...That
ruined, slimy wall was just amusing me as I gazed up towards the Fort of
Golconda. Just a day ago, at this same moment, I was unwillingly stepping foot
out of the giant white marblepiece of Agra. Perhaps that’s what India is famous
for- everything that interests everyone, intrigues everyone- monuments,
culture, tradition, society, and of course, the mouth-watering food. Even as I
stood by the wall, I clutched in my mouth a large gulp of idli.
“India…
Incredible India… the one beyond the world…” Those were my camera’s words when
it clicked the fifteen thousandth photograph of the ever-lasting gleam of the
country. Never mind me revolving round and round the motion for this article,
but truly, the gasp of the mouth when one ‘experiences’ India is just
inexplicable.
The
India I love doesn’t make headlines. It is the traditional India, the India,
beyond bounds, the India beyond the horizon, the India beyond eternity, that I
really intone in my inner self.
Looking
back to my memories of the trip I had left behind, a certain sort of
significance kept flashing in my mind about the various faces of this vibrant
country; they all had something in common. Everything in India from streets to
shops had in them a sense of harmony, a sense of making one welcome to warmth.
No matter how busy people are, they prefer help before their job.
To
talk about the culture, this is a factor one should not talk about, for it is
so vast that one couldn’t finish it in one birth. It’s something that won’t
end, that we won’t want to end. It is something that one would want to watch
his entire life. The grace, the elegance of every tone of music, of every mudra
of dance has in itself an entire world of its own. Be it the kathak
of Uttar Pradesh, the bharatanatyam of Tamil Nadu, the ras garba of
Gujarat, or the Carnatic music of the South, the taal and the raag
of the so-called ‘musical art’ always has an ever-lasting effect on one’s soul.
Everything
in India has an inscripted pattern in itself, and this is what defines the
unique art and architecture of the country. The jali pattern in tomb
structures and the medieval-age-old jharokhas are a means of communion
with an abode of art in its best form; in its best incarnation. Even the domes
and the arches of every fragrance of the fineness and dexterity of the hand-and-tool art symbolise the
different sects and clans that constitute of India’s glorious past.
Just
as the last piece of my idli went through my throat, I recalled the
variety of spices, the variety of tastes, and the variety of aroma I had
enjoyed in this tour. Perhaps, I had eaten too much. Perhaps, I had ‘enjoyed’
eating too much- yeah, that’s better. From the north, it’s the Kashmiri kawa,
the Punjabi lassi, and makki’s roti and sarson’s saag
(did I get it right, or it’s the other way?) and the kulfi. From the
west, it is the Gujarati dhokla, khakra and handwa, and
the Rajasthani dal-bati. On the other hand, the sweets of West Bengal
and the tea of Assam, Meghalaya and Mizoram constitute the east. Not to forget
the south, it’s the spices, as well as the idli, the dosa, the rasam,
and the sambhar of Kerala and Tamil Nadu--- there, there, this is making
me water now.
Today
was the third day of Pongal, and I wasn’t surprised when I noticed people from
all directions came to me running and calling out to celebrate. People in India
‘lead’ their lives. They love their lives, they cherish every single moment as
their last. They are the ones who celebrate the most number of festivals in the
world. Right there at the peak of India, I enjoyed the Rauf in the Kashmir
harvest festival. I also participated in the Durga Puja, Bihu and Diwali, and
met some boat racers on Onam.
My
tour was coming to an end now. As I gave my final glance to the fort, I felt
that I had not yet reached my destination. I had not yet ended my journey…
What
left me thinking was the present scenario of this diversely united country. Of
course, one does hear of the growing population, corrupt politics and poverty
these days, but the truth behind these words is too bitter to digest. Much
needs to be done for the ‘development’ of India in the right sense. Although the
country is democratic, this democracy doesn’t have its true essence, and that
is equality. Now here, one would say that the Constitution supports equality to
all, but is this really implemented in the national society?
As
I give my final salute to the country that taught me the true meaning of life, I
lay my head high towards the most developed peninsula of the future. Perhaps
someday, at sometime, someone will come to ignite the dozing mindset of the
Indians of today, and look forward to a first fully democratic India…
