My Space

The juxtaposition of the moist, breezy wind and the unsullied whiff of mud jog my memory to those wonderful rainy days back home. The panorama (from my balcony at home) of the transparent, dazzling water beads dripping from each leaf of the trees; water hammering on the ground just as if the gods were taking a shower :-); lovely, colorful birds shaking off the drench and flying to their sheltered perch; the vibrant colors of the umbrellas & raincoats; a mobile stall of fresh, hot baked “buttas” (corn, not the sweet corn, mind ya), not to forget the special varieties with butter corn or corn spread with chilli powder, salt and lemon (slurp) being the top sellers; were a delight to the eyes and just too good to be true! I vividly reminisce sitting on the bench in my balcony and taking pleasure in the beautiful ambiance of cool zephyr filled with the scent of the earth! Surprisingly, not one of my favourite seasons; although, I strangely contradict myself on this most often than not and with a justified rationale.

The mention of the “rain” brings to my mind the tardy, sluggish mornings, a great excuse to bunk school/college - heavy downpour culminating as floods often called for a holiday anyway, an excellent opportunity to get cozy on the couch and watch your favourite movies/shows on TV, an innate urge or craving for hot, crispy, fried pakodas with mom’s special tea, and despite all this, grumble and criticize the weather as if nothing worse could ever happen to you! ”Grass is greener on the other side” was like the motto…people suddenly becoming conscious of how important it is to go to school/college and not sit at home and waste time…I guess it is more the restrain that the rain brings with it that explains the love-hate relationship with this season, in particular. It’s strange how it would conveniently play hide-and-seek by not raining all morning and starting to pour heavily just as you are about to step-out of the house to start a great day :-) (I always wondered if this only happened to me!)

The love affair of “Romance” & “Rain” is eternal and I often hear them expressing their love - “hum tumse pyar karte the, karte hai aur karte rahenge :-)”. No wonder, they end up paying their dues to the dushman zamana called “Bollywood;” be it a sudden rain scene (ofcourse immediately after the previous scene being shot in snow) with the hero and heroine (clad in a transparent, thin sari), completely drenched and singing and expressing their love with the aide of a soft, romantic number or the hero thrashing the villains right in the middle of nowhere with the rain adding a special effect :-). Now that I have mentioned Bollywood, Mani Ratnam, Rain & Romance form the mesmerizing “tridev.” “Chinna Chinna Aasai” from Roja, “Tu Hi Re” from Bombay, “Barso Re” from Guru, “Chaiyya Chaiyya” from Dil Se, “Megam Vandhado” from Mouna Raagam, “Dil ye bechein hai” from Taal and so many more, painstakingly and truly justify the divine blend of “Rain and Romance”!

Rain and Ganesh Chaturthi also go hand-in-hand…”Rain” has always been considered to be symbolic of some auspicious and propitious event/occurrence. Ganesh Chaturthi (what a perfect time – Happy Ganesh Chaturthi in advance people!) is one of my favourite festivals coz I have too many sweet memories linked to it, each and every year bringing immense joy! Rain would just be an icing on the cake, it was the perfect time in the year where I loved the rain, coz no matter what, we were allowed to get drenched, dance in the rain welcoming the god and during the visarjan!

How I wish I was home :-) All I can say is:

“Rain Rain Come Again,
I wanna watch you pour through my windowpane
I wanna savor mom’s pakodas and tea then
I wanna be home so bad, I can’t explain!”