The Elephanta Caves , located on Elephanta Island, or Gharapuri, about 11 Km off the coast of the Gateway of India, Mumbai, are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A visit to these caves, excavated probably in the 6 th century CE, is awe-inspiring, and also thought-provoking. Over the years, I have visited the caves a number of times, and also attended a number of talks by experts in the fields of art, history and archaeology on the caves. Together, they help me understand these caves, their art, and the people they were created for, just a little bit better. Every new visit, every new talk, every new article I read about the caves, fleshes out the image of what the island and the caves would have been like, at their peak. I last wrote about the caves on this blog, in 2011, almost exactly 11 years ago. Since then, my understanding of the caves has, I would like to think, marginally improved. Hence this attempt to write a new and updated post, trying to bring to life, the caves of Elephan
It was about a month back that I first got a mail, inviting me
to participate in the Mia by Tanishq contest. The mail mentioned the TV ad running
then, and I realised how disconnected I was, with happenings on the TV front! I
am usually reluctant to participate in contests (as most of you know well by
now) and my first instinct was to refuse. Besides, it was barely a week since
my father-in-law had passed on, and I had the perfect excuse too. But, I must
admit, I was curious. Both, about the ad, as well as the tag line for the
contest – As Beautiful as your work!
Amidst all the work at home, I managed to grab one look at the
ad....
And the first person I thought of, was my sister. I could so
imagine her as Megha, with her taste in ear rings. She has just begun work, and
I wondered if she would react like Megha too. And I hoped she would. After all,
I am the one who gets her ear rings of every shape and size!!!!!
However, she isn’t the one I want to write about. Amongst all
the women I know, there is just one who fits the bill; whose image was the one
that came to my mind the minute I read that mail. That woman is my mother.
She never ‘went to work’ but worked harder than most people I know
(and that includes me). She faced dilemmas more complex than Megha’s in the ad,
and tougher than the ones I face today, yet she remained strong – holding on to
her convictions, staying true to herself, doing what she believed was best. And
the results proved her right.
She was a single parent, a stay-at-home-mother (SAHM) in the
time the term wasn’t even invented, and as to how well she did her job, just
see how I turned out!!!
She faced criticism and fault finding with the same aplomb that
she faced everything else, never losing her cool, never shouting or creating a
scene. Today, as I lose my temper at the slightest mischief of my son, I wish I
had inherited her patience, and her inner calmness, which saw her through much
worse.
Life seemed to throw troubles at her again and again, forcing
her to question the choices she had made. But she stayed true to her
principles, her ideas, and her decisions. I truly wish I had her resilience
too!
The woman I know as my mother has never worn much jewellery, or
dressed up. Yet she looks just as beautiful today as the day she was married,
even without all the adornment. In fact, I think she looks even more beautiful
today, for she has remained the same in spite of all that she has been through.
She, truly is the woman, who I feel, is “As beautiful as her
work”.
This post is my entry for the Mia by Tanishq Blogger Contest.
Simply beautiful Anu!!!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful post, Anu. I have met your mom and I know how nice a person she is... All the very best for thee contest...
ReplyDeleteAnu what a beautiful post!
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A very beautifully written and emotional post, Anu.
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