Phool dahi, Chamma Dahi

28 Oct, 2014


 
Phool dahi, Chamma Dahi
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
There is something folksy about Bachi’s voice when he spontaneously broke into song while we were on drive to the ridge where Bhuwankhal was situated. There is also the wild and free in him that you can sense when he will suddenly stop at a height or a turn to point out a vista or the shy blush of the sky over the unending spread of the jungles here in the Terai Himalayas. We drove on through a night inky black, lights from some far away villages the only signs of life around us. Once at Bhuwankhal we parked our four by four with its parking lights on. Walking up a dark trail, Bachi leading the way we were to look for a site that was for sale, all I saw was a fathomless valley and felt the cold air around me and may be the presence of a leopard. Shortly we left the trail and began our drive back while Bachi kept my hopes up with the power of positive affirmation so that at every turn of the road, a boulder or a ledge we expected to see the spotted beauty of the Terai. Well, we did not but what made the last part of the forest drive memorable was Bachi’s voice in the jungle over the drum of the jeep, singing of life, love, tragedies and destiny. Who says jungle drives have to be hush in anticipation of seeing the wild !  Singing in the wild, I decided is another way to enjoy the dark and cold jungle full of mystery and the magic of anticipation.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
While on the drive we also had to time to exchange cultural and professional notes and Bhatji mentioned this beautiful traditional prevalent in Kumaon. Every spring when the local flowering trees are abloom with flowers, children of the village get together collect flowers and leave them at the doorstep of the neighboring homes chanting “ phool dahi, chamma dahi” meaning with flowers on your threshold we wish you happiness manifold !! What a beautiful way to celebrate the coming of spring. And much like the tradition of Halloween, the village women prepare sweets and gifts for the children to take with them in return for their flowers and wishes. I wonder where have we lost these traditions and while our markets are filing up with Halloween masks, shouldn’t we retain and relearn these beautiful customs for the risk of losing them to mindless modernity.