Sarai Post # 4

(Since this post is part text and part images, I have divided it into several sections. Sorry for this ‘broken-up’ posting!)

For my fourth post I plan to profile one vartaphalak in detail. Through this I attempt to place the ‘vartaphalak’ in its larger spatial as well as social contexts to explore how it constitutes a significant community space. I rely on the photo-documentation of this area and of the vartaphalak itself to explore this aspect of vartaphalaks. This would be complemented by excerpts from the interview with Shahid (name changed), who writes the vartaphalak here and discussion with other members of this committee.

The vartaphalak featured is run by Siddi Shah Moula Young Committee, in Ghorpade Peth. Siddi Shah Maula Young Committee is an old collective, probably around 20 years old. The chairman, Ayaz Shekh told me that it was basically formed to further religious activities around the Siddi Shah Maula Durgah. It also gave an opportunity for young boys in the area to come together and interact with each other, according to him. The Committee’s activities included celebrations around Urus Sharif and Sandal Sharif, Ramzan Id and Bakri Id and the monthly Chatta, to pray to Khwaja Garib Nawaaz, wherein kheer is served to the entire locality.

The locality, Ghorpade Peth is located in east Pune and is sandwiched between several other Peths, which constitute the old, heart-of-the-city area. It resembles typical old areas characteristic in Indian urban centers: tang galiyan (narrow alleyways), densely packed, often, crumbling houses, populated by lower middle and poorer classes, the volume of traffic here making things absolutely chaotic. This area definitely retains a different sense of communal existence, than the one to be found in distinctly middle class areas like Kothrud, Prabhat Road or Model Colony, which are inhabited by almost exclusively Maharashtrian (and largely upper caste) people and are marked by apartment colonies or spacious bungalows.

The area has Muslims and Christian populations, a host of communities within Hindus like Marvadis, several middle-level caste communities like Joshi-Gondhali community, the Bhoi community and a sizeable Dalit community. This community map is based upon my interviews with several key informants and vartaphalak writers in this area.

For me, raised in an exclusively Brahmin, middle-class residential area, the landscape and soundscape of Ghorpade Peth itself seemed faintly exotic. Initially I couldn’t help but stare at the imposing 120-year-old Church of the Holy Name standing tall amidst chawls, or linger near Medina Masjid in Mominpura with smell of kabaabs wafting through the air, every time I passed the road. Nobody seemed to notice these structures amidst them as they went on with their lives. But I realized acutely, how they had never been a part of the everyday landscape that I inhabited, thus acquiring an exotic value for me. It is only now that I pass these areas with some (practiced!) nonchalance, taking the variety for granted. Hearing the church bells toll every hour or the aazan was also alien to the sound-scape that was part of my everyday life and I still notice these sounds if I’m in these areas at that time. In that sense, this was an exercise of being introduced to ‘cosmopolitanism’ for me.

Again, based upon the information garnered from key informant interviews and interviews with vartaphalak writers, an extremely small percentage of the population in this area is in involved in the professional realm or does ‘service’, as many of my respondents put it. A large section of the population is involved in small business or minor jobs in industries, garages and workshops. There are specific communities involved in specific occupations. The Joshi-Gondhali Samaaj, for instance, was traditionally involved in performing Gondhal, a genre of folk art in Maharashtra. Several members of this community now are involved in the business of buying old clothes, repairing and washing them and reselling them in the weekly Juna Bazaar. Similarly, the Bhois have been the palanquin bearers since medieval times. The Bhoi community is now engaged primarily in fishing and selling their catch in the city[1]. This area also seems to specialize in catering to wedding ceremonies: there are about 3-4 brass bands located here, mandap decorators, ‘ghodi’ and carriage suppliers and so on.

Coming back to Siddi Shah Moula Young Committee, Shahid gave me a bit of information about Siddi Shah Moula. The vartaphalak is in a way an extension of the durgah of Siddi Shah Moula, who was a pir, who lived in that area dosou-teensou saal pehle (2-300 years ago), according to Shahid. No one seemed to know the exact historical period to which the pir belonged, but it was clear that it was a long time ago, or bahut pehle ke as people put it.

This durgah is located in the compound of a building, next to the vartaphalak. It is a rather small structure, built of concrete adjoining the compound wall of the building. As I was later told by an old man, who owns a shop in the building, the durgah was located right in the front of the building. During the construction of the building, the builder realized that this was a special place and hence avoided breaking it down and himself constructed a small temple-like structure in the building compound, where the durgah was shifted.

[1] I have interviewed two vartaphalak writers who hailed from these communities respectively. Hence this detailed information.

Post # 4 contd...entering Ghorpade Peth

Cathedral of the Holy Name.

It kind of towers above all the houses in this locality. There are few apartment buildings here; mostly it's one or two-storied sloping-roofed houses, built in the style of a waada (traditional Maharashtrian house, built around a courtyard) or then like a chawl.
The varataphalak for Panchahaud Ganesh Mandal can also be seen in the picture. This is the vartaphalak which Mrs. N (featured in the last post) writes as a part of her Sanatan Sanstha work.

Post # 4 contd...vartaphalak at Siddi Shah Moula Durgah

The durgah of Siddi Shah Moula is located in the compound of the building seen behind the vartaphalak. One can see that a sitting space (paar, which is traditionally built around trees) has been specially built for people to sit here. The lane narrows quite a bit as one travels further down.

Post # 4 contd...glimpses of Ghorpade Peth

This lane runs parallel to Kachi Aali, where Siddi Shah Moula vartaphalak is located. Another Muslim vartaphalak, run by Tiranga Young Circle is located in this lane. This vartaphalak is also adjoining a durgah of another pir, Usman Shah Mastan Baba. Several activities of Tiranga also center around this durgah.

Post # 4 contd...glimpses...

Another vartaphalak located right on the fork between the two lanes (right in the center of the photograph). Though largely left blank within the four months that I’ve been visiting this area, this place is always dotted with young men sitting around and chatting. The evenings here are particularly busy, since a kabaabwallah parks his redi (cart) next to the vartaphalak. There also is a pan poi (earthen pots which serve water) located on the left side of the vartaphalak. This photograph has been taken in the middle of a Sunday afternoon.

Post # 4 contd...content of the vartaphalak

Shahid started writing the vartaphalak on his own two years ago. He is 18 and after having studied till 8th standard, started working in his brother’s air conditioner repair worship. Interestingly, he is the Khaadim (priest) designated to look after the durgah, which he considers to be a huge honour. He had asked for it himself. Even all the Urus announcements were made by his name. When I asked him why he asked for the priesthood of the durgah, he replied that he had seen the durgah closely, he knew how to take care of it. He said that one really had to work hard to fulfill the commitments of a khaadim. Khud ke shareer ko kaatna padta hain… (One has to cut oneself for this). But he said that only after getting the experience himself, his faith got consolidated - Humne aajmaaya hua hain. I thought it was remarkable that an 18 year old had asked for the khaadimgiri of the durgah and also the fact that the community had allowed such a young boy to take up this responsibility. Mohsin had also mentioned in the passing that he traced his lineage from the pir’s family. Maybe that had a role to play in his getting the khaadimgiri.

According to him, buzurgon ke saath baithte hain toh achhi baate samajh mein aati hain – one gets to learn good things when one spends time with knowledgeable and senior people in the community. He started writing the vartaphalak because he felt that whatever knowledge he was able to obtain from them should also be passed on to other people. He gets the hadees (sayings by Prophet Mohammed) from the community’s maulana, who explains to him the meaning and then he writes them on the vartaphalak.

Post # 4 contd...life in Kachi Aali

This is a typical afternoon in Kaachi Aali. The paar is generally occupied by older men ‘hanging out’, or children playing around. Notice that the man sitting on the paar is extremely casually dressed, in vests and pajamas. A group of young boys were playing carom in the open space behind the vartaphalak. A woman was sitting outside her door and cleaning grains, just behind from where I took this photograph.

Post # 4 contd...Kachi Aali...

Evening times in Kaachi Aali. One can hear both the aazan as well as the church bells tolling here. This flock of sheep returns home around the same time in the evening, completely occupying the narrow Aali and causing a traffic jam of sorts. A herd of buffaloes also traverses to and fro from their shed down the road. It is only later in the evening that Shahid and his friends gather here, after returning from work.

Post # 4 contd...neighbourhood around the vartaphalak

This is Maashi Aali. The lane gets its name from the fish market that is held here everyday. This is located in a couple of lanes parallel to Kachi Aali, and officially comes in the adjoining area, Mahatma Phule Peth. The congested alley is basically a fish- cum-vegetable-cum-everything-else market, flanked by Dalit basti on one side and Ghorpade Peth on the other.

Post # 4 contd...neighbourhood...

This cinema parlor (above) is located right on the periphery of a Dalit slum adjoining Maashi Aali. It was a surprise as I thought cinema parlors had disappeared from the city at least. I also discovered another such parlor in Shukrawar Peth during another of my trips.

Another vartaphalak (below) located in the Dalit slum. A message wishing people on the occasion of the 2550th birth anniversary of Lord Buddha.

Post # 4 contd..Kachi Aali again...

These photographs were taken around 8 in the morning. As I walked down the Kachi Aali, I was struck by one activity that all the women in the Aali as if collectively engaged in…washing clothes and utensils. Small rivulets of water originated at regular intervals along the Aali, as almost every household had a woman sitting in front of the door with piles of washed and wrung clothes and utensils. Water supply must be lasting till about 9.30 or so in the morning here after which there was probably no chance of water supply being resumed till late in the evening.

It might almost sound comic but another thing that struck me about the landscape of Kachi Aali was the presence of a variety of animals there. I passed baskets of eel-like fish kept in water (probably to be taken to sell in Maashi Aali next door), cows tied in a shed amidst overwhelming smell of cow dung, hens scampering about in the middle of the road, clucking as if panic-stricken. In the lane where Tiranga Young Circle is located, a make-shift stable had been constructed for a couple of horses, who probably belonged to a wedding contractor. The shiny Victoria-like carriage stood outside, blocking half the road.

Post # 4 contd...Urus at the Durgah

This was a special day for Siddi Shah Moula Durgah. It was the occasion of the Urus and Sandal Sharif in the honour of the pir. There was great hustle and bustle around the entire space when I had landed there a day before the festival. The entire Siddi Shah Moula Durgah committee was busy running around making arrangements. On the day of the Urus, the place had been transformed completely. Green flags, mandap decoration lined the roads. The small durgah was also elaborately decorated with flowers , a new metal ghumat was affixed atop the cement structure to give it an authentic durgah look. Massive loudspeakers were stacked up on one side of the road, in readiness to blare out qwaalis at deafening decibels. Children played frenziedly and my presence there with a camera made their frenzy climb a notch higher.

As the prayers began to be recited by the Moulana, some women (including Shahid’s proud mother, sister and aunt) joined me to watch the ceremony from outside. The 30 minute long prayer was followed by an absolutely mesmerizing performance by the dhol-tasha (drums) party specially invited to play for this occasion.

Post # 4 contd...Urus...

A bhandara (community meal) was organized on the next evening. Shahid was looking dapper in his spotless white kurta and a green coloured silk fez. It was clear that he was the host for the function, running around, shouting directions for food to be served, welcoming the elders and making sure that they were comfortable. The road in front of the vartaphalak was occupied by small groups of men sitting to share the meal. This lane is closed to traffic for 4 hours for the bhandara. Volunteers carried buckets filled with daal and huge degchis of rice rushing to serve the different groups. The menu was vegetarian, since according to Shahid, the people from the entire Kachi Aali come to partake of the pir’s prashaad on this day. I was directed to a separate place where all the women folk were served.

Post # 4 contd...a chat with mohallawallahs

I had a chance to chat with the entire group of the committee members, people staying in the neighbourhood to talk about my study and what they thought about it. Referring to the content of the vartaphalak they said that they always stayed away from anything that was remotely political. They wanted nothing to do with it. Their only concern was to convey good thoughts to people. And they categorically stayed away from a political agenda. I also asked them about the anti-Muslim boards. Ayaz, the committee’s chairman, was a rickshaw driver and he instantly pointed out the board near Lokhande Taalim and said that that was a really aggressive one and it was meant to incite people (bhadkaane ke liye).

Ayaz Sheikh also mentioned that women, when they passed the vartaphalak could also get an opportunity to read some religious matter. He said that in their community women were not given much education and hence through this vartaphalak they could at least read some good thoughts. At the same time he admitted that attitudes in the community towards women sitting out in public were conservative, making it impossible to occupy such spaces.

There was also a lot of talk about the unity in their mohalla. But they said that even when there are riots, their area is never affected. They all stay together. Everybody helps each other. They also told me about the time when a lot of thefts were happening in the neighbourhood. The boys used to patrol in the nights till they caught the culprits and handed him over to the police. Even for the Urus, Shahid had mentioned that they did not take any vargani (contributions) from the people. The entire mohalla contributed towards the effort by contributing in kind; giving foodgrains and other necessary material. Shahid’s uncle had provided all the electrical equipment for both the days of the festival.