1000 Awesome Things About India

As the sun takes its last bow for the day, the joint checkpost at Wagah-the only road link between India and Pakistan-turns into a port of high-voltage patriotic fervour. The checkpost, roughly 23 km from Amritsar, comes alive with the beating retreat-a carefully choreographed drill by India's Border Security Force (BSF) on one side and the Pakistan Rangers on the other to mark the lowering of their national flags. The ceremony, since Partition, has over the years turned ostensibly hostile. A kilometre short of Wagah, roadside hawkers sell small national flags and sunshades in tricolour to the crowds heading for the visitors' gallery to watch the spectacle. When it's time, a battery of high-megawatt speakers facing the Pakistan side blare out patriotic film songs. And then amid loud cheers of "Hindustan Zindabad" and "Vande Mataram", the BSF personnel, matched in ferocity by the Rangers, march menacingly towards each other stomping feet high and hard on the road. The cacophony on the Indian side is matched in volume and spirit on the Pakistani side. The iron gates are shut for the night. But soon after the ceremony, called "Victory Parade", the crowds surge near the zero line smiling, waving and clicking pictures. The loud patriotic rivalry melts away, making Wagah a port of silent cross-border bonhomie.

This carefully choreographed display of hostility takes place every evening at a flag-lowering ceremony on both sides of the rivals' only border crossing.Loudspeakers blare out patriotic Indian songs and soon the crowds at the Wagah border crossing, 500 km northwest of New Delhi, begin to chant.

"Hail mother India!" is the cry from 8,000 Indians in a grandstand built beside the border gate, set amid green wheat fields. "We salute you mother!" they roar.

"Long live Pakistan!" several thousand Pakistanis shout back from the other side of tall iron gates guarded by soldiers with assault rifles. "God is greatest."

"OUR FLAG FLIES HIGHER"

Groups of Indian school girls break into dance in the stands and in the middle of the road as the music switches to a 1960s patriotic Bollywood song set to a modern tune.

Suddenly, a turbaned Sikh waving a large Indian flag charges towards the border gate, cheered on loudly by the thousands on the Indian side who have come to witness the daily spectacle, as if he was set to plant the flag on enemy territory.

"We have to tell them that our flag flies higher than theirs," said the man, Tejinder Singh, a trader from the nearby city of Jalandhar."We have to live in peace but I don't think that side wants peace,"

The Pakistani crowd is not to be outdone. A young bearded man, wearing a Muslim prayer cap, runs towards the Indian side waving the green national flag.

"Pakistan, Pakistan, Pakistan," the crowd roars.

The chanting reaches a crescendo as border guards dressed in ceremonial uniforms with tufted headgear begin a goose-step march to lower flags at the gate, stomping their boots with enough force to kick up dust on the asphalted road.

"The line between tourism and nationalism does not exist here," says a senior Indian officer.

Welcome to India – where each of the 1 billion odd people will be addicted to tea ( popularly called chai) or as in the case of IT sectors coffee (their cash surplus allows them a richer beverage)

Come 4 p.m. and everyone’s eagerly waiting for their cup of tea – cutting chai as popularly known in Mumbai. Offices have a chai-wala (person who sells tea desk to desk) come with his tiny aluminium kettle which surprisingly has tea enough for a hundred people! And if you notice, pan India, it’s the same aluminium kettle. Be it rains or summer or winter, the aluminium kettle goes along with all seasons. If not a chai-wala, then there are those numerous chai – stalls again very popular among college students and those small offices where people find a getaway and a place to unwind. Of course, this chai ka pyaala(cup of tea) is often accompanied with paav vada ( Indian burger ) or samosa or bhajji! At home, all the home makers prepare tea for themselves, as if it’s the start of the day. It helps them “look forward” to the rest of the day! Infact “high tea” is a commonly used term in India in which social events take place. Families now prefer inviting their guests for high tea inorder to save the extra workload from dinner / lunch! Shop keepers will eagerly be waiting for their chai at around 3:30 – 4 p.m. Infact so much so, that chai addicts get headaches and irritation if they don’t get their cup of tea. Its not just their cup of tea if they bunk their tea time!

That’s chai time – when little poor children run along the platform of train station shouting chai chai chai in their typical accent; the many addicts who will do anything for their cup of chai; and the amazing social bonding that happens over cup of chai. Like the advertisement goes “ tata tea… dimakh daudega nahi, bhagega…. Tez bahut tez!”

As if the variety in brands were not enough, tea comes in variety – just like coffee – from black tea to half paani tea(half water) to full doodh (full milk)tea to sugar free and extra sugar to masala chai to flavoured chai from different parts of the Himalayas! There always must be Parle G glucose biscuit or Marie Biscuit accompanying the afternoon tea. Morning tea is another topic by itself. Ridiculously, no two people have tea of the same type. Each have their own style of making tea and especially critical is the water / milk content in chai. Sugar should and must be served separately to guests to avoid the fuss over “how much sugar you have!”

India produces and consumes more tea than any other country in the world, including the famous Assam tea and Darjeeling tea.The cultivation and brewing of tea in India has a long history of applications in traditional systems of medicine and for consumption. The consumption of tea in India was first clearly documented in the Ramayana (750-500 BC).

Today, India is one of the largest tea producers in the world, though over 70% of the tea is consumed within India itself. A number of renown teas, such as Darjeeling, also grow exclusively in India.

Chai – the most loved beverage, yet the most fussed over beverage.

An Indian Tea in making!

India is a land of diversity.Her myriad landscapes, varied tongues, resplendent festivals and multi-ethnicity reflect the culture of this ancient land. indian cuisine, which is as diverse and splendid as the colorful country, has gained connoisseurs, even among the rich and the renowned, across the globe. Since the pre-Christian era, the aroma of the famous indian spices wafted far enough to attract traders, and eventually invaders, from distant lands.

My parents, like most true-blood Indians, love to shower people with their hospitality and feed them till they’re almost ready to burst. We Indians are known for our need to treat our guests with the utmost care and generosity, and one common way we all seem to achieve in doing so is through our food. Food holds a very special place in any Indian household. No festivity is complete without a table laden with colourful dishes end to end, enough to please
a king.It’s no wonder that out of all the rooms in a home, many Indians take the most pride in showing you their kitchens. Truly, we love food, and our life surrounds it. Our conversations, no matter how they begin always seem to divert to the food related with the topic in question. A simple wedding announcement would automatically lead to the designing of the menu. Even meeting up with a long lost friend would be done over lunch or dinner, over food they could reminisce about.

While our meals may be laced with rich aromatic flavours, what I look forward to the most at any Indian-inspired party is the platter of appetizers. Indian hors d’oeuvres range from savoury street food, like the most loved samosas (deep fried pastry filled with potatoes) and pakodas (spiced fritters), to the ever famous tandoori tikkas (marinated meat grilled in a clay oven). They are steamed, grilled and fried. They come in various sizes and shapes, some that can be daintily picked by two fingers, and others that require a spoon and lots of napkins. No matter in what form, they each have something special to offer, and no cocktail party would regret having them.

Ask any one who has ever walked the streets of any major Indian city, be it Delhi, Mumbai or Bangalore; and they will attest to the fact that no evening stroll is complete without making a stop at one of the many hawker stalls that surround every busy area in these cities. Street after street, stall after stall, you will be greeted by smiling faces and tempting plates that urge you to come and give it a try. Smothered with spicy and tangy chutneys, yogurt and tons of other fixings, each plate creates a whole new tale in your mouth.

For beginners, eating an Indian meal might be somewhat of problem let alone cooking a balanced Indian meal. Indian food is designed to be eaten with the group. Unlike western food, Indian food cannot be eaten or served without a combination. Thus, even though you like that curried vegetable or chutney, try not to eat it by itself. Combine it with rice or Indian bread or with other dishes. This will help you enjoy the meal more and will not give any digestion problems later.

A week ago while i was checking Top Blog Of Wordpress page (I was #7 in the list), I found another interesting about India in the same list : 1000 AWESOME THINGS happened to be published by an NRI Mr . Neil from Toronto.

Seeing the title of his site an idea struck my mind and I shared it with him :

Today morning(when i was in the shower and thinking inspired by your blog), I thought of starting a new blog for "1000 things about India" But could not think of any name other than "1000 AWESOME things abut India"

He responded positively :

I think you should definitely start the 1000 Awesome Things about India blog! That would be cool -- especially from a cultural perspective. I mean, even though my heritage is Indian, I don't know too much about India. It would be fun to learn about what Indians care about and Indians think about... these little things... on a regular basis.

So here I am and so are you reading these lines..Thanks to Neil for inspiration. And as he says:

Neil,I hope we do.

I will be posting regularly on this blog ,starting this weekend. A writer about India does not suffers from the scarcity of material but because of its sheer abundance.. I would love your suggestions and feedback.