On Saturday Ambryn and I celebrated International Women’s Day in Bangalore, one of three IWD events we’ll take part in this month. We gathered with Bangalore’s “Women in Black” for a vigil near Mahatma Gandhi Park on Mahatma Gandhi (M..G.) Road. Every major city in India has an “M.G. Road” and in Bangalore it defines “downtown.” For one hour during dusk, we gathered on this busy street with women and men dressed in black and held paper lanterns and signs with messages of peace.
Most signs called for peace through an end to religious fundamentalism (whether Hinduism, Islam, or Christianity). Across the street a sexual minorities group (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, transsexual, hijas, sex-workers...) was also honoring International Women’s Day with colorful streamers, masks, dancing, drums. They were celebrating their success in being recognized as being a part of the women’s movement. Six and a half years ago I never would’ve believed this would be possible. It was very inspiring.
We were also celebrating our two-week anniversary in India. We went into Bangalore in the morning and had a beautiful lunch after successfully changing money. Then we explored Bangalore, trying to recall the city map (our very small portion of the city as it were) that was buried in our minds somewhere.
After the vigil we hopped onto the Visthar bus with the school of peace students, a group of young and energetic Catholic sisters and were dropped off at place where we could make our way to a family birthday party at Christina’s. Christina works in the finance office at Visthar, and on one of our first days here she invited us to this party. Her family gathers once a month to celebrate birthdays. After a few transit-related fiascos (involving an auto-rickshaw driver who didn’t know where he was going and kindly men at a petrol station) we arrived at Christina’s house at after 10:00. We were greeted by several boisterous family members, received a blessing with flames and tikas on our foreheads and were handed heaping plates of really good Kashmiri food. We ate, danced (a lot) and after receiving hugs and kisses from many family members we were back in their jeep and delivered at the Visthar gate around 12:00.
After the vigil we hopped onto the Visthar bus with the school of peace students, a group of young and energetic Catholic sisters and were dropped off at place where we could make our way to a family birthday party at Christina’s. Christina works in the finance office at Visthar, and on one of our first days here she invited us to this party. Her family gathers once a month to celebrate birthdays. After a few transit-related fiascos (involving an auto-rickshaw driver who didn’t know where he was going and kindly men at a petrol station) we arrived at Christina’s house at after 10:00. We were greeted by several boisterous family members, received a blessing with flames and tikas on our foreheads and were handed heaping plates of really good Kashmiri food. We ate, danced (a lot) and after receiving hugs and kisses from many family members we were back in their jeep and delivered at the Visthar gate around 12:00.
Here's Christina's wild and welcoming family:
Whether it was while enjoying Kingfishers with our Keralan lunch in downtown Bangalore, watching a horse galloping through the busiest intersection of the city, sipping mango lassis while listening to American hip-hop booming through speakers, vigiling with Bangalore activists, waiting for a rescue motor cycle in a remote petrol station at 10:00 at night, or being hugged and kissed good-bye by strangers after dancing in their living room, the theme of our really good weekend was, "How did we get here?"
2 comments:
You look slighter than usual--are you well? Maybe it's just the magical slimming effects of the color black. Okay, end motherlike concerns. --Joy
Joy,
Thanks so much for your care. To everyone with mother-like concern: Aside from some to-be-expected Delhi Belly (so far just one day!) we're doing very well.
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