Benjamuna's Blog

Stories…. with a touch of India….

Keep on running… September 22, 2010

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Who would have thought I – of all people – would go on holiday with a pair of jogging shoes in my luggage. Well, not for walking the streets of any big city, but in case I come across a treadmill in the hotel…

Pretty much me.....

I never was much of an athlete. As a young teenager, I ran 60 meter in 12,5 seconds. Which is a hilariously bad result. We were forced to do some track and field at school, in order to gain an atheletic badge: Bronze, silver and gold. I obtained the bronze, never tried for more. My gym teacher obviously saw no potensial whatsoever, I was never encouraged to try for silver!

In the 70’s jazz ballet became trendy, the 80’s launched aerobic. I don’t know what happened in the 90’s, other than that I gained weight! But in 2000 I discovered spinning, and started to use my bicycle to and from work. After ten years I’m still very much into spinning and cycling, but a new decade is dawning and – time to think anew?

I go through my company’s gym every morning when I arrive by bike. One morning in May my eyes fell on the treadmill. Hmmmm, what about that? I started walking. For weeks I kept walking every morning. Running seemed out of the question. I’m not fit or made for running, I decided. But one morning I was walking so fast that I felt forced to run, but alas. After a minute or two I felt exhausted. My heart seemed to be running out of my chest!  My tries lasted for a week and then suddenly I kept on running after that initial horrible minute. From that very morning I was hooked. So hooked that a couple of months later a physiotherapist looked at me in disbelief when he listend to my love story (and the description of my painful left knee); me and the treadmill.

Thing is – I started to run every morning before work. I soon was able to run 25 minutes. 3,5 kilometres. My only experience with running was that hopeless 60 meter years back, and the occasional run-for-the-bus experiences. In the weeks that followed I was hardly able to walk. After my morning coffe at my desk, I felt so stiff when I got up from the chair that people started to ask me what was the matter. It will pass, I thought. It HAS to pass….

I really made an effort with my running play lists on my iPod. The best part of the project, really… What kind of music is suitable for running? Jean Michel Jarre’s Aero is a good start, and good for the ear. Next; a remix of The Wall by Pink Floyd. Then a remix of Jai Ho. Glow by Madcon half way through, essential in order to keep up the spirit. Salim Al Fakir’s Keep on walking was a good help when I was walking, but still makes sense. And last but not least; Sandstorm by Darude… When you think you’re not able to endure the last five minutes, Sandstorm takes you all the way and on top of it you feel like flying! Lovely then to calm down while listening to Astronaut by Salim Al Fakir, or Foot of the Mountain by a-ha and Morten Harket’s soothing voice.

Well my left knee did heel, now my right knee is not in a very cooperative mood. But it will….

 

My very special colour combination… July 9, 2010

Filed under: Uncategorized — benjamuna @ 7:38 pm
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Is it possible to fall in love with a colour combination? Well yes…. But I am in fact a bit shameful to say that it was the Norwegian princess Märtha Louise who brought my attention to the combination of brown and turquoise. She was wearing a dress some years back, can’t remember the details any longer – only the colours! I thought it was an unusual combination, but I got hooked. And – the hunt was on! But I realised I needed a bit of luck. Shops do not swell with brown and turquoise!

I always find what I look for, in India…. In 2009  I visited designer  Geetha Hardasani’s shop in Bandra, Mumbai. When Ida and I visited Mumbai in 2008, we visited her shop, at that time in Colaba. I kept in touch with Jharna, the designer’s daughter, and thus made sure to pay their new shop in Bandra a visit in 2009. I saw the kurta only seconds after I entered the shop. Wow – something brown and turquoise. Before the others had managed to manouvre themselves inside, I was dressed in…. brown and turquoise… And – sold!

I almost spotted this one from outside the Hardasani shop....

I wanted to buy a designer made outfit; a kurta, churidar and dupatta – and went searching through Geeta’s rows of fabric. I chose the best one, the most expensive one (!) with a fantastic dupatta made of a variety of fabric. But the embroidery on the kurta had the colours of…. brown and turquoise…

My designer made wedding outfit!

Close up of the kurta.

 

In 2009 Asbjørn and I went to Delhi and one day, strolling through the arcades of Connaught Place I saw it from a distance, a tunic of – yes – brown and turquoise. It was only one left, my size, which proves it was meant for me!

Bought at Connaught Place in Delhi, photograph taken somewhere around the Fort in old Delhi. A young girl wanted her photo together with a farangi...

It’s not so hard to find jewelry in the colours of brown and turquoise. Maybe because of the stone itself, the turquoise…. Moreover, I can’t be the only one in the world thinking that this is a great combination!
My favourite bracelet is bought at Arts and Crafts (Norwegian brand), and people often comment on it. But a while back I was thinking; it must be possible to make jewelry by oneself?!!? So I took a course at a bead shop and learnt some tricks… I’m not going to make a home industry out of it, but it’s nice to be able to make something when inspiration hits you…. Beads do not come very cheap in Norway, what I’m now looking forward to is my travel to India later this year. Shopping for beads in Mumbai….. Must be some treat!

Three strands of beads made by myself, beads and colours carefully picked....

These - my favourite bracelets - have everything that I like; the beads, the colours, the antique look...

 

Last summer our grandhild Claus, now aged 10, known for his high level of justice, realised that everybody had gotten a summer’s gift  except from granddad… He had seen something suitable though, in a shop in Stavanger…. So Asbjørn and I were left to wait in a cafe, whereas he dragged his mother to Ting and bought a case for toothpicks – and what’s more; the colours were brown and turquoise. The young man was very proud of himself; not only was it the perfect present for Asbjørn who can’t live without toothpicks, but the colour combination was such that Anne-Trine could enjoy as well! He proudly stated. A 10-year old to be proud of!

A perfect hiding place for tooth picks!

 

From pizza to paneer… June 28, 2010

Filed under: INDIA — benjamuna @ 11:11 am
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I should think most people know that I don’t go to India for the food… I suppose I don’t go anywhere in the world to enjoy food, – well Italy might be a possible exception. In India I mostly survive on butter naan, rice, the odd soup and Western food chains.

I came to India for the first time in 2002, we flew to Panaji (state of Goa) and we were staying at the Hotel Majestic – in the middle of nowhere really. The hotel was new, it was not a very interesting place to be (booked by Asbjørn’s project I believe), but very modern and pleasant with its kidney shaped pool! There was a big dining room on the first floor, and every meal was included in the price. Of course I didn’t dear to try any of the many dishes lined up on the buffet. But I made one very important discovery; the naan bread. And the butter naan bread in particular! And of course, there is always the rice when the going gets tough….

It didn’t take many days before people around me tired of the same food every day. Also, the food was exceptionally spicy.  I stuck to my choice….
After almost a week, we suddenly found there was some kind of a restaurant downstairs, I guess we had written it off as a bar, simply. But since there were some entertainment going on one evening, we sat down by a table and discovered a menu. A MENU. We hadn’t seen one for a whole week, and what’s more: Here we had pasta, and nothing less than Spaghetti Napolitana; spaghetti with plain tomatoe sauce. I don’t know if it was the absence of Western food or the chef or what, but it tasted delicious!

Simply HAPPY, eating Spaghetti Napolitana at the Hotel Majestic!

Naan bread is in fact very simple food; yeast, water, egg, yoghurt,  flour… I often wonder what makes it so good and tasty, the ingredients don’t count for gourmet food. But I guess it is the Tandoor oven that does the trick. Soft and crisp at the same time, butter spread all over. There’s only one word; Yummy!
The most unhealthy, the butter naan, is definately the best one. Garlic nan, uhhmm, for those who like garlic a lot. In my opinion, not a must. I have tried naan bread in Norway, but I don’t anymore. The naan bread always tastes fantastic in India – so why go for a lesser experience at home!

It proved difficult to find a perfect and ultimate photo of a naan bread on the internet, so I have made a mental note about to take one myself later this year!

I can’t remember where and when I first tasted the Butter Paneer Masala, but when I explained the dish for Indian friends they immediately understood what I had eaten. It’s chunks of cottage cheese (paneer) in a red masala. Of course I wasn’t able to enjoy it fully in the start. I simply left out the paneer…. I sort of didn’t like the texture… it felt swampy. But the masala is heavenly. It’s very rich (feels very fattening), and one portion + some rice is plenty for me – as a dinner. The dish is made of things I love; tomatoes, onions, tomatoe pure, chilli – and other spices (butter and cream -sigh -).
At last I can enter a restaurant in India og order food with some dignity! And I know where to go first when I arrive in Mumbai in November; The Delhi Darbar in Colaba. They serve fantastic Butter Paneer Masala! Along with some rice and naan bread it should keep me going for 24 hours.
Even this dish tastes very good at Indian Tandoori restaurant in Stavanger!

This was the best Google could provide me with....

Although I’m now fully able to enjoy at least one Indian dish, I won’t let Pizza Hut down…. because if you’re in need of quick food, and if you might be a little home sick when it comes to food – pizza from Pizza Hut is a very good choice in India. But be sure to order the ones with chilli….!

 

Too many books. Only one life. June 19, 2010

Filed under: Indian literature,Literature — benjamuna @ 2:06 pm
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Some years back I told my friend Dagne that I always finished a book once started on it, no matter how bad I found it.  Did I feel I owed it to the author, in some peculiar way? Dagne found it outragous, and I eventually admitted that life is too short to bother about bad books. Since then I have been terribly choosy, every book I read has a purpose behind. I only rarely read a book on impulse.

First of all I quit reading crime novels. I have read a lot of them, – and enjoyed, but it strikes me that there is nothing much to learn from a crime novel. When people ask me how I have come to know so much about India; about culture, politics, geography, demography – whatever, I always answer; from novels. My number one source whatsoever.

My Indian books have a bookshelf of their own! This is but a few....

So how do I chose my books and where do I find them? Some authors I follow closely, year after year – American Alice Hoffman being one of them. I guess I have every single novel she has published, most of them in the original language. There are two reasons I buy the American edition. For a start I can’t possibly wait for a translation. Moreover, Hoffman’s language is worth reading as she wrote it. Nobody can descibe the elements of nature as Hoffman describes it; a soaring heatwave in small town America, or a bitterly cold night, the overwhelming smell of a flower or the intense buzz of a bee… Nobody is able to paint those pictures with words like Hoffman does, and no translation can ever justify it. Her novels are a garden of delight! A few years back she came down with cancer. Then followed a  couple of novels where she obviously was writing her way out of this trauma. Half way through her last novel; The Story Sisters, I told a friend that Hoffman was out with another novel. Any cancer, she asked. Not yet, was my immediate answer, although we have one drug addict. The day after, hell broke lose in The Story Sisters. Leukemia. Heroin. Death. A fatal accident. It was overwhelming, I decided to finish the book in one go and felt totally drenched afterwards. But the book also paints a picture of two beautiful old, eccentric and forgiving women, who made up for all the grief.

Alice Hoffman - a long time favourite!

I went from Hoffman to Chowringhee by Sankar, for me a totally unknown Indian author. The book was published in 1962. Indian literature is a passion, no doubt. I search for new titles and new authors everywhere. In January I picked up the 2009 volume of India Today at the library, given to me for 50 kroner. Some of those issues I already read last year, but the reason I asked for them was to look more closely at the book reviews. I go through every issue and add books of interest to my list.

India Today is an important source when I'm looking for Indian novels out of the main stream.

 
Last year, in Delhi, I found a small bookstore crammed with books, in Connaught Place. The sales personnel was obviously impressed with my list and criss-crossed the floors in order to fulfill my wishes. (Lurking in the back of my mind was of course weight…. books are heavy and KLM make no concessions for book addicts).
Indian bookstores are great, whether small or big. I could spend hours. But books are also sold on the street as well, sometimes laid out on the pavement. Dusty books wrapped in plastic, impossible to pass by…… Impossible not to listen to the vendors advice.

My favourite book seller in Colaba, Mumbai, last year.

Sometimes people tell me – oh you should read this or that book…. I hardly listen. I panic. First of all, I have my own constant mental list. Of authors I follow closely. Of books I’m thinking of buying. Of books I should read (Knausgård for example – I have only finished volume 1). But I mostly panic because of the various piles of books at home. Everywhere. My own favourites and my own research is keeping me more than busy, other people’s advice must have me excused.

One of many piles of books I should read before buying more….

The web store Amazon is an important source of information, annoying though it might be. The system is “intelligent” in the way that it remembers your buys and feeds you with more of the same. In my case; mostly Indian literature. The danger is that when all these offers pop up  – one tends to buy on impulse…. Anyway, at the moment I’m jotting down any interesting suggestions and await my visit to Mumbai in November. I dont know what is worst though, paying postage through Amazon or overweight on the plane…..

Today's offer from Amazon.....

Although I’m very serious about books, I have one flaw…. and he is called Douglas Kennedy. I sometimes wonder how I got to know about him in the first place, and when. It’s tempting to call his novels trash. Undoubtedly we can use the word page turner. Once started, you’re completely hooked. ‘That’s why I’m saving his latest novel Leaving the World for either USA in August or India later this year. It’s perfect for a lang haul air ride. He has titles like The Big Picture, The Job, Temptation. Tells you everything, really…. But to make up for all those negative wibes, after finishing the one called State of the Union, I was not able to start a new book in several weeks. I was thinking of the main character night and day. I was seriously worried about her future, thinking of her as a real person, wanting to know more…… Which must mean that the author has managed create a character of flesh and bood…

Good or bad... Douglas Kennedy shortens a long journey for sure!

 

My first Ganesh. My second, and my third… June 13, 2010

Filed under: INDIA — benjamuna @ 6:43 pm
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My first Ganesh, or Ganesha, was bought in the Sarasbaug Ganesh Temple in Pune, south of Mumbai. We went there together with our friends Girish, Sanjay and Mandar a few years back. It’s a small Ganesh, tiny, probably made of beetle nut. I thought it would represent a good memory from a nice day!

My very first Ganesha... bought in Pune!

Ganesha is one of the most popular deities in the Hindu pantheon. He is closely associated with the daily lives of millions of Hindus even today. As he is reputed to be a remover of obstacles he is propitiated before the beginning of any new venture whether it is the building of a new house, the writing of a book, the beginning of a journey or the starting of a new business. His images adorn the walls of innumerable business establishments across India.  Ganesha is also the God of wisdom and prudence.

My second Ganesha is the one that looks like marzipan. I feel like setting my teeth in it….. It reminds me of our nicely decorated Christmas marzipan! This one I got from Fadderbarnas fremtid, a small reward for having recruited new sponsors!
If Norway has trolls, India has Ganesha…. At least in some places. In Colaba causeway, Mumbai, the pedestrian market is full of this figure. In every size and material. You easily get hooked. Ganesha is represented as a short, pot-bellied man with yellow skin, four arms and an elephant’s head with only one tusk. In his four hands he customarily holds a shell, a chakra (discus), a mace and a water-lily. His unusual steed is a rat. Although not every copy includes all this.

My marzipan Ganesha...

Last year, I bought several items. I remember a shop in Colaba. I remember it because the shop assistants seemed so dull and depressed. They didn’t seem very interested in the customers, and almost every item was on sale. I felt I had to buy something, as some sort of support… Maybe I was wrong. Maybe they were all having a bad day and couldn’t care less about customers. But I bought a couple of silk paintings, they cost next to nothing. Two elephants and one Ganesha.

Our last day in Mumbai was going to be long. The plane wasn’t due to leave until 3.30 in the morning. We were ready and packed by noon. We set out to walk and in the early evening we spent some hours at a restaurant overlooking Marine Drive and the Arabian Sea. We saw the sunset at Marine Drive, the very best thing to do in  Mumbai…
We had planned to have our last meal at Leopold, but Asbjørn’s youngest sister wasn’t happy with the fact that she still hadn’t found any nice pillow covers… so when we saw a shop window filled with them, we entered. The two Ganeshas I bought here, will forever remind me of my encounter with Gregory David Roberts who wrote Shantaram. We left the shop at an exact moment: the moment “Shantaram” was ready-set-go on his motorbike, outside Leopold. Because the shop was right opposite Leopold, – we were crossing the street zig-zagging between cars when I saw him – and said hello. If we had spent two more minutes in this shop, he would have been left. I’m still wondering about whether it was luck, fate – or whatever…

This one has a turban, or so it seems. Mr Ganesha Singh??

This seems to be a somewhat a creative specimen..., but I love the decorations...

At birth, Ganesha was a perfectly normal boy, with perfect features and body parts, as befits one conceived by a goddess. How he got an elephant’s head is another story.Or, several stories, so it seems….

Wedding invitations in India are very elaborate, and very often comes with the image of Ganesha. A new start in life… The photo below is not from a wedding invitation, although I have a few now now – but it’s a card from a young girl I met in Raigad. I have never been able to put the card away. I like the way the head is depicted!
My favourite Ganesha is still to be bought, but I have an idea where it might happen.

 

The life saving banana…. June 2, 2010

Filed under: INDIA — benjamuna @ 4:34 pm

It was our dear friend and travel companion Ram who told one of his friends after our trip to Uttaranchal in northern India last year: I have never seen anybody eating so many bananas…. Anybody was Asbjørn and me, on the road from Delhi to Gethia and return. Ram and driver Rana were in the front seats, whereas we were stuck in the back, squeezed in on each side of a suitcase that never would fit in the trunk, two rucksacks, my handbag, a camera bag, water bottles… it’s amazing how you NOT travel light when you have a car at hand. Yes, and bananas. One plastic bag for the fruit itself. Another one for the peel. This eating obsession had its obvious reasons; Asbjørn is always, when in India, fearing the Delhi-belly. Whereas I always fear starvation, – because can you trust finding a Pizza Hut in the countryside of Uttar Pradesh? Anyway, Ram was hunting bananas. Not that they are hard to come by. And we were eating them in between all other meals, who turned out pretty decent! But it’s always good to be on the safe side!

Ram has been shopping bananas…We’re on the road again!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bananas work instantly when you’re hungry. Praise the banana! Recently, I decided to test myself and my willpower, the idea was to lose enough kilos to NOT have to buy new clothes (environmental initiative). Insted I wanted to make use of those clothes who had shrunk in the cupboard. Easy? no. Possible? surely. But now we’re talking starvation!

Breafast has been meagre for a while. 40 grams of Kellogg’s AllBran. 1 decilitre of skimmed (!) milk. 1,5 dl of orange juice. One (!) walnut. End of story. And well yes, a cup of tea. What a treat! Next, bike for 5,5 km. And then my new obsession; the treadmill in the gym at work.

AllBran looks like cardboard, but taste quite yummy – and has all the right words written on the package – fibre coming out as king….

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I peel off the outer layer of clothes, fill my water bottle, connect my iPod to the stereo. Of course I have a playlist designed for the task, and after 12 minutes I have put wonderful “Keep on Walking” by Salem al Fakir. Maybe more appropriate when I was walking-stumbling away at a speed of 7,5 km/hour. Now I’m running, but the song is still my main energy boost when the going gets tough. Some days I bring a CD with Bollywood music, but I have a slight feeling that other people who work out simultanuously suffer by the sound of it…. (although no one utters a word!)

As I haste away, I hear all my cycling colleagues click-clack on their biker’s shoes enter the gym, walking from the locker room to the wardrobes. And I know some of them are thinking, what’s she up to…. (because some have asked).

After 20 minutes, sometimes a little more because I like my own selection of music so much, I enter the wardrobe, remove the inner layer of clothes, take a quick, proud look at my tomato red face and enter the shower.

But – what has all this got to do with bananas? Thing is, when I enter my office, after pulling life into my computer, after getting coffee and water, I suddenly realise I’m totally starving. The 40 grams of AllBran has been burnt away, every bit of fibre and God-only-knows-all-the-healthy-stuff has disappeared. And lunch is at least three hours away. I imagine that the coffe is a healthy filling syrup and that the water contains some anti-starvation bubbles. And you can really make your imagination work for two hours! At 10 am I grab my banana, eat it, comes completely to life once more and top it with another coffee and look forward to 200 grams of salad for lunch. Life can be tough at times…. but the banana makes it work!

 

My energy booster…..

 

Shoes, too many shoes? May 16, 2010

Filed under: Uncategorized — benjamuna @ 5:05 pm
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A colleague from India, a first time visitor to our home, commented while he was leaving – nodding towards our shoes: How many people do actually  live in this flat? This was, as a matter of fact, the second time a guy from India made that particular comment. But I was able to come up with a quick reply this time: These are shoes for cycling (not mentioning that I have another two pairs; for cycling in the summer and for spinning) – and these are for walking cum treadmill, and…. I then reminded him of his remark one hour earlier; about Stavanger and its four seasons pr day. Which makes it necessary to have a pair of shoes – not for any occasion, but for any type of weather….

But his remark wouldn’t go away. For a week I have been thinking, do I have too many shoes? (yes of course I have). But how come? (silly question). 
Does one need, for instance, three pairs of Converse? I have blue ones (for jeans), brown ones (for my brown jeans). And my favourite shoes above all; the brown suede ones with orange “teddy bear” lining (for spring and autumn…). And there is the Converse look-alikes, black “silk” with grey velvet laces….. Bought in Berlin solely because I was so disappointed I could never find brown Converse….

My favourite shoes which I could never, ever part with....

And, does one need two pairs of Adidas from the Superstar series that came a few years back. The black pair called “Berlin” and the blue suede ones, bought in their trendy flagship store in Berlin…. Maybe not, but if I had to choose….?

Then there is the (sort of) tiger striped ballerina shoes, bought in 2008 in Colaba, Mumbai. Ida and I were looking at shoes when this absolute “fruitcake” of a young Indian salesperson targeted  us. Ida lost all sense of common sense and bought two, if not three pairs. Whereas I bought only one pair (the sensible stepmother), and pretty useless as well the sole being so slippery I almost broke my neck later that evening. But I use them, in the summer, when I go out with the garbage. Does that make sense? – a pair of shoes for getting rid of the garbage (alternatively collecting the mail).

Useless shoes. But I shall never forget the young man who sold them....

But Colaba gave me another pair of shoes last November, my Rajasthan sandals. So pretty they could stand on a table just for sheer enjoyment…. but so hard to wear. I only have try harder!

My Rajasthan sandals are more sparkling than this photo is able to justify!

It’s not my only pair of sandals though. I have many more. For walking on asphalt, in rough terrain, suitable for the beach (where I never go), as well as a restaurant…
A few years back we travelled to Berlin. The summer weather in Norway was so bad we forgot that it could be nice and warm elsewhere. My feet was absolutely boiling, and then I caught a glimpse of a pair of brown and turqoise sandals in a window in Oranienburger strasse. And when it comes to that particulat colour combination, I lose common sense. Besides, the sandals gave me exactly what I needed; airy feet when I was about to melt!
Could I have done without them…. Probably, but my defence is strong: They were not that expensive and takes hardly any space in the luggage. Which means they can go almost anywhere without creating trouble (!)

Brown and turqoise, an unbeatable combination!!

A couple of years ago, rain gear came into fashion. If you can’t beat them, join them. That is: when it’s raining a whole lot, one might as well look good. Suddeny one half of Stavanger’s women was wearing Danish designer Ilse Jakobsen’s rain coats, and boots. Luckily I never surrendered, I never gave in neither to the coat or the boots. Or any other designer’s rainy collection. Instead I find my old 30 or something year’s green “wellingtons” perfectly usable and fashionable (I think retro is the word).

Could never part with these....

And these are ony but a few of my shoes. Because there are hiking shoes, winter shoes, Dr Marten’s shoes (only one pair though), dress-up-together-with-black-trousers-try-to-look-like-a-lady- shoes, – and some other of unknown category.  It’s a fact that one can grow out of (and back into….) clothes, but the shoes always fit. And they pile up. And they tell a story. My Converse are bought in Roanoke (VA) USA, Lausanne (Switzerland) and Oslo. But don’t let me start all over again………….

 

So many trees…. May 4, 2010

Filed under: Indian literature — benjamuna @ 3:38 pm
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I don’t really recall the first time I read about the Banyan tree, but it was definately in a novel. And definately I understood it had absolutely nothing to do with bananas…. I got the feeling the tree had some significance, and that it was big! The first time I actually saw one, was in Pune some years back. My friends Girish, Sanjay and Mandar took me to the University of Pune, and I asked them to look one up for me, in the huge surrounding garden.

The Banyan tree (Ficus bengalensis) is sacred to the Hindus and is often found near temples. It is extremely long-lived,  one of the the oldest one – of 400 years – can be found in Kolkata Botanical Gardens. Yes, it’s big and not at all attractive in the sense of elegance…, but the aerial roots that decends to the ground from the branches gives it a  fairy tale look and also a very distinct look.
I often come across the Banyan tree in novels, very often described as big, and yes, it often grows to a phenomenal size.  I’m always on the look out for a Banyan, the first Indian tree I got to know.

A Banyan tree in the surrounding gardens of The Red Fort in Delhi.

Another tree which I have come across in many novels, is the Neem (Azadirachta indica). Its more elegant than the Banyan and very popular because of its medical value. Neem twigs can be used as a tootbrush, where plastic yet has not enveloped the society.  This is something often referred to in Indian novels, used mostly among poor people.
The first time I really saw a Neem was outside the gates of Taj Mahal in Agra. The Taj Mahal was grand and beautiful, but it takes some effort to visit one of the world’s seven wonders…and thus it was a bit of a relief when we escaped the guide….and my eyes fell on the big and beautiful tree that stood majestetically in the middle of a square. A beautiful Neem.

A Neem outside the gates of the Taj Mahal in Agra.

I fell in love with the banyan the moment I saw it, but it is quite possible to fall in love with the name of a tree….. The first time I read about the Gulmohar (Delonix regia), it was the name itself that caught my attention. Gulmohar or Gul mohur as I have also seen it written. 
Gulmohar is the name of a character in The Peacock Throne by Sujit Saraf. She is one of the whores on GB Road in Delhi. “It’s a flower, the bai said to her. It will make people swoon over you to catch the whiff of your fragrance“. Gulmohar comes from Nepal, snatched away from her hometown by her uncle Jangbahadur to serve as a whore in Delhi at the age of 16… The book is a terrific read, set in old Delhi and its main thoroughfare Chandni Chowk.

Somehow I associated the name Gulmohar with yellow… I envisaged a tree with yellow flowers. Obviously because “gul” in Norwegian means yellow. The tree has in fact beautiful orange/red/vermillion flowers. Its flowering season in India is April – June, a time of the year of which I don’t go to India. But my great wish is to see one, in full bloom! And for sure I will think of poor Gulmohar in GB Road!

Google helped me find this beautiful specimen!

 

Getting my Hindi right! April 25, 2010

Filed under: Indian literature — benjamuna @ 3:32 pm
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I know how to swear in Hindi! Not that it is important, although you never know when certain words may become useful…. For some reason almost all novels, written by Indian authors – includes a lot of words that are not translated, but kept in Hindi. Some books even include a glossary.

One of the first words I came across, was charpoi. Clearly it was something to lie down on, a simple bed (without any mattress) – often used outside. The first time I saw a charpoi, outside a dhaba north of Delhi, I instinctly knew what I saw.  And a dhaba? Clearly some kind of eatery (I concluded the first time I came across the word,) – along the road. Used by truck drivers and other passers by. But in the beginning I thought a dhaba was very poor and simple. It is simple yes, and most of the time (from what I’ve now seen) chairs and tables are outside. Toilet conditions can be a challenge, for over-hygenical Westernes….
Some say the food is poor. I guess it can be poor, sometimes. But go and eat at the Norwegian equivalent, the veikro, and food can be disastrous!  I had the most delicious, hot tomato soup in a dhaba last year. So fantastic that we had to stop at the same dhaba on our way back to Delhi several days later.

And there is the dhobis (who wash clothes), the dupatta (female shawl), and the dacoits who might rob your train through Bihar…. And the almirah (chest of drawers or cabinet   ) and the ayah (the live in baby sitter) – and the wallah, the tiffin, the sherwani, the mangalsutra, the ghats and women in purdah…. together in their zenana.
Not to mention that always-come-useful word accha.

Obviously, every one of these words cannot be translated easily into one word. But some can, without doubt. But it is as if a certain collection of words are never translated anyway. It’s a long time since I have come across a new word, though. I read Indian literature almost constantly, and my vocabulary that has been picked up from novels seems to have hit the roof. Sometimes I wonder if there exists a small hidden book somewhere, that contains the “untranslatable words of Hindi….”

All these original words definately give the books a certain Indian flavour, and if you have an interest in languages it is a big bonus! But I don’t think I’m able – yet – to strike up a conversation in Hindi by using this diverse lot of words…..
Oh, and the swearing comes almost solemnly from Vikram Chandra’s fantastic novel Sacred Games – about policeman Sartaj Singh,  criminal overlord Ganesh Gaitonde, a Bollywood film star…. but on second thoughts I’m not going into that!

And something more about Indian novels; they made me put a book of Indian trees on my wish-list for last Christmas. But that’s another story….

 

Midnight’s Children A MOVIE!!! April 22, 2010

Filed under: Indian literature — benjamuna @ 7:03 pm
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I got Stavanger Library’s 2009 copies of India Today almost for free some time ago. I don’t read every single word, but I find a lot of their articles interesting and moreover, almost every copy has a book review.

Last night I read a copy that was almost entirely dedicated to “famous Indian people living abroad” – among them Salman Rushdie. And what news…. Rushdie is now about to finish the screenplay for Midninght’s Children and, even better new; the film will be directed by Deepa Mehta.

People tend to believe that Indian film is Bollywood, but it’s more to it than that. Bollywood is important for many people, but difficult to interpret for “Westerners”. Try as we might, we always end up with a huff and a sigh….. (A while ago I watched Baadshah… took me two days, and the music got stuck in my mind for weeks…).
Deepa Metha has directed three films (among many others) called Fire (1996) and Earth (1998), and  Water (2005). Beautiful movies. Highly recommendable! And forget about Slumdog Millionaire. An Oscar doesn’t say everything, Deepa deserves one now!