The Yellow Butterfly

'P' of #AtoZChallenge  लहानपणापासून पु.लंचं घरी येणं जाणं असायचं!  कधी cassette मधून गोष्ट सांगायचे, कधी radio वरून गाणी ऐकवायचे.  आणि भरपूर वेळा आई आणि आजी मला त्यांची पुस्तके वाचून दाखवतं.  मला तर ते माझे आजोबाच वाटायचे!  किती गोष्टी सांगत, किती हसवत!  जास्त करून त्यांच्या गम्मतीदार गोष्टी ऐकल्यामुळे ते माझ्यासाठी खूप मोठा Source of Happiness होते आणि अजूनही आहेत!!  मी सहावीत होते तेव्हा ते गेले.  मी पहिल्यांदा कोणाच्या 'जाण्यावरून'  एवढी रडली असेन! तेव्हा तर मला फारशी idea पण नव्हती की, ते नक्की कोण आणि कित्ती मोठे आहेत! मला माझेच आजोबा गेले असं वाटलं! दुसऱ्या दिवशी आणि त्या नंतर झालेल्या media coverage नंतर कळलं की फक्त मी नाही ते सगळ्यांचेच favourite आजोबा आणि Once in a Lifetime Phenomenon होते ! त्यानंतरच्या दिवसात, सगळ्याच channels वर त्यांची नाटकं, गाणी, काथा-कथान, जुने films broadcast केले!  खूप blessed वाटलं की मी ते असताना जन्माला आले, आणि मला ते थोडेसे मिळाले!  आणि त्या...

O of #AtoZChallenge At night, when the world would be making it's bed, waiting to drop down, my Aaji would put on her transistor in her bedroom and listen to old Hindi songs on radio. Suddenly, everything would go quiet. A warm, fuzzy feeling would envelope our house. A smile would appear on our faces, the worried wrinkles on the foreheads would disappear and we would find ourselves going down the Old World Lane!  Ah! The eternal- Old World Charm! Even today when I hear any old Hindi song, my imagination turns into  black and white and I get transported right into the song!  If I have to revisit an era, I would travel to the 'black and white Mumbai' era. When the streets looked squeaky clean, the Victorian buildings at VT, Churchgate basked in it's full glory, Marine Drive and the Arabian Sea looked it's cleanest. During my time-travel, I can feel the warm wind blowing, making my tresses dance. I imagine life to be simpler with lesser choices, less...

G of #AtoZChallenge Ganpati's Aaji-Aajoba, Parvati's parents, are Earthlings.  Every year Ganpati visits Earth twice and lives as a fellow Earthling.  Aaji Aajoba make sure to invite all their relatives and friends over to the house to meet Ganpati.  Then all the family friends sing and dance around Ganpati and entertain him thoroughly.   Just because they know how foodie Ganpati is, Aaji-Aajoba lovingly make 'special Ganpati meals': modaks, shrikhand, different sorts of bhaajis and pulavs every single day!   Every year Ganpati goes back to his parents chubbier and fluffier.  This year while Ganpati and Parvati were underwater and were on the way back home, Parvati playfully cupped and squeezed his chubby cheeks and chuckled, "Your fitness freak Baba is going to freak out more than ever!"   Mushak giggled, "Kheeekikheekii.."  Parvati looked at him crossly, "You too are looking fluffier than usual!"...