Whispers of the Past
While reading a travel book – “The Itinerant Indian”, I bumped into an essay by Vidya Baglodi on Bangalore, titled “Whispers of the Past”. She had returned to Bangalore for a visit after 10 years and was surprised to see the transformation. Here are some excerpts from her essay on the Bangalore that was:
“During my school days(in the 70’s) we lived in Koramangala in a house that had no electricity… …I studied for my examinations under the light of a hurricane lamp. The nocturnal peace would be interrupted from time to time by the howling of foxes and wolves. King cobras were frequent and inescapable visitors…”
No surprise that she was, in her own words, “taken aback by the changes that had transformed this gracious garden city into a suave silicon city“.
“During my school days(in the 70’s) we lived in Koramangala in a house that had no electricity… …I studied for my examinations under the light of a hurricane lamp. The nocturnal peace would be interrupted from time to time by the howling of foxes and wolves. King cobras were frequent and inescapable visitors…” — even in the 70s? Hmmm.. no wonder many westerners believe even now that children go to school on elephants and snakes visit homes everyday!!
It’s quite fashionable for Bangaloreans who’ve lived abroad for a while to come back and spout boring cliches like the ones mentioned by Ms. Baglodi! It’s almost some form of superiority and a muddled-sense of “sophistication” to mouth this inanities. And she lived in Koramangala in the 70s with no electricity? Probably in a hut then!