Festival of Lights

Deepavali - Over the years

• 15 years back!

Months of preparation go into planning how to be the dada in our street. Dada refers to the household which sets off (rather sets on) the biggest sara vedi in the street. The three of us (with Yours Truly being the youngest), will make diligent plans and we would even forgo spending on rasna after cricket matches and save for this cracker-burst. "Kaasa kari aakkaradhu" ku literal meaning na idhu than, but then I was too young to realise that :) Ippdi vayathula eera thuniya kaaya pottu, save panni, added to that amma's contribution, appa's contribution, appa side thatha-paati contribution, amma side paati contribution elaam senthu oru 400rs. varum. Andha 400-a eppdi ideal-a spend panradhu, edhu edhu thevai, edhu venaam, ellaraiyum thrupthi pada vekkaraa maadhiri oru prelim-list pottuduvom.(alliance-la seat pirikkaradha vida idhu kashtamaana kaariyam).Intha 400rs dabbu vachundu thaatha velai panra office manager kittenthu recommendation letter ellaam vaangindu avaroda oru thoorathu second cousin vachu irukkura cracker shop la poi shop panni, rendu anna's um veetuku vanthaa, deepavali a vida ellaaroda faces-um brightly lit aa irukum..

Adutha naal- oru 430am ku ezhunthu ennai thechu kulichu ganga snaanam mudichu (madras-la thanni vardhe periya visheyam, idhula gangaa-vera... romba thaan over - aana onnu idhe clever-aa oru company Lifebuoy soap-a, Ganga Soap nu peru maathi vikka aaramichutaan), vaanathai pola brothers- maadhiri pudhu thuni ellam pottundu oru 2 hours vedikkai, konjam crackers burst panni kondaadaradhu. Over- enthula neraiyavum vedikka koodadhu, aporama night- paraak paaka vendiyadhu thaan...

Then we used to go visit my father's side relatives - cousins-gumbaloda konjam avanga pattaasaiyum vedichu. And those streets were very small - oru lakshmi- vediyo, kuruvi-vediyo vachaa, antha pakkam pora cycle/motorbike ellaaraiyum niruthi vachuduvom... If it had rained in the night, paadhi crackers bussu thaan...paper-kaaran-a oru 30 seconds wait panna vachuttu - "Sorry sir, bussu" nu solra sugame alaadhi thaan :-)

And the reason of going to dad's side relatives first is - so u can wind up faster and spend more time in mom's side veedu. Does anyone else think the same - That somehow I always feel closer to Amma's side relatives than Appa's side relatives. Dont know why, even though I have cousins of my age only in my dad's side, still feel a lot closer to my amma's side relatives and cousins only!

Idhellaam mudichu - amma side paati veetuku ponaa - sooper timing, 930/10 aagi irukum. A cup of paayasam with Sirappu Oliyum Oliyum would follow. Apporama angeyum kari-aaki (vera enna kaasa-dhaan), madhyaanam lunch-um mudichukka vendiyadhu thaan.

Afternoon time pass kaagave antha bijili pattasu kandu pidichu irunthaanga nu ninaikiren. 100 single bijili's will be like 10rs. Aaluku oru packet eduthundu motta maadi ponaa, oru 3 hours pozhudhu pogum...

Apporama evening kalai-kattum, again back to Saram, rocket, hydrogen bomb, same - "sorry bussu", etc etc.. The best cracker that I liked when I was young was the double sound. Basically you hear one sound from the ground, and a piece of it flies high in the air and goes off there - adhula yaaroda vedi highest pochu-nu vera bet. And chinna paiyan-aa irukkaradhunaala "pavam kuzhanthai - avnaukum oru rocket kudunga da, avana bathirama paathukkonga" nu konjam over-gavanippu vera.

This was my typical deepavali when I was in middle school...

• 7-8 years back:

College vanthaachu - main-a simran, manisha, poandra chappaathi maavu ponnunga tamizh cinema-la iruntha neram. SUN TV-la "First time in TV" - nnu, irukura ellaa artist-oda interview/songs etc irukum. Also, chinna vayasula iruntha enthu konjam kammiyaachu..(sari vayasaachu-nu othukaren), Hostel-la irunthathunaala deepavali-ku munadi naal thaan vetuku vanthu settle-aagi, next day-ve kilambara maadhiri irukum... antha kadi vera...

• Recent years:

Its been the 6th straight year I am missing Deepavali at home, and luckily this time it falls on a weekend. Weekday vaa irunthaa romba sutham. Atleast this time, I am with my Anna's family - so konjam-aavathu antha feel varum...And as usual US ishtyle-la potluck, group games, senthu oru veetla lighting crackers etc...aporama veetuku vanthu sera vendiyadhu thaan...

But, whatever it is still the biggest festival in India and here is my warm wishes for you on deepavali.

Thalai-deepavali irukkaravanga- santhoshamaa irunga...
thalai-deepavali pass panni romba naalachu-naa safe-a irunga,
thalai-deepavali illaadha "Thani" deepavali kondaadaravanga, someone somewhere is there-nu ninachu console pannikkonga!

Alrite,
Friday adhuvuma oru 330pm ku escape aagalaamnu pathundu iruken...

ps: Kudukkara kaasu-ku sooper a irukura ore pattasu vantu "Paambu" thaan....
50 paise-ku uleenthu padam eduthunde irukum...and oru dabba-la oru 10 irukum...
Veedu naasthi aayidum aana...