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I look through my Flight’s Window to the panorama below restless as I have nothing better to do, a rarity nowadays, before I land in Bangalore and resume my life as I am use to and prepare for my meeting. The Sky is clear from the top and I can see clouds which are not visible from Mumbai Skyline due to ever clinging Smog… I get this feeling of Déjà vu and go back in time, I begin to count the number of times that I’ve sat back like this and reflected upon my childhood a childhood fastooned with memories of my formative years and the beginning of day while preparing for exams. The day use to start with early dawn rendition of “Hey Bajrangbali Hanuman, Hey Mahavir karo kalyan” in deep baritone of Shree Hariom Saran piercing the morning air from a Temple near our house and then the day had a flurry of songs being played repeatedly by a next door neighbour right from “Yehi kahin jiyara hamar aye gori gum ho gawa re” to “Tamma Tamma” at that time me and my Brothers use to curse it and use to be terribly irritated of the same but the same songs bring back nostalgic feelings whenever I hear it now
Our childhood belonged to the Pre reform years of India, It was a time when great changes were about to take place and consumption and instant gratification were not yet the way of life for Indian middle class.
It was a time where vacations would mean time to have pure and simple fun and not a time to enhance your skills by joining all possible vacation courses, Where Doordarshan’s Sunday morning Cartoons and evening Movies used to be a special event and the entire week we use to look forward to the Sundays to watch our favourite serials on Black & White TV.
It was a time where birthday’s would mean friends & family get together at your place with homemade food and not just a birthday treat in a flashy Restaurant or Bar. Cold drinks were once in a while thing and drinking it used to be an event. Something to be enjoyed and to feel good about and not just a mean to quench your thirst.
We were used to playing Hide n Seek, Flying Kites, Plucking Guavas, Cycle Race and Cricket matches and were not hooked to any Mobile Phones, Play Stations or X-Boxes .It was a time of Blackboards and not white boards, fans and not A/Cs, Inter school Sports meet, Annual Functions, Rainy day off, group photographs, selling “Helpage India” tickets for school. SUPW (Art & Craft) class, School Orchestra, Bunking Library class
Our childhood was about picking up pups from the street, making a shelter for them out of bricks and requesting our parents to let them stay, It was a time when we use to get Videos on rent and watched movies entire night on VCR. It was a time on innocence where we use to have friends and not girlfriends
It was a time when traveling by “Sleeper Cass” on train was of great joy and Aeroplane was something that we only saw flying across the clear sky, There was no internet and Personal Computers had Boot Floppy Discs, no home loans, no EMIs ,No Telemarketers, I remember Bajaj & LML Vespa Scooters that we had in an era where less was more and new cloths were a by-annual affair bought during Holi & Durga Puja ,during one of these festivals invariably one occasion purchase use to be our School Uniform.
We now live in time of rampant commercialization, things are changing every second, We don’t write letters anymore but SMS our friends and family, Harry Porter has occupied the place once enjoyed by Enid Blyton’s. Truly lot has changed, lot will change for better and for worse but memories remains and come flashing back in time like these when we bring it out from the labyrinth of past for spring cleaning and safekeeping for another time, another day, another flight like this one.
Happy Landing!