A Little more of Kandil & Diya …A Little less of Crackers & Baksheesh..
The Great Indian Festival is ON not on the online
e-comm portals of Amazon or Flipkart but in our homes in the real world ….Its Diwali Time
folks .
The real deal the biggest and brightest festival celebrated across India. The
festival for which you can shout out Lights (Diyas , Kandils & Twinkling
Rice bulb streamers ) Sound ( sounds of crackers ) Action (little kids in the
family scampering around the house with energy)..Yes the festival that creeps
up on us all to bring in lots of positive energy and family bonding..
But the anticipation starts building nearly a
fortnight in advance with plans being made for shopping and list been drawn for
gifts and sundries to be purchased. On top of the list is shopping for ethnic
wares for the kids and the Missus. Be it deals on dresses at the neighborhood
shops or the latest designs at the Malls. But the best places to shop for
Salwars , Kurtis or the latest one –piece dress for the women folk are the
nooks and corners of the old markets like the shops in Hind Mata Market or the
Gandhi Market in King circle or even the cloth market in MJ Market or the
Mangaldas Market in South Mumbai . If you're
after cloth by the meter or un-stitched dress material to make Indian
outfits, Mangaldas Market and Mulji Jetha Market (also called M.J. Market) are
where you should head.
Located close to each other, these sprawling wholesale
markets are among the largest textile markets in Asia. Rows and rows of stalls
are filled to the brim with a diverse assortment of fabrics, from bling to
block prints. Mangaldas
Market, traditionally home to traders from Gujarat, is a mini-town, complete
with lanes of fabrics. Even if you’re not the type to have your clothes
tailored, drop by DD Dupattawala for pretty scarves and dupatta's and the latest in
thing Lehriya dupatta's at great bargain prices .
These fabric or the semi
stitched dresses can then be tailored at your neighborhood and faithful family
tailor .Special instructions are given on cut and design taking inspiration
from the loyal Google or that one special go person in your family who is an
expert in Fashion.
With clothes out of the way the next on the
shopping list is the Faral the sweet and namkeen savories to be gorged during
Diwali. Traditionally this is a community activity in which the ladies of the
house gather together and make all the yummy delicacies like Besan Ladoo , Rava
Ladoo , some age old specialties like Chirote similar to a Karanji but more
flatter and crispy or Balushahi also known as Sathe a mini doughnut shaped
sweet covered with sugar layer on both sides. The faral making sessions make
for a great get together in the families with aunts , sisters , mother and mother-in-law
and Aaji all coming together and enjoying several afternoons making the
delicacies and sharing some much wanted gossips.
But times have changed with most of the
ladies of the house being working all these faral items are bought from well
known Maharashtrain shops like Panshikar’s and Godbole’s in Dadar or a Aswad in
Shivaji Park some smaller gems like Ashok Masale at City Light where you get
the tastiest Bhajani chi Chakli .
Once the sweets and the Namkeen are bought
next on the list is the favourite item for the bacha company ---The Crackers.
Depending on the age and the desire crackers are bought for the colourful
lights they emit or the sound thye make. The usual favourites being the flower
pot and zameen chakri emanating beautiful colors make the evening bright .
during my childhood you could hear the ear shattering sounds of a sulti bomb or
a square bomb going off every now and then and the king of crackers the 1000 or
10000 chi Laddi which would go on for 15-20 minutes . But better conscience
coupled with positive campaign of lowering the decibel have made people choose
light over sound during Diwali.
But Diwali cannot be said to be complete
without the decoration of lights . To buy the best Kandil’s go to the Kandil
Galli in Mahim . Here you can catch sight of beautiful
kandils (lanterns) in all shapes, sizes, colours, and patterns. Shops
stretching from Citylight cinema all the way up to Hinduja Hospital situated
next to Bombay Scottish School are flooded with kandils and in the
evenings the entire place is lit up giving the feeling as if we are inside a
lantern festival. Mahim's Kandil Galli, located at LJ Road, is known as
the lantern market of Mumbai, and during Diwali, people from all over the city
come to buy lanterns from shops in this locality, which have been operating for
decades.
Another Diwali ritual or more
like the Colonial hangover is the Baksheesh. The scores of community helpers
suddenly lining up you door asking for “Sir ji Diwali”. The usual postman , the
security guy , BMC cleaners , the telephone lineman and till some time back the
mostly invisible Telegraph man (Taar wala) –the bearer of extreme
good news or the urgent bad news . Every one of them expecting some
extra cash . But this has now dwindled over last few years to the very basic
people who serve us and you don’t mind giving them a little “Diwali”
And finally you have to shop for the earthen
diyas from Kumbharwada’s in Sion - Mahim. Be it the small star shaped or heart
shaped diya the size of your thumbs or the bigger palm sized diyas in shapes of
leafs , conch or the Paisley motifs. Some brightly colored and some
bedecked with shining stones . Light them in the evening and sit back and enjoy
the wick burning bright and emanating a serene glow as if Goddess Laxmi herself
showering you with her blessings….
Happy Diwali to all my readers…..
