good friends, with a deep and lasting bond.

Bless you, Amma!

It's moi!

It's been a while since I visited my friendly neighborhood beauty parlor.
Which means I have been going around with greying hair, shabby nails and how do I put this ...
a well grown mustache!

So here I am finally, my hair gratefully soaking up chemical color and some lawn- mowing happening, above my lips!
Problem is, when I walk out of the salon, hair gleaming darkly and my face, cleared of weeds, clean,bright ...
and I lose my memory, no one will recognise me!!!!

Doston, keeping you posted ... in case you hear of a plump, middle-aged lady, with dark hair and a clean face, wearing an over starched, green churidar-kurta, that's moi!!!
Please call up my husband immediately!!!

Hello Aunty!!!

So there is this tiny, Punjabi restaurant, from where I regularly get my rotis.

Yeah, yeah, I am a lazy slob and don't make my own chappatis! Now can I get on with my story?!

This has been going on for years. When I call the restaurant, my voice is instantly recognized.

I am fondly greeted, we exchange pleasantries, wish each other good weekends and if I forget, they remind me that I like my rotis without ghee.

There is this young guy who sometimes picks up the phone - a cultured, polite chap, who I assume is the owner's son, who cheerfully says, "Hi Madam!"

We always chat a bit, before the placing of the order.

So much so, that if once in a while, my husband calls, he asks him where 'Madam' is and why she hasn't called, much to Ashok's indignation!

We do go to the restaurant once in a while, where we are greeted like family members & the whole restaurant comes out to meet the '42, Golden Tower waali Memsaab'! But this guy has never been around to meet 'Madam'!

Recently, friends from India were here & they wanted to have homely Punjabi food. So we took them to our favorite restaurant.

As we entered, all the waiters, delivery guys and management, smiled warmly and I saw a young man, who was being told that this was the Madam who ordered rotis from Golden Tower. We were meeting for the first time and grinned at each other.

A few days later, Ashok called the restaurant to place an order. Our young guy picked up the phone. This time he asked, "AUNTY kaisi hain?"

Ha ha ha ....

That day I learned two important lessons:

1. My voice sounds young, like a 'Madam'!

2. In person, I look old enough to be an 'Aunty'!!!

PS: He continued to call Ashok, "Sir", not "Uncle", btw!!!!