CHILDHOOD MEMORIES OF MAHANAGAR

My childhood friends

We came to Mahanagar in Lucknow in 1959 and though I was very young then and we were among the first to opt for our own home in this locality, which seemed miles away from civilization. 

I distinctly remember that the while richshaw walas and tanga walas would bring us home from Charbagh  and Hazratgunj before sunset, but in the evenings they simply refused to go beyond the Nishatgunj railway crossing. We had a long 3 cell Everready torch which my father used to carry and we had to walk back home from the railway crossing. I must hasten to add that most of the time I was riding on his back. Stray dogs were there even then, but there were stray foxes too and we could hear them howling at night. 

The bandha was not there and Kukrail would flood every monsoon and I remember two big floods when boats moved around in the streets of Mahanagar distributing milk powder, bread and biscuits. The bandha came up after the second flood. I remember the PAC guys stacking up sandbags to stop the overflowing Kukrail.

Flooded streets of CID Colony

Our flooded home

Streets of Mahanagar were lined with Gulmohar and Amaltash trees. The red dazzle of the former and the golden shower of the latter were simply mesmerizing. Much later I came to know that Amaltash is the national flower of Thailand but they still line many streets of Mahanagar. People had time to tend to their gardens and almost every house had very well maintained lawns and flowering plants. Even the people residing as tenants in Secretariat Colony had open spaces all around an quite a few enterprising ones would grow wheat, paddy and corn cobs there.

The banks of Kukrail were used as a cremation ground and the stink of burning flesh could be smelt even from our home as we live very close to the bandha near PAC. I remember my father and his friends in the colony taking this issue up with the municipal authorities, but this nuisance stayed with us for quite some time.

Another piece of history that comes to mind is the PAC mutiny. It was very frightening for kids like us and very unfortunate. This place was otherwise our favourite as we sneaked in to see films in the evenings in their basketball courts. We also saw many national athletes and hockey players in PAC grounds.

We had big open parks where we would spend our evenings playing cricket, gulli danda and marbles. I learned flying kite from a neighborhood Mahesh bhaisaab who was polio stricken and moved around with the help of crutches but was a wizard when it came to flying kites. Alas, these parks are either encroached like the one behind Mount Carmel, or are used for marriage ceremonies like the one in CID colony. Children do not have time to play anymore!

I did my early schooling, till Class 2, in Mount Carmel and then was admitted in Colvin, where I spent a decade. Till Class V my father took me to the school on his bicycle and I would return on a shared rickshaw. From Class VI I was allowed to go all by myself on my own bicycle. Even Faizabad Road had very little traffic and cycling was safe then. 

Cycling to school with friends was fun. A senior student showed me how a 2 naya paisa coin could be turned into a 10 naya paisa coin by putting it on the railway line and let the train run over it! My parents were  miles away from the Gandhian principles of non-violence and this action of currency change was duly rewarded. There were tamarind trees on either side of Faizabad Road and we would stop under them and throw stones at them. Jangal jalebi was another favorite of ours as were wild berries and all these grew in shrubs everywhere in Mahanagar. 

Much before we had a proper cricket bat we had fatta cricket, using a piece of wood extracted from broken chairs and a tennis ball. Holi, Diwali, Dushehra, Eid and Christmas were all spent together in the colony. Janamashtami was celebrated in PAC where they decorated beautiful jhankis. Republic day and Independence Day was celebrated in PAC too and we had some colony sports - mostly races as a part of these celebrations. My parents took active part in celebrating Durga Puja in Badshahnagar and Kali Puja in Mahanagar and we actively took part in cultural programmes and other arrangements.

Our elders during Kali Puja

Life was difficult for our parents with few amenities of luxury - no cooking gas, no phone, no refrigerator, no air conditioner  and no washing machine but their substitutes were interesting and labour intensive, to say the least. The angithi or earthen oven would be set afire in every household first thing in the morning. A surahi or clay pitcher would be filled with fresh water and kept out to cool the drinking water and we had to go all the way to the post office to make a phone call. The khas ki tatti had to be drenched with water to cool our homes when the summer loo lashed mercilessly. Memories of sleeping under the starry sky with only a mosquito net on crossed bamboo stands protecting us from the omnipresent pests are still etched in my memories.

Our parents had a large social circle and once or twice a year we had picnics. Birthdays and marriage anniversaries were occasions to get together and enjoy! We surely had a great childhood in Mahanagar.

Picnic with our parents