Sunder Munderiye..!!!

 Two days ago was Lohri! Going by the books it is the end of the harvesting season in Punjab and the end of winter in North India. But for me and most of my cousins who grew up together in one big Dilli ka ghar, it was one day when we could wear the best of clothes and eat as many aate ki pinni’s  as possible. All the mummy’s and Badi Mamma (my granny) would be busy figuring out the number of guests who would be coming over for Lohri baalna (bon fire) in the evening. Or on several other occasions it would be them figuring out gifts for those relatives to whose houses we have been invited for Lohri Party.  It used to be a day off from school so in the morning all us kids would be busy ‘helping’ the men of the house in bringing apart old rained down furniture that was comfortably getting accumulated in one corner of the terrace. Although it was for the fire in the evening we would bash up the furniture with an utter sense of urgency (it was somehow a lot of fun) post which we were obviously super tired , hence jumping and prancing about further was not an option!!!    Poori sabzi and half a phooge ka laddoo later, we all would be fast asleep only to wake up to the halwais’ Kadhayi and bartan making a racket in the verandah ahead. All the mummy’s would have by now gotten ready with the best of jewellery and phulkari dupattas. My chachi (aunt) used to go a step ahead and tie a paranda in her plait.     

Pinni- the most popular lohri sweet meat




We kids had no special agenda other than waiting for the bon fire to get started hence we used to pass time with picking up one of the wooden phattas (plank) meant for the fire and start playing cricket with a newspaper rolled up as a ball.

As soon as the bon fire would come to life our much beloved bat and ball would be ‘swahah’ed in it. Also there was a sudden realization. It was indeed very cold during those days. Delhi is still shivering at some 6 degrees but I guess with all the day’s play us kids would never really feel it. Anyhow, so there was a bonfire and all the elder were throwing in til, gud ke laddoo, corn that would eventually pop out of the bon fire and almost hit us back . There was the punju song and dance with the music blaring from our beloved Phillips 240v deck. The butterrrr chicken and lachha paratha would follow with Uncle’s ‘Car-o-bar’!!! (concept of booze in a car’s boot which only Delhiites are aware of I guess J).

 

typical dressing for lohri celebration



As the wood turned to amber coal and the fire gave way, the party also used to come to a close with all relatives chasing bye bye’s for at least half an hour on the gate (another punju tradition that never leaves us!!). And for us chillar party, we were almost sad to let go of either our dumb charades or i-spy dens!

That was Lohri for most of us as kids. Today, life has moved on. All cousins are either studying in some part of the world or are happily married. I have shifted from Delhi to Mumbai as well. By virtue of marrying a Parsi, there is no knowledge amongst most about the Punjabi new year or all that goes on in that day.  Therefore, today it is all about sifting a few of my ‘kind’ who know its relevance and (unlike most others who continuously make fun of this festival’s name) get a few figs of wood and coconut shells in a bowl and do a small fire, throw in some revdi and Act II popcorn, and a few ‘hoye hoye’ and half a ‘sunder munderiye’ song  at a dear friend’s place. Life’s hues have changed. Smaller things were very big when we were small. Every festival was an event, an opportunity to have fun. These days it’s almost inconvenience to most. After all, there are way too many tasks to juggle aur uske ooper rishtedaron se kaun miley? Somehow, very very strangely I am continuously thinking of that one dialogue that Ajay devgan brilliantly delivers in the movie Singham – Mujhmein hai dum kyunki meri Zarooratein hain kum!!  :-)