Today, when I ask Alexa to play a song of my choice, she obliges readily. However, I can’t get over the charm of the old times, when I waited in anticipation for my favourite song to play on radio. There was an element of surprise in the playlist that added to the appeal. As the singers crooned, I hummed along and tapped my feet to the peppy numbers. Nothing but nostalgia! I remember dreamily my college days when I would lie down at night with a book in my hand and a transistor by my side playing old melodies on Vividh Bharti. These are Suhani yaden, the golden memories of soothing music that lulled me to sleep. Continue reading “Suhani yaden…. Tuning in radio memories”
In fond memory of a benevolent disciplinarian
I distinctly remember the principals’ office housed in a tiny room with low ceiling. The office was small and modest, but the person occupying it was a woman of stature with an impressive persona. Mrs. Shakuntala Roy was the head of the institution when I joined MCM DAV College, Chandigarh as a faculty member a little over four decades ago. I can never forget her awe- inspiring personality. ‘Mrs. Roy’, the way everyone would address her, was a strict disciplinarian. Every morning before the start of the classes, she, in her crisp cotton saris in summers and rustling silk in winters, would be standing in the college corridor. No close circuit television (CCTV) can ensure the kind of punctuality and discipline that her presence did.
Continue reading “In fond memory of a benevolent disciplinarian”
The games nostalgia plays
Taking a sepia-tinted view of childhood and yearning for the life we once lived are universal phenomena. Our childhood might not have been very comfortable, the past not so perfect yet we love to indulge in sentimental glamourisation of the past, recalling those bygone days with nostalgia. The wistful feeling that everything was better in our world gone by and we were happier is so romantic.
As memories linger, nostalgia remains
For my generation that grew up in the 60s and 70s, childhood was sans much of the frills and amenities of today; nevertheless, it was joyful and fun-filled. It is another matter that fun for us had a different connotation altogether. A candy, a chocolate, an orange bar or a bottle of coke was a big indulgence. An occasional film outing was enough to send us to cloud nine. No video games, no expensive toys; we were happy playing simple games with the children in the neighbourhood. With the internet, computers and mobiles the things of the future, we had real interactions as opposed to virtual. Our one-stop destination, the only holiday resort that we knew was maternal grand parents’ house that we looked forward to visiting every summer vacation.
Bidaai without tears
My marriage was solemnized in early 80s, an era of simple wedding, ‘Band, Baaja and Baarat’ sans over-the-top extravagance of today. It was the time when Bollywood had not made its mark on Indian weddings except for ‘Babul ki duayen leti jaa ……,maike ki kabhi na yaad ayee jaa tujh ko sukhi sansaar mile….’, the sentimental track that resonated at the time of doli ( bidaai ) in every marriage.
