Just Walking Around

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…..