Thursday, December 31, 2015

Ending The Year In Kolkata


I was in Kolkata for Christmas.  During the rest of the year, I don't mind calling it Kolkata but at Christmas it's always Calcutta for me.  Changing times, political climes and tastes have altered Park Street and other Christmassy neighbourhoods but there is still something special - an extra spark in the typically excitable Bengali, at Christmas.







I spent this time mostly in and around Ballygunge, where I stayed.  It's an old residential area with a large, bustling (and well known) local market.  In the mornings, I walked past old houses that had seen four generations (or more), some spick and span and some old and cobwebby.  Vendors walked down the streets, pushing little carts.  The much publicised (and oft criticised) rickshaws still plied here, moving adroitly in and out of the narrow streets.  Yellow Kolkata taxis honked their way through.




The market was a short walk away.  I like to visit it early in the morning, before the traffic builds up.  It's always bustling and loaded with fresh produce and seasonal specials.  Vegetables are piled high everywhere.  On weekends, people come from the outskirts to sell special and unusual local vegetables - ferns, delicate greens, herbs and more.





The fish market is expectedly large and noisy.  Glistening fish lie on gleaming steel counters indoors and on wooden planks, ice filled cane baskets or atop fresh green banana leaves outdoors.  There is a fish for every meal, occasion or whim!





Individual book shops still survive despite the ubiquitous chains.  One manages to get a slightly different selection here, both for adults and children.  A particularly nice book I read this time (for children but nice for anyone) was 'The Cloud Tea Monkeys', written by Mal Peet and Elspeth Graham and wonderfully illustrated by Juan Wijngaard.  It is a story set in the Assam tea gardens during the colonial period.

A visit to Kolkata implies being plied with lots of food - The typical Kolkata fish chops, rice, dal and gandharaj nimbu (a very fragrant and special lime, which I have now planted in my garden).  Winter squash, tender radishes, greens, lobster and more.




And sweets!  Local sweets can never be forgotten even in the midst of Christmas confectionary and we have a terrific selection of goodies awaiting us at home.  We like our tried and tested old sweet shops but every corner has a little one, serving tea, sweets and savouries.  This is the season for fresh palm jaggery (notun gur) which imparts a delicious sweetness that is flavourful but not cloying.  A very special taste.



Each neighbourhood seems to have new bakeries now, and their standard is quite high.  Amongst the many, we discovered  Mrs. Magpie, a quaint bakery located near the lakes (we walked around the lakes every afternoon as Nayan peered down to look at the fish, threw leaves in the water and climbed little hillocks that must have appeared like giant mountains to him).  This tea shop was always overflowing with people, and had some lovely little cakes, scones and biscuits to offer.


A visit to the local jeweller was a must and this time I ordered a bangle for myself, which he will make and keep for me in iron and gold.  It is a very traditional 'marriage' bangle that new shops no longer stock because it is not glittery enough.  The wall of the jeweller's shop has a picture of a yogi and fresh flowers are offered to this image every day.  Indeed, Kolkata is the homeland of yogis (of course nothing compared to the Himalayas but several enlightened and accomplished teachers have lived here over the centuries and have reached out to many people all over the world).  This spirit seems to permeate the very soul of the city - at least that is what I feel and sense each time I visit.  In the midst of the noise, grime, dense air, raucous traffic and extra loud human voices, it is easy to forget this, but one only has to look at little streets and corners and close one's eyes - and the signs of strong positive traditions stand out.



This is also the last blog if the year, and with it I send my new year wishes to all of you.  I hope that despite the tempests that might swirl about you in the coming year, you are also touched by fragile rainbows, freshly fallen dew, orange and gold sunsets, silvery moonshine and starbursts.  By all the beauty that passes through and leaves us with a sense of peace and wonderment, reminding that the world is essentially a good place.  Happy new year!

Sunday, December 13, 2015

Carpet Stories



All crafts tell tales.  In my view, master crafts tell extraordinary tales that come straight from the spirit- talking of love, life or nature.  Mass produced crafts often talk of life in factories or life in the modern world with its lack of time and concern for detail.

Some months ago we visited Danny Mehra's extraordinary exhibition of tribal rugs from central Asia.  Danny is not a craftsman but a collector and he has an unusual eye and a deep interest in tribal carpets.  (This blog is weeks overdue.  My apologies, I am still learning with my little boy, as his routines change and grow.)

We bought a carpet at the exhibition, which spoke of different things to each of us.  Danny said he originally bought it because of its golden hue.  My husband felt it was like an impressionist painting - colours melding into each other and producing a certain effect that the individual colours would not.  The carpet spoke to me of days in the sun - wandering through fields of wheat and poppies.  My son likes it because it is soft and has pretty flowers and an interesting (and sacred) pattern of interwoven turtles.



Danny is exhibiting his carpets in Delhi from December 18th to 28th at the India International Centre (for readers who live in Delhi).  The exhibition is titled Carpet Stories and Danny will display rare tribal carpets from Persia, Anatolia, the Caucasus, Central Asia and various Kurdish enclaves.  It's worth seeing as our museums do not really have collections of tribal carpets from these regions.  (For anyone who would like to know more about them, Danny can be contacted at dannymehra@yahoo.com )

There will also be a few talks at this event.  Danny strongly denies professional knowledge in this area, emphasising that this is his hobby, but his knowledge accumulated over the years is quite vast, and he is always happy to share it with people.



I'm ending with a few words from Danny's mail and some pictures I took from his earlier exhibition.

I would like to personally invite you to my exhibition and will be delighted if you are able to come!

All the carpets on display have been selected from my personal (mad) collection and are my humble tribute to the rich weaving traditions of prominent tribal groups from various regions outside India.

The exhibition will run daily during December 18-28 from 11 AM to 7 PM.  A summary of additional events is given below...please join us for as many of them as you can!









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