Madhumita's Blog

Music , colors,  food and excitement all are a part of enjoyment with home and family whether  one wishes to agree or not . But the challenge is in enjoying life to its fullest even when you are single because you’ve prematurely  lost your partner and have yet managed to nurture your children to be good human beings and have allowed them to happily grow their wings and fly out of the nest to destinations of their choice with no iota of selfish  insecurities .

This is exactly the situation where when one sits and feels content if and only if the attitude is of acceptance .

Its very easy to comment about the other persons boots beings lighter but as the saying goes , its only the owner who knows where the shoe pinches .

Yes for a lady looking up at life with positivity always out to harvest every occasion for celebration there is left no stone unturned to feel contended and happy with what ever is offered on the platter called luck  .

Its wonderful to live such a life on a day to day going because it gradually makes you so used to the space you have that even watching a movie or holidaying needs no reason to look for companions . But if one has to confess honestly atleast for me the situation where I still skid a little is somehow the days of significance like birthdays , anniversaries, festivals etc . I know I am not the party loving soul and infact enjoy my” Me Me “space a lot but when such days come by I wish there was a companion to share be it children or spouse  but I know if wishes were horses even beggars would fly .

But the bottom line of such a special life is solitude actually becomes a part of our core personality and finally when there is too much of interference s  we perceive a sense of being  claustrophobic  . But I would be dishonest if I do not admit that the sense of being  lost in the moment with friends around truely appeals to people like us as I think for everyone else .

Life is actually so beautiful if we can sequence our perspectives  and channelize  our priorities that no situation can actually make one feel deserted , unhappy or insecure .

The most important domain that needs a control of the bandwidth is ” Expectation” . Its human to expect but its maturity to know where to draw a line to it . Experiences of interaction with each individual being  actually helps us to circumscribe  our limit of expectations from that source . But the unabated feeling of belonging that we spontaneously develop with some people be it family or friends can at times be a nidus  for a transient feeling of being shattered and low . This usually has a quick recovery if you move away from the source .

But all said and done its been an untiring effort to feel secured and confident at times of physical illnesses for its then and unfailingly  at that helpless moment that we all wish to feel a warm hand over our forehead and say ” Yes I stand by you , feel safe ”

Solitude is a blissful attitude with confidence as the cornerstone.

DR MADHUMITA PRIYADARSHINI DAS

Today every inhabitant of Guwahati is a Guwahatian.

Even if someone is the first generation of holding in this over populated bustling city he claims to be as much a guwahatian as much as a 5th generation in this city who has seen it transform from a small town restricted to Phacybazar , Machkhowa , Panbazar , Uzanbazar upto Guwahati club .In the late 1950’s I understand buying a plot of land in Chandmari by my maternal grandfather was calculated because he believed that since the Guwahati Refinery was coming up it was expected to develop from the patches of jungle to habitation.

When we were children in the late 1960’s and 70.s growing up in panbazar we were used to seeing a bullock cart coming home every 6 months with paddy and we were told by my grabdmother that it was from our paddy field in Beltola ( now in and around tha MLA hostel )

Our shopping meant JB Mangaram , Jammatolla , Sheikh Brothers . Kamrup Bakery , Delhi Cloth House , DCM .Deb brothers and Delight restaurant . Ladies with style would shop in Eves’ corner .

Photography was College studio .

Book stalls were Western Book Depot , Mani Manik Prakash and Bani Prakash .

The first posh dinning came with Belle Veue . We always had a belief that whenever an uncle or cousin came from overseas a family gettogether in Belle Veue was a ritual .

Our cars were Ambassadors and Fiats , mostly second hand and those who opted to buy a new one would drive it down from Calcutta in style .

Weddings were essentially within ones own courtyard and for people like us who lived in the commercial hub like Panbazar the Municipality without any hassles would grant us permission to block main roads like Jasowanta road for 2 or 3 days for a wedding even 25 years back .

The club for sport lovers was ” India Club ” and their chowkidar Jhatka would come home every month to collect the dues and bring us tattered tennis balls to play with at home .

For the more elite club lovers was Guwahati club where people would play bridge  in the evenings and celebrate christmas ans New year with Children .I clearly remember one of my grandmothers saying that this club is my temple .

Some went beyond to have membership in the OIL club in Narengi where we could learn swimming .

Schools were Cotton Collegiate , Kamrup Academy , TC School , Panbazar girls school , St Mary’s and Don Bosco. Of course the Kendria Vidalaya’s were there ..

Now it is difficult for us to believe that we are not deserving residents of Guwahati if you are not connected politically or bureaucratically. Today a true Guwahatian is a person with a strong aura of connections , power and financial stability . We have been thrown out of the main stream in many ways although our ancestors played a silent but crucial role in the making of this happening city of today .