Freezing Cold In New Delhi

Just got off the mOM and she says its freezing cold in New Delhi. Apparently the temperatures are down to 0.2 degrees centigrade, making it the coldest in 70 years. Reuters reports that a severe cold wave is sweeping Asia right now. Global warming is showing form, and well I bet it only gets uglier in years to come.

It used to get cold in Delhi, but nothing like that. I infact always enjoyed the winters as a kid. Mom would fire up a little “anghiti” on which she would cook some great jaggery-filled parathas, and we would gather around to keep warm. The smoke from the charcol-fired stove would sting our eyes, as we huddled under coarse Army-issue blankets my grand father would get. Still, all of us would stay put, listening to grandma’s stories about the old country. Dad and grand dad would quietly watch over the brood, never uttering a word; and then let me know, time to hit Wren & Martin for my english lessons. I would complain about the home assignments; and why I have to study, and everyone else gets to relax. (Well, 30 years later, we know why….)


Getting up in the morning was always tough. Still, getting dressed up in flannel trousers, a rep tie and blue blazer with a gray woolen vest to keep me warm. And then waiting in cold for the school bus. Then in faint light of the dusk, playing cricket in the street, with a hard cork ball, paint peeling, that would almost always rap on unprotected knuckles….it would hurt like a m*********r. Winter! Oh sweet days of eating cholia… (Anyone know direct english translations of anghiti, paratha and cholia, please leave a comment!)

I wonder what would have happened if it was cold like yesterday? Maybe I could get to stay at home? I am feeling a bit homesick, overwhelmed, like many, by loss of innocence and perhaps being part of an anthem without a nation. Perhaps time to turn back to things I can deal with like broadband…

loading

Comments have been disabled for this post