Monday, December 17, 2012

A Fairy Land called Kolkata

One week of complete indulgence, one big fat Bengali wedding and one family reunion: that sums up my trip to Kolkata!

As always, Kolkata was home, Kolkata was warm despite the chill of winter, Kolkata was hope and Kolkata was family.

My parents showered me with affection and alcohol, literally. Don’t ask me what my mom reads, but apparently she read that beer is good for the hair, which is why she promptly gifted me a Park Avenue Beer Shampoo. My dad, appalled that his sweet little girl, no longer able to withstand the inflationary pressures, has now resorted to Signature as her poison, down from Jack Daniels, tried his best by making me drink Chivas Regal and Black Label on alternate days…

My mom, eager to cook all my favourite delicacies in the limited time, took a leave for four days, only to spend a major part of it in the kitchen as she pampered me with fish fry, chicken roll, puchka, mishit doi and chanachur…

My dad, no longer in touch with contemporary cinema, tried to prove that movies in his youth were much better, as he made me sit patiently through Cleopatra and Guns of Navarone. On the last day, we decided to call it a truce and watched Bombaiyer Bombetey, a recent Feluda movie, but written by Satyajit Ray in his heydays…

My mom, desperate to turn me into a ‘lady’, treated me pretty much like a doll, as she dressed me up in her colourful sarees and accessories for each day of the wedding, while I stood in front of the mirror, resigned to her enthusiasm…

My dad, cribbing that I am blind to the history and culture of Kolkata, accompanied me to the Light and Sound at Victoria Memorial on a journey to discover the rich history and culture of the city and the way it has evolved through time. He also took me on a tour to Budge Budge, where we spent the day by the Ganges, feasting on a delicious lunch, as we stared out to the serene river…

And then, of course, there were my childhood friends, a grand wedding, but most of all, a grander occasion…

May be, just may be, fairy tales are not for kids alone; they do happen in real life as well, especially at home, especially with people who love you no matter what and especially when you need them the most

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

So awesome!! How d hell did u fill all this in 6 days? :/

Jay said...

Beer Shampoo, I am not sure I am familiar with that concept :P

Your Dad btw completely rocks !

Black Label and JD too good, For some reason I do not like Chivas that much. But black label is a smokiiin drink.

Nefertiti said...

@anonymous
it's easy with parents like mine :)

@jay
ahh... you seem to be a whisky addict. at least your blog tells me so! but welcome and keep reading

Neil D'souza said...

Guns of Naverone reference! Your dad just leapfrogged you on the coolness quotient.

Nefertiti said...

@neil
stop standing up for people you don't know instead of supporting your friends (now ex-friends). Or may be you are just too old to appreciate new age cooldom!

Nidhi said...

Loved it... Specially the last part "fairy tales"

jo said...

Just when you want the fairy tales longer they end - i have found destitution from the city we love, kind of kind of puts meaning to the mystery - great post!

Nefertiti said...

@nidhi
lol... no matter how grown up we are, we shall always have a soft corner for fairy tales. always!

@jo
thank you, and may be it's for the best when they end when you still want them to go, rather than the other way around.
Case in point: sachin tendulkar :)