Aathawda
Baazar --- The mesmerizing world of Weekly Bazaar.
Its well know that India is an
Agrarian society and 80% of its population still lives in its villages. Its
heart lies in these culturally diverse but all-encompassing small in-habitation
known in local languages as Gaon or Gaav. Much has been written and said about
the village life. Even today most of the villages don’t have proper shops or
all in one malls that we in the cities take for granted. The simple folks of
these villages sell or buy their produce at the local markets called the
Aathwada bazaar or the weekly markets. The local administration usually the
Gram Panchayat earmarks a vacant plot of land where shops are allowed to be put
up by the villagers to sell what they produce or procure from neighbouring
towns. A fixed day of the week is designated for this weekly market hence the
name Aathavada bazaar as it falls on a specific day of the week. Easy to
remember and shopping for the entire week for all the folks. Usually its in the
middle of the week “Wednesday” or on the weekends “Fridays” , when the market
is set up. Most of the shop owners are the farmers or fruit vendors or grocers
. Sometimes if the Bazaar is well known then people from neighbouring villages
also set up their shops to get a larger audience.
The best experience of these
Aathawada Baazar can be had in villages in Konkan especially in Ratnagiri area.
SATURDAY morning, 7 o’clock or
thereabouts, a certain madness sets into Ratnagiri as housewives and men of the
house get up early and make a dash for the ‘Athawda’ bazaar near the old ST
bus-stand there. And this is a weekly bazaar that has been going on here for
the past ten years or so. There’s nothing official about it, of course, but the
Athawda bazaar is encouraged by the local Municipality. The
municipality comes in on Sunday to clean up the place and return the area to
its somewhat less than pristine glory of before the Athawda bazaar. The bazaar
is held, like a flea market on a Goan beach, once a week on Saturday. This is a
good day for a bazaar because most people shop for the entire next week here.
And they get an opportunity to bump into old friends and gossip. It is not as
if Ratnagiri does not have its regular markets. Most housing colonies have a
small bhajiwala outside that caters to the residents. And on prominent streets in
the city, on a smaller scale than the Athawda bazaar, fruit and vegetable
vendors run a small market on Tuesdays.
Besides which, at the Athawda
bazaar venue on week days, Ratnagiri’s ‘Maamis’ in their half-Navaris
(nine-yard sarees) sit on the footpaths and sell veggies and fruit grown
locally. Whatever is in season, and whatever quantity they have, is put up for
sale. It could be anything from firewood to jackfruit. These Maamis don’t do
business by weights but deal in portions. They don’t understand kilos and
litres. Everything is a “wata” measure here. The Athawda bazaar goes on all
day. The vendors come with fruits and vegetables and other consumer items from
all the small villages in and around Ratnagiri. Some come from as far as Sangli
and Miraj in trucks, driving overnight for five or six hours, so as to be early
at the Athawda bazaar with their produce.
The Maamis
don’t come on out Saturday. This day is meant for serious, big-time shopping.
When everything is sold by weight. When people come for “imported, exotic”
vegetables and not the local greens grown in the backyard of the Maamis’ homes.
And where the bhajiwalas have fixed spots and fixed customers who enjoy their
weekly bargain with them. Everything is garden fresh. And the variety is vast
and complete. Not like the small Tuesday market on the local streets.
Vegetables and fruit are the big draw at the Athawda bazaar. And spices. The
bazaar has any number of vendors with their spices in big sacks and in small
watas.
One small
section is segregated, perhaps because of the smell, for the dry-fish sellers.
These are all generally women. And though Ratnagiri is a coastal city and has a
jetty where fresh fish be bought daily, there are several takers for the
dry-fish here. This too is sold by the wata, not the kilo, and the fish vendor
has measures made of brass and wood to sell the dry-fish.
By evenings, the fruit,
vegetable and dry-fish vendors leave, and the Athawda bazaar is taken over by
sellers of household items. Everything from buckets and pans to aluminum scrubs
and junk jewellery. The last sales are done under lights thrown by lamps.
A recent phenomenon of the
same type experience in our very own city of Mumbai is the “Farmer’s Market” at
various location. Once such farmers market happens very near to where we stay
at King Circle at the grounds of Indian Gymkhana. Here on a Tuesday’s farmers
co-operatives from as far as Nashik , Kolhapur , Sangli and Satara come with
their farm fresh produce in small tempos. You can wander around their stalls
and be awestruck at the size and freshness of the vegetables they bring. The
veggies are green and mostly organically produced with no chemical fertilizers.
You can get the largest Cauliflowers and cabbages . The potatoes and onion are
also of best quality , which do not get in your local neighborhood markets. Even
the exotics veggies like Broccoli , Zucchini –Green& Yellow, Bell peppers –
Red & Yellow , Celery and Iceberg Lettuce are the freshest and mouth watering.
There are fruit vendors
bringing fresh and juiciest fruits from
across Maharashtra. Grape growers association bring the best ever grapes . They
are cherubic , large and sweet to the core. Not like the piddly ones we get at
the local fruit seller. The Strawberries from Mahabaleshwar & Panchgani are
ruby red and mix of sweet & sour taste. Even the Ber or the Bor fruit which
arrive just before Makar Sankranti are of good variety . Large , golden and
very sweet. The green ones are the size of
small apples. The pineapples are bright orange and sweet to the core.
Even the water melons from Panvel or Aliabug are bright red on the inside and
real sweet. Make a glass of juice or have just like that for a healthy life.
At other stalls you even get
fresh grains like rice , wheat , bajara & jowar . Pulses like channa,
rajma, chawli also of good quality. The
puffed rice or Poha are soft , fresh and white . And you expect the best Poha dish
when you make the traditional Maharashtrian Kande or batate pohe. Some stalls
keep the fresh ground masala’s like red chilly powder , turmeric power and
special mixture like garam masal or the Kolhapuri masala used in non-veg
dishes. Expect the taste to be spicy and hot when put in dishes like Missals or
in Chicken and Mutton gravies.
All these farm fresh
vegetables and fruits are at very economical rates as they are directly sold by
the farmers themselves. There are no overheads of the APMC market or the middle
men .
If you want to experience some
fun and chaos and shop for some sundry item head to the Budhwar Bazaar or the
Wednesday Market near St.Micheal’s Church at Mahim . Vendors put up their shops
on the footpath leading to church. Here you can have a wonderful time picking up
accessories like hair clips , hair band , wrist band , oxidized anklets etc for
the girls and women. Some sell handbags , sling bags , clutch bags and purses
sourced from whole sellers in and around Mumbai city. Some bring hosiery tops ,
frocks and dresses from manufacturing units in Vasai or Bhiwandi. These are soft
and cute. You can also get lot of regular use stationary items like erasers in
different shapes and sizes , colour crayons , sketch pens , glitter pens and
foot long ball pens. Some sell house hold items made of recycled plastics like
boxes , containers , buckets , washing brushes , scrubs at bargain prices. Some
sell cotton bed sheets and cushion covers in good colors and designs.
So next time you want to shop
for fresh veggies , fruits or even some sundry item do head to these Athawada
bazaar’s and experience the thrill amidst the chaos ..
Have
fun and enjoy the shopping…
Thanks for Posting this, Very Useful Info.
ReplyDeletegreen field is pleased to offer you naturally produced Vegetables, fruits, groceries & other day to day items at your door-step. We have hand-picked products in our inventory & will keep adding more.
organic farming of exotic vegetables in nashik