Category Archive

Recalling my childhood days i would say the most treasured ones were when my maa used to take her afternoon nap.

After preparing breakfast, lunch and serving these in quick succession of each other… tending to the dhobiwala (the guy who used to iron and wash clothes), kamwali (the lady who used to do the utensils washing) and i am sure few other people would pop in and out of our small little middle class home, in a choc a block colony in central delhi

She used to plop on the bed, exhausted, trying to get few winks before she started the cooking of dinner ritual, which would last for a good two hours where like the perfect wife and daughter in law that she was, she would cook dinner for a family of seven (my two bua’s, chacha, daadi, dad, me and my sister).

Her few winks used to last about thirty minutes or so, cause her two pampered daughters would plop right beside her and make those farting noises on her tummy.

I remember me and my elder sister used to drive her crazy with our favourite past time - lets make farty noises on mommas tummy. We used to start with which side is my side of the tummy, first divide our territories and then play.

So my moms sweet flat tummy used to be divided in half and there was me and my sister making fart noises from our mouths ofcourse on her tumm. And then we used to laugh like its the funniest thing in the world.

Our competition used to range between who has the longest fart, to who has the loudest fart, to who has the most disgusting fart and some more.

While my sweet, hardworking mother tried to get her much needed nap, her bratty kids made sure she didnt. We gleefully played with her tummy.

I dont know what we would have done if she didnt wear a saree. We would have missed out on our favourite pass time in the slutry delhi summer.

We would have missed out on those 10-15 minutes of sheer pleasure, no pretense playing, giggling uncontrollably and annoying our mother beyond measure!

Once in a while when she used to be absolutely out, she used to tell us to shut up and stop bothering her. In her own gentle way and like the typical brats that we were, we used to go on and on, untill it got too much for her and she used smack us right on the head and go to sleep on her tummy.

I miss it. I miss the saree, the smell, the giggles and the delhi summer and mostly i miss her, my maa.