Memory of a joyful visit to the village

My work often takes me to remote villages of Assam and interact with the underprivileged. Like many previous occasions, I took a trip last October to a few villages of Bodo dominated Kokrajhar district when the summer heat started subsiding, making the weather quite pleasant. 

The Brahma Mandir (temple). The mandir is the religious centre where villagers gather to pray and to discuss religious matters.

The Bodos are the numerically predominant ethnic and linguistic group of the Brahmaputra Valley. Apart from the country, they are also found living in different parts such as Nepal, North Bengal etc. Irrespective of their place of habitation, Bodos are maintaining their customs, tradition and language.

Breathtakingly beautiful view of Brahmaputra on way to my destination

 The Bodos lead a simple pastoral and bucolic life, the practice of which in modern times is called the slow food, i e, "growing locally" and "eating locally", which is now espoused by the  Slow Food International.

With the changing times, many of them are now scattered all over the globe doing extremely well in their respective fields and some are even holding high profile positions in different establishments.

 The drive from Guwahati on National Highway 37 across the mighty Brahmaputra at Goalpara District is alluring. My hobby of clicking pictures which normally hibernates through my hectic work schedules, wakes up on these trips. As a result, I end up reaching my destination hours behind expected time.

Bifurcating from Rakhaldubi (before reaching Bongaigaon), we turn to National Highway 31C. Our destination was Odlaguri1, Odlaguri2, Belangmari, Sahalagw and Gardenpur in Gossaigaon Sub-Division, off NH 31C. Later, the next day, we were scheduled to visit more villages namely, Dhauliguri, Komalsingh, Mwiswdanswm etc.

It is always interesting interacting with these simple village folks.

Their loving nature and innocence have always filled me with warmth. No wonder their simplicity has, at times, made them vulnerable to a lot of trouble and heartache.

We are working on a dozen different programmes in the field of woman and child rights and welfare under the Ministry of Women and Child Development, Govt of India.

I was there on this particular occasion to conduct several workshops, awareness meetings and establish creches for the underprivileged children in the above mentioned villages.

After the day's work, I love to enjoy the beautiful surrounding and take in the fresh fragrant air. Ah, so very peaceful!

On such an occasion, I merrily accepted the invitation of Balen and Hatorkhee Narzary, when they offered to be my hosts for the day.  Balen's family consists of his wife Hatorkhee and their ten year old daughter Udangshree.

It is a small village of about 30 families. Roads are muddy during summer but quite alright for vehicular traffic at this time of the year.

Taking our cars over two rickety bridges was indeed scary (closing my eyes I prayed throughout).

Almost all villages of Assam look the same to me. October is a nice time to take trips as one can then avoid the two extreme climatic conditions of Assam, rains and the floods. Heat too subsides by now.

A healthy crop ripening on the fields

This trip gives an idea of the simple and contented life of a common villager. A tour of their homesteads speak volume about them being very hardworking.  They have everything they need to lead a happy and fulfilling life. 

Health and sprightly activities of the poultry could make anyone jump with joy. They were a huge lot in number. Even the owner seemed to have lost count of the birds in their coop. "I think more than 60" was all he could say. Hatorkhee later informed us that she collects around twenty eggs every day from her hens. 

Started counting the ducks myself, but got tired after thirty. They seemed to enjoy making me run around the pond counting, while they dived and swam merrily. Aren't they a big, beautiful and happy family?  

Hatorkhee is a wonderful cook. I looked in awe as she cooked with apt hands occasionally replying to my endless queries. Apart from shopping for cooking oil and few other things, they grow everything they need in their fields. 

Her nieces came over to help her with the cooking. Couldn't wait to devour all the yummy dishes they were preparing. 

Ah, the meal finally! The scrumptious thali consisted of Duck curry with ash gourd (Hangshw jwng kumra wngkhree), Chicken curry with potato (Daao jwng aloo wngkhree), Pumpkin (Jwgnat bathwn) and Black lentil (Sobai wngkhree). What an appetizing flavour ! Cooking on firewood definitely enhances the taste and gives out a wonderful aroma.  

Some villagers came over to meet us. The children gathered around me as I showed them games, cartoons and pictures on the screen of my laptop. Although initially shy, eventually they turned very friendly. Few even entertained us with songs and dances. It was fun interacting and distributing sweets. 

Udangshree's happiness knew no bounds when I handed her a frock and boxes of sweets. "She is going to a school in the nearby town and learning very well." Said Balen the proud father.

 It was overwhelming finding so much joy all around. The fruits, vegetables, greenery, freshness, lovely people, their warmth ... There is something about the countryside air. It fills you with a sense of exhilaration and sets your soul free. Ah, this is it, this is called a life, a happy and contented life. 

How time flew! Sadly it was time to leave now. As we were preparing to leave, Balen threw his net in the pond and caught some fishes for us to carry home. How sincere and caring a gesture on his part! Hatorkhee packed some vegetables including couple of those small pumpkins as I loved the sweet Jwgnat bathwn she had cooked. She had taken utmost care to pack some eggs. Handing me the packet she said with her usual coy smile, "Try them, I am sure they taste nicer than your city eggs." Would love to, can't thank you enough dear, for the love and warmth you have showered on us. 

This visit will ever remain fresh and a loving memory in my heart. Will cherish this memory all my life... 

Memories dear and close ....

Fire singes heritage building

June 10th was a lazy Sunday afternoon. After lunch, switching on the television, I perked myself up cozily in bed. Suddenly my attention was caught by these particular lines flashing on the screen, while browsing through the news channels. "Fire broke out at a heritage building in Upper Assam". "Fire fighters trying to douse the fire, no reports of casualty...... ".

My heart sank. Jumping out of bed I mechanically picked up the phone and dialed a number. But before my call was responded, live telecast of the sad news of this heritage building was on. Tears rolled down my cheeks as I saw the huge flames gulping the roof of this Colonial building. I could see men running in and out carrying with them whatever they thought of some importance or value. Books, files, furniture all scattered on the front lawn. It was extremely painful as I watched helplessly, the smoke billowing out of this majestic mansion.

With much difficulty the fire could be stopped from spreading to the ground floor. However, the entire roof and a portion of the first floor was completely damaged.

 I am talking about the stately colonial building, the official residence of the Commissioner of Upper Assam, where I lived a wonderful stretch of my life. My time here was full of memories, sweetly fond. Jorhat, a charming little township, a district headquarter, where this building stands tall. 

Jorhat was the last capital of the Ahom Kingdom. This commercially flourishing town was completely destroyed by a series of Burmese invasions till around the year1817. The British force arrived at Jorhat in the year 1824. Tea industry soon grew up in and around this small yet beautiful township. 

This bungalow, one of the oldest buildings of Assam, was constructed in the year 1921 as the official residence of the superintendent of the Jorehaut Tea Company. Much later, after the end of British rule, the Assam Tea Corporation Limited owned this building till finally it was formally taken over by the State Government of Assam.  

The two-storied house with its distinctive green roof and whitewashed walls has remained ever imposing. It is the witness to the history of Assam during the rule of the British.

My memories gradually carried me back to those exquisitely idyllic days in this colonial bungalow in the picturesque surroundings. How I loved to put in all my efforts to keep the interiors as well as the outdoors in top form. The teak floors needed frequent polishing, the endless window panes needed wiping and the huge doors, dusting. Quite a few workers had to toil everyday completing this job. A sprawling 22 bighas of land comprising the kitchen garden, flower garden, the front lawn and the back yard with a number of fruit trees. I remember sitting on the lawns umpteen times, planning, discussing and finally instructing the gardeners about planting of crops, culture of flowers, arrangement of potted plants and flower vases. In these sessions of exchanging tips I gained quite a bit of knowledge which has now come in handy. That was the time I had even ordered and studied several foreign publications on how to grow annuals and perennials, culture of bulbous blooms and nurture of exotic house plants. The cut flowers, vegetables and flower arrangements from my garden begged several awards in respected flower show competitions.

Few of the silvers the flowers of this garden brought me.

The swimming pool was of course no longer in use when we moved into this heritage building. The water lilies in the pond were a delightful sight with a few tiny fishes jumping in and out occasionally. The garden with this pond was a major attraction for the visitors.

I named the extreme left room on the first floor, the 'morning room'. This room would be filled with the first rays of the sun making it so very pleasant and glowing with hope! Passing endless time looking out of the window as far as my eyes could take me, turned out to be a hobby. Most of the time my pot of tea would sit on the trolley covered with tea-cozy getting cold. My mind would wander away from where the eyes failed and a few verses would flow .......

On one of those rosy days ........ my father playing with his grand children and one of the family pets. 

Guest room was on the extreme right side where an elegant four poster bed stood enhancing the beauty of the room. Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, had spent a night in this bungalow and used this very bed in the year1961. My particular attention and care went to a few last lovely colonial bed side tables, book shelves, dining table and a few chairs scattered all over the spacious rooms. The huge heavy mahogany secretary table in the bungalow office, downstairs, was a masterpiece. Keeping them all shining was a major task to complete for the workers.

The ball room, the dining hall, the master bed room, the children's room, the kitchen (which was away from the main bungalow), the long lounge ....oh, all so wonderfully fresh in my memory. The fans hanging on long pipes from the high ceiling, their wide and long blades served so well even today. The extra long T bolts on the equally tall doors were fascinating. The immensely high ceiling made you look really tiny inside the rooms. The carpeted stair way leading to the lounge up stairs was so awfully gorgeous. The graceful fire places which we rarely used added to the ambiance.

The classy little rose wood book shelf was my personal favourite. I had it placed near the couch in the morning room. Arranging my collection of Thomas Hardy, D H Lawrence, Jane Austen and Leo Tolstoy I would feel myself right in midst of all those characters I so adored. Being the lady of this magnificent mansion, I travelled hundreds of years behind, to the era of Emma, Anna, Bathsheba, Elinor and Merianne the Dashwood sisters ........  Oh how enchanting it was, to be in that age!

My heart could not accept the fact that most of it was gone now, destroyed by the menace of a single electric spark. Assessment of the damage and plans to restore this heritage building is on as I write this piece ........... 

The restored heritage building now .... (2013)