[Reader-list] Update My Building and the Shahar

[abhinandita mathur]

Hi,



Here is an update on our work and experience with the project so far and a
tentative plan for the coming weeks:



We shared in the last post that this project would be presented as an
interactive multimedia website which shall comprise visual and audio records
like photographs, stories, recipes, songs, clips of *shaadi* videos etc. It
is for this reason that we were unsure about what to write this time…beyond
the usual updates and plans…as we are working towards putting up a website
to start uploading photos and other stuff.



This project in many ways is a personal one and thus the experience of
pursuing it, very special. It is pretty strange to reconnect with all old
associations and ties (including each other) in context of this project.



I moved back to Delhi/home and the *Mathur* building. The first task we
undertook after the official announcement of the grant was telling our near
and dear *Mathurs* about the project, its objective, rationale, purpose etc.
We took 5 print outs of our proposal and shared it with our uncles, aunts,
sisters, nephews and so on. And we have received all sorts of comments and
suggestions!! We thought it might be interesting to share some of these
reactions in this post:



The response in general has been stimulating and intriguing. While all our *
Mathur* friends and relatives have appreciated our "initiative" to take
interest in the community (sometimes understood as community activities), a
number of them are questioning the purpose and "* fayda"* of a project such
as this. On one hand, the project is viewed as a noble contribution in
service of the community, art or sociological good in general; on the other,
some people find it to be total waste of resources. A cousin pointed out
that rather than doing a study like this one…which doesn't really help the
community in a direct way, we should perhaps start something like an
activist's campaign to get the status of a Scheduled Caste which will
actually benefit the community.



The other frequently asked question is: "WHY MATHURS"

*"abe tujhe kuch aur nahi mila", "mathuron mein kya rakha hai ab", "apni
society…don't be silly yaar…you really think its worth studying?".
*Interestingly,
mostly people under 30 years of age fail to understand why anyone would be
interested in our lives. Mathurs, many of them feel are an inconsequential
lot.    While the older ones feel we should actually write a book on mathur
riti reewaz.



In the proposal we spoke about certain peculiar cultural practices in the
community like, language, eating meat, drinking and music. And that they
could be very particular about maintaining their typical way of life. The
emphasis in life was to eat well and drink well. OP Mathur in response to
this observation pointed out that "as Mathurs mostly worked in the courts of
*Shaukeen *Emperors, they were often obligated to drink to give company to
their masters and they never disobeyed orders".



A close friend from the building, Nalin, has been following the story of
this project from the time of its inception. Nalin is 23 years old. He works
as a software consultant for a multinational company. When we started
working on the project last month, Nalin and I spoke about a number of
things including the pros and corns of growing up in this building, the
experience of living here, Mathur *khana, peena*, aesthetic, attitude and
the role all this has played in shaping us as people. He is keen to
participate more actively in the project. He wrote this piece titled



"Balconies at *Shree Ganesh*":



*One does not need to see Jerry McGuire to realize that one experiences a
defining moment which just changes one's life; for good or for bad, that's
my topic for another article. Well, to be honest, I have yet to experience
this life defining moment, but I have had numerous instances which have had
some impact or the other on my conscience and behavior and have resulted in
the package that I am today. Most of these moments were experienced while I
was up to something, at times with someone-not-so-special and once with
someone special. And generally, when I was doing nothing but looking around
mindlessly. *

* *

*But the point I want to make here is that such moments can be experienced
at the most unexpected places. For me my balcony is one such place. This is
primarily because my balcony opens up right into what you call the heart of
SGA. With a perfect view of all the residential blocks, badminton courts,
car parks, jhulle wala park and health club, I witness the very spirit of
SGA whenever I step into it. Every Sunday, with sarson ka tel all over my
body and nimbu ka ras on my hair, I just sit in my balcony and observe life
from close quarters (apart from enjoying the smells of parisnde and aloo -
bedween from neighboring kitchens), I often wonder if I have learned so much
by just sitting here, is it the same with everyone else? *

* *

*Arguably then, balconies in Shree Ganesh Apartments are the most socially
productive piece of land. For house wives, which sums upto30% of SGA's
population, it acts as a modern day equivalent to a chajja from where they
can have a keen look at who's visiting whom, who's wearing what and who's
going where. And importantly who's hanging out of this coveted architectural
wonder to have a friendly talk with, about the daily chores, which usually
consists of how busy they have been and how its time that Tulsi Virani
should start believing an eye for an eye policy. This conversation often
takes place at decibels which can put the latest innovation in sound
technology by Bose to shame. Moreover, balconies assure them a virtual
invitation card to every mehendi, shaadi and mundan. Not that I am
complaining. Because these Mathur functions are the hunting ground for
eligible bachelors. And I am 23 and in a bit of a hurry. *

* *

*For uncles, both paternal and maternal, the balconies act as the platform
which empowers them with freedom of expression which I believe they can't
practice at home because of some very obvious reasons which every married
man faces. Thus, the balcony acts as a place from where they can preach
everyone and anyone who cares to listen; from newspaper wallah to security
guards to car washmen each of them is told how to improve their quality of
service along with every possible advice one can give under the sun. The
balcony probably makes them feel like the Pope standing majestically over
the famous verandah at the **Papal** **Palace **, giving his followers an
audience. Other than that, uncles are seen in balconies only on diwali,
lighting diyas and candles.*

* *

*And for people like me, who very strongly believe that the world would be
at their feet in no time, the balcony acts as the holy spot where they can
think of productive strategies, spend some time in solitude and attain
nirvana, invisible to the outer world behind dozens of impeccably washed
clothes, neatly placed over the twine to be dried. At least the balcony is
way better than some sort of sleeping gas induced bedrooms or tear gas
induced kitchen or toilets which more often that not are subjected to gases
owing to some major gastronomical complexities. With the emergence of cell
phones and importantly telephones etiquettes (we got to thank BPOs for
that), the number of people paying their balconies a visit have increased
phenomenally. The balcony has also undergone a major face lift. It is like
being directly proportional to the rise in stock markets. Earlier balconies
meant gas cylinders, a couple of money plants and a bulb. But now, balconies
are kept as tidy as the living room. Gas cylinders have been replaced by
cane chairs, tulips and roses now give company to banyan tree sized money
plants and the bulb resides within designer glass. Even the trademark
chimtiya have started vanishing. *

* *

*But what still remains in almost all balconies is a picture or a wall
hanging depicting some deity. One might say it is because of vaastu but I
say this the way Mathur balconies are. *

All these responses shall pay a role in shaping this project.
Next month we plan a walk through the *gallis *in old Delhi with boys, girls
and kids from the Mathur building.


This weekend we will go for our first *shaadi* shoot.

Venu has been working on a short essay titled "the Mathur bahu". She plans
to work on it full time next Sunday and have it ready for the next due
posting!!


Project is taking shape slowly…shall upload pictures on our blog soon.

Also...so sorry we could not respond to the earlier mails for us. but will
make sure we do now on...



Thanks!



Abhinandita and Venu
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