Skip to main content

Featured Post

2023 - The Year That Was

Places impact you for a variety of reasons. And the same place impacts different people in different ways. This is especially true when it comes to spiritual experiences, where every single person’s experience is unique. And personally, every spiritual experience is unique, the same person can have different deeply spiritual experiences at different places, at different times. This thought has emerged because of my own experiences over the years, but especially so this year, with different and unique experiences at various places I have visited recently. I began this year with a visit to Baroda (Vadodara) with friends. It was meant to be a relaxed trip, a touristy trip, with our sons. We enjoyed ourselves to the hilt, but the highlight of that trip was a visit to the Lakulisha temple at Pavagadh. It was the iconography of the temple that I connected with, and I spent a few hours simply lost in the details of the figures carved around the temple. There was an indefinable connect with

Kitchen Garden Day with Urban Leaves at Maharashtra Nature Park


Kitchen gardens were something I had only read about in books! Then I heard of Urban Leaves, and visited their city farm on a water tank in the Maharashtra Nature Park, and was hooked! More than me, it was Samhith, who, I must say, was fascinated by the idea of eating vegetables plucked directly from the garden, once he realized how much tastier they were than the market bought ones! A few months back, I hadn’t even thought of having my own kitchen garden, much less heard of something called “World Kitchen Garden Day”. When Preeti first told me about it, I simply relegated it to some corner at the back of my mind, a reminder that there was something on the 28th of August, which I had to attend (if possible). A couple of months and a few visits to terrace farms in the city managed by the enthusiastic volunteers was enough to get me more excited about the event!




You can gauge my enthusiasm from the fact that I woke up early without the help of my alarm clock, and unmindful of the pouring rain, walked through ankle deep water outside our building in search of an auto dragging along a sleepy son who, in spite of all his excitement, would rather have spent such a rainy morning wrapped in his blanket, fast asleep! Thankfully, an obliging auto soon appeared to ferry us through our roads which seemed to have turned into streams overnight! Since the MNP is located in an area notorious for flooding, I wasn’t too sure if we would actually be able to reach, but thankfully, the highway was better, (though the ride was a bumpy one) and we reached MNP well in time.

Volunteers busy at work....
welcoming participants, managing the T Shirts, books, saplings and seeds for sale


Even at that early hour, almost everything was ready at MNP. The harvest from the city farm at Mumbai Port Trust was already there, as were the T shirts and books! While we leafed through the books and decided which T shirts to get, the team of volunteers from Nana Nani Park arrived. These enthusiastic individuals, living in the heart of the concrete jungle, had woken up at unearthly hours, and, braving the heavy and incessant rains, had harvested their vegetables at the park, and then brought them to MNP! Hats off to them!

Meanwhile, the harvests were being laid out beautifully by Neemita.

Green and fresh! with touches of colour here and there! 


There were so many vegetables, it was such a pleasure to think that these were all grown in the tiny matchbox sized houses we call homes in this city of concrete!



If just a handful of people could harvest so many vegetables, just imagine the kind of possibilities if more and more people join in! believe me, not much space is needed. Of course, the more space the better, but most of all, what is needed is a desire to grow! A plant is like a child, and needs to be nurtured and cared for, just as we care for our children. Love and affection works wonders, even in the world of plants, and here was abundant proof of the fact!

So many vegetables!! Can you identify all of them?

Samhith was a bit bored at the beginning, firstly because he had to stay indoors, and couldn’t visit the terrace farm, and secondly, because everyone was busy and he had nothing to do! Thankfully, the programme soon started, and he soon found something of interest!

Urban Leaves Volunteers, young and old, having a blast!!

The highlight of the day was surely the talk cum demonstration by Anju Venkat, the renowned nutritionist of The Health Awareness Centre, Mumbai. Their motto is “Health Care is Self Care is Earth Care”, and aptly, she spoke of the similarities between cooking and caring for plants. As she penetratingly pointed out, we take so much care of our plants. We make sure that they are not subjected to chemical fertilizers, or even any kind of chemicals. Using what is easily available, we take the best care of our plants. But do we take the same care of our body? We fill it with oils and supplements which are not just unnecessary, but also harmful. It is as easy to eat healthy as it is to grow vegetables organically!



Even as she spoke, her efficient assistants got the vegetables ready, and she started putting the items together. She spoke of the tastes of the different ingredients, of replacing oils with natural and less oily ingredients like nuts and oil seeds, of steam cooking all veggies instead of boiling or cooking them in the gravy, and all the while, her hands were busy, either gesturing, making a point, or with the item she was making! It was a dual pleasure – a complete audio visual experience! The menu was quite extensive – Raw Banana Cutlets, Dal Dhokla topped with carrot and tomato chutney, Raw papaya salad, Bhindi (Okra) salad, tamarind and date chutney and herbal tea, but  she made it sound so easy, I am sure every person in the audience was waiting to get home and try it out! At one point, Samhith burst out, “It’s so easy!” At last, I have some hope of getting him interested in cooking! And let us not forget the smell and the taste of her wonderful cooking! Even as the cutlets were being made for the demonstration, the aroma got too much for Samhith, who couldn’t contain his hunger any more. Even as I exhorted him to wait for a few minutes, he went ahead and got himself a cutlet from one of Anju’s assistants! He not only loved it, but when we did get down to eating, took second servings of every single dish! And this is a boy who usually refuses to try out anything new!

Tempting, healthy and delicious! The Menu of the day!
Clockwise from 12 o' clock: Raw Banana cutlets, Raw Papaya Salad, Herbal Tea,
Dal Dhokla topped with carrot and tomato chutney, Tamarind and date chutney,
another cutlet, Bhindi Salad, and in the centre, Pan Laddu!


After a short break, which we used very effectively to gorge on the delicious items prepared by Anju and her team, it was time for something we had all been looking forward to – the film made on Urban Leaves. Titled, “Reap what you sow; Eat what you grow”, it mapped the journey of Urban Leaves, from Preeti’s enterprising initiative, which turned a barren patch of land in the heart of Mumbai’s docks to a lush green heaven, yielding kilos of fruits and vegetables, and providing a haven for birds and butterflies! Through conversations with Preeti and other Urban Leaves volunteers, the film showed the growth of the community, expanding to the Nana Nani Park, as well as the terrace farm at the Maharashtra Nature Park, not to mention the numerous other individual terrace farms maintained by the volunteers themselves at their homes!



It was especially a moment of pride for Samhith, when he saw himself in many frames, and one of them especially, which showed his sheer joy and happiness at being in the midst of nature, as he jumped in a pile of leaves which had been collected for making Amrut Mitti. This, to me, epitomized the whole idea of city farming – getting over our city-grown inhibitions over being with nature, getting over our reluctance to touch or be in contact with things like manure, cow dung, cow urine, and of course, mud itself! These, in fact, show nature in her purest form, and are most useful, as our ancestors knew well. It is only when we make our peace with them and learn to handle, and make the most of them that we can live in harmony with nature.

As usual, I took many photographs,but with the idea of speeding up my page loading time, have not uploaded all of them here.... Click below to see the complete album...

KGI Day

Comments

  1. great write up :)  Harshal

    ReplyDelete
  2. Pragati Galleria provides complete Kitchen designs, Kitchen cabinets, Modular kitchen and bathroom products from Kohler all over Bangalore, India"

    ReplyDelete
  3. Wonderful concept ,loved but haven't see the full video yet. shall check later. I loved the Thali  .my aunt in Pune has changed her colony into garbage free zone and she has inspired a lot of people in taking up veg.farming with organic kitchen waste. She writes in some dailies and has a blog too. shall share the link with you.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Lovely pictures and mouth watering food. Chhavi is in the same boat she usually refuses to eat anything.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Nice initiative... good for nature, good for health
    We need to bring these events to smaller cities too..

    ReplyDelete
  6. Looks like you both had lot of fun, especially Samhith. Mouth watering food has made me hungry again!
    I can understand about other vegetables but do they grow onions as well? 

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thanks Chitra! Do see the video when u have time.... I would love to see your aunts blog and write ups! sounds really a dedicated woman!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thanks Mridula! get her to grow something in your backyard! I am sure she will start eating anything and everything that grows there!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Thanks Aakash! but u know what, its much easier in smaller cities since there is much more space there... doing it in a city like bbay where we have so little space even for ourselves is the real challenge!

    ReplyDelete
  10. THanks Nisha!! you would have loved it! esp the food! and oh yes, they do grow onions... but that basket full of onions is from a farm just outside bbay, maintained by Venkat who lives in Goregaon,

    ReplyDelete
  11. lovely write up, missed the event due to other commitments, sorely regretting it after reading all that you did...
    chitra vaidya

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hey Anu
    Thanks for telling us about World Kitchen Garden Day...honestly didn't know that! I'm hoping to start a kitchen garde soon in my teenie-weenie balcony (Bangalore). I'd been cribbing that my space is too small, but if people in Mumbai are doing it, why not here?!! I'm inspired by the sight of that thaali yum-yum....

    ReplyDelete
  13. Thanks, Chitra... it does happen, unfortunately.. i would like to attend each and every meeting of urban leaves, but am able to attend just a few.... come sometime and lets meet up!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Thanks, Cribber Mom! i am sure u can start ur own kitchen garden.. u would certainly have more space than we do! will wait to see ur pics! btw, there are lots of cityfarmers in bangalore too.... if u join their yahoo group, u can get help on how to start and go about it...

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Thanks so much for stopping by. Please leave a comment for me so that I will know you have been here....

Popular posts from this blog

Gokarna Part II – The Five Lingams

We continued our Gokarna trip by visiting four other Shiva temples in the vicinity, all connected to the same story of Gokarna. The story of Gokarna mentions the Mahabaleshwara Lingam as the one brought from Kailas by Ravana, and kept at this place on the ground by Ganesha. (See my earlier post- Gokarna – Pilgrimage and Pleasure). However, the story does not end here. It is believed that, in his anger, Ravana flung aside the materials which covered the lingam- the casket, its lid, the string around the lingam, and the cloth covering it. All these items became lingams as soon as they touched the ground. These four lingams, along with the main Mahabaleshwara lingam are collectively called the ‘ Panchalingams’ . These are: Mahabaleshwara – the main lingam Sajjeshwar – the casket carrying the lingam. This temple is about 35 Kms from Karwar, and is a 2 hour drive from Gokarna. Dhareshwar – the string covering the lingam. This temple is on NH17, about 45 Kms south of Gokarna. Gunavanteshw

Rama Temple, Gokarna

To my right , the waves rush to the shore, eager to merge with the sand. To my left, the same waves crash against the rocks, their spray diverting my reverie as I ponder over the beauty of nature, and wonder what first brought people here. Was it this beauty that encouraged them to build a temple here, or was it the fresh, sweet spring water flowing from the hill here that made this place special? No matter what the reason, I am glad my auto driver brought me here. We are at the Rama temple in Gokarna, just a few minutes away from the Mahabaleshwara Temple, yet offering so different a perspective.

Pandharpur Yatra 2023

The first time I visited Pandharpur was back in 2007 . The names Vitthal and Pandharpur, were just names to me. I had heard of them, but that was about it. Seeing the lord standing on the brick, hands on his hips, was memorable, but more memorable was the sight that greeted us as we walked out of the main sanctum of the temple. In the mandap just outside were a group of devotees singing abhangs , and dancing. This was the first time I had heard abhangs , and even almost 15 years later, I can remember the welling of feeling within me, listening to the songs, and how fascinated I was by the sight of the devotees dancing, lost in their love of the Lord. Over the years, as I have read more about Vitthal, and participated in Ashadi Ekadashi programmes at Puttaparthi, that first experience has stayed clear in my mind and heart. Every time I tell my Balvikas students of the saints who sang of Vitthala, it is that experience that I re-live. I visited Pandharpur again, in 2010, but that experie