My Days In Modiland

Hi Readers! Here I am, a first-time storey weaver. I am here to share some of my good and my still better good experiences in Modiland.

Modiland or Gujarat as we commonly know it is a land of colours, ‘bhais’,’bens’, celebrations, simplicity and most commonly the delicious Gujarati Thali which one can swear by.

From farsan to sweets, and chaas (buttermilk) to aam ras (mango pulp), a thali is incomplete without even one of these elements.

By now you all must have realized that I am a true foodie. And am lucky enough to get a better half who is a bigger foodie than me (since he enjoys both veg and non-veg food while I restrict me to the veg part of it)

Modiland is a land that does not seem to be a part of this world at all. The ‘junta’ here does use the terms ‘Bhai’(brother) and ‘ben’ (sister) just because it is a part of their lingo, but they mean it as well. As a woman, I have never felt safer in 36 odd years of my life than in the 7-8 years which I spent in this astonishingly wonderful place called Gujarat.

One won’t find more helpful people than the Gujjus anywhere else in the world let alone in India. They like when someone communicates with them in Gujarati. Well, who doesn’t! But don’t think that they won’t help you if you don’t use their lingo

You might think that I must be a Gujarati or must be having some deep connections there to be forever praising the land and its people.

But, so sorry to disappoint you, folks!

I am a South Indian, a Keralite to be more specific (an NRK). But the welcoming warmth which I received in Modiland, I wonder whether I would ever receive in Kerala

Now enough of singing eulogies to Modiland!

Let me get down to my experiences.

Before that I must introduce myself, isn’t it!

I am basically a Banker with a teeny weenie interest in writing fictions and poetry. I am working for a Nationalized Bank since 2008. I got married in 2013 to a PRK (Pucca Resident Keralite)who swears by “Kerala Porotha” and “Beef Roast” (Curry) and one of the main reasons for his dissatisfaction with the current regime is the “Beef Ban”. But one thing I must say about him is that he has never tried to convert me into his way of eating.

 Well, after getting married in May 2013 my husband got a job in Gandhinagar (Gujarat) in November 2013. I got the news somewhere around second half of October. We went to Gujarat to look for a brand new nest for just the two of us.

This was my first encounter with Gujarat where I was to spend the next 7 to 8 interesting years of my life.

Well, spending 2 days house hunting we finally found a nice 2 BHK (the people from my husband’s office were very helpful). We had a small housewarming with just the two of us.

I used to go every 2 weeks to Gandhinagar which was 8 hrs from Mumbai (where my parents were based and where I joined the Bank in 2008).

Gandhinagar, the capital city of Gujarat is as organized as Chandigarh with its sector system but minus the stylish “junta” of Chandigarh and Punjab. Here we can find the simplicity of Gujarat along with the development which the current regime has brought in.

Being a “pucca” Mumbai-ite, always swearing by the steaming “vada pavs”, the “missal pavs” and the “samosa pavs” I soon fell in love with Gujju food.

My husband being alone in Gandhinagar was helped by all the neighbours whether it was in buying a “mandir”(temple) for our new house (which we still use at home) or in offering the evening meals (which he used to politely refuse to be a very quiet person himself).

I got a transfer (within the Bank) to Ahmedabad in March 2014, and I left my alma maître (Mumbai) to join my husband at Ahmedabad with a pang in my heart to start a new life

Thus ended my journey in “aamchi Mumbai” as a Mumbaiyya to start a new chapter of my life as a “Gujjuben”

I think I will end my 1st episode of “My days in Modiland” here.

Bye for now till my next sojourn into my life in Modiland.