Hawa Mahal reminds me of…
Built-in 1799, in the heart of pink city Jaipur lies the beautiful palace of wind, Hawa Mahal. There lies a memory of mine. Forgotten but a memory.
It’s been around 8 years since my family moved to Jaipur from Mumbai, even tho it was a new place but Jaipur wasn’t an alien planet to me, I made a lot of memories here as a kid. This is the place where I spent my summers. A major part of my childhood. I don’t how many summers I spent here in total because whenever I open those old albums of mine, I can see the 1-year-old me enjoying my grandparent’s terrace garden with them.
Out of all these summers I spent here as a kid, I remember spending just one summer of mine with my grandparents. Other than going to markets or to Jain sahab’s store to buy small treats and rasna I just remember one outing of ours, to the palace of winds, Hawa Mahal.
I don’t remember much about it but I was around 5 or 6 maybe and I wanted to go see the Hawa Mahal as it was then mentioned in my Social Studies textbook. Well, my parents were busy that day, as far I remember they went out to meet someone so I was alone with my grandparents that day. That’s when my dada (grandfather) came up with the idea of visiting the main city without my parents.
I remember we got off the e-rikshaw in front of the monument and there it was, the picture from my textbook right in front of me. My grandparents both held one hand of mine as we crossed the road and reached the footpath. I don’t remember if there was even a barricade there then like they have now in front of the monument but the weather was hot enough to make us all sweaty (the month was May, I did be more surprised if the weather wasn’t like that). We never went inside the palace, I don’t remember the reason but I have a faint memory of his saying that there is nothing inside the palace so it isn’t that worth it. We skipped the inside tour that day and it is still the same to this date for me. After this, my dadi (grandmother) bought me a lehenga-choli from the main market as a gift. I don’t have that lehenga anymore but I still remember the look of it, white with minimal bead embroidery on the blouse’s neck and at the border of the lehenga. And this is it, my memory of that day with my grandparents.
I don’t have any photographs of that day, even this memory of mine is faint but every time I pass through the Hawa Mahal, this is one of the memories that pop-ups in my mind. My first visit to the main city and Hawa Mahal, also my first day out with my grandparents in their city.
When I again revisited this place in my first year of college during Diwali, this memory is what came to me when we passed through this heritage site. Back then I thought maybe I did visit this place again with my grandparents. This time, I will buy them a gift, I will be the one holding their hands helping them cross the road but I am too late now. I can no longer hold their hands or visit the palace and recall this memory with them. At least not with my dada anymore.
But now I promise myself to revisit this memory with my dadi. I will hold her hand while crossing the road, buy her a gift and treat her to delicious food. We will together revisit this memory of ours.
This was my memory of Hawa Mahal, but I am curious about you. Do you also have a certain memory associated with Hawa Mahal or with any other place? What is that one place that holds a precious memory of yours, even tho it is old and blurred?
Well, this is the end of today's blog, we will see each other soon in a different thought, memory, or perspective. Till then take care ;)
Happy Reading :)
