Sunday, December 2, 2007

Why villages matter

2 days since we returned from our native & I find it hard to believe I miss the place so much. Ofcourse, grand-dads & grand-moms always hold a special place in everybody's heart, but I miss the place. Driving back, I wondered how many people were fortunate enough to get a glimpse of such stark difference. Suddenly, pub-hopping felt boring, unattractive even!

At 7am this place looked beautiful

From milk-men delivering milk in packets to milking cows, buffaloes & goats yourself, from microwave ovens to chulhas, from feather stuffed pillows & foam mattresses to open air char-payis...

Villages definitely provide a taste of whole-some life!

After failed attempts, a passer-by helped us pick this one up

Cricket enthusiasts

Abandoned homes

100 year old stairway

6 comments:

Anushree said...

yes villages do have a wholesome feel to them. once i had been to prafu mavashis place in dongargaav and we had some special chullah made bread (panage if u know) and a real spicy curry to go along. it was fun!
anyway u r back!..will catch u on some weekend :)

Pranjal said...

Paanage, yes! With vaangyaa-chi bhaaji... Yum! It must have been fun!

Yup, back. Drop by anytime.

Samba said...

Wow! You've made your point so eloquently in so few words! Here's my 2c (might be worth less than that!) - Many Indians live in villages. But not many are fortunate enough to appreciate the difference between drinking Glenn Fiddich and drinking goat's milk. Also, in all honesty, you only get to appreciate everything a village offers when you aint bound by the shackles that the permanent reisdents of the village are bound by - superstition of your fellow beings, lack of basic amenities, sex discrinimation, feudalism, vendetta..... You relish the village coz these phenomena don't affect your life per se. They may affect your softer side and you may well feel sympathetic about those who are affected. I wish there come a day when the word village will only have the connotation that you've come to appreciate.

Pranjal said...

I agree. Too many mundane issues are debated on in villages. And they seem to miss-out on what nature offers them. But isn't that why we city-dwellers must realize the worth, help them see the truth & help save our villages?! I hope, just like you do, that someday we all will :).

Samba said...

I'd recomend you to try out the following movies based on the harsher side of the village

Ondu Muthina Kathe
Bootayyana maga Ayyu
Jogula
The magnificent seven

Let me stop before the list becomes unmanageable.

I do realize the importance of helping our villagers see the gift they have been given and not bother about trivialities. But, to be honest, I aint too optimistic about whether we city dwellers have the ability to do so (unless we are from Omaha, Nebraska). I believe lack of money is the root of all evil. Poverty lies at the heart of the trivial nature of man. That's contrary to common sense as poverty should make man more efficient at channeling his resources, time, capital, effort, intelligence et al. But whoever said man is a commonsensical animal? Regardless, poverty makes society collectivist and collectivism implies that the individual's choices are influenced more by those around him than by himself. When man's actions are guided by anything other his own rational self interest, that's recipe for disaster - individual as well as social.

Bu don't I want to cure our villages of their trivialities so the villagers can enjoy their work and life better? I sure do. Before I do that, that I have an obligation, given the constraint I outlined above - make money so I can mitigate the poverty of at least a tiny fraction of my target population.

I apologize about my cynical tone if it sounded that way. I hope I did not ruin the lingering freshness of your recent trip.

Pranjal said...

No, not cynical at all. I understand the point you are making here. I hope we will be able to make a change soon...