My mother laughed out loud once every year. I am not talking about smiles, giggles and chuckles—those were common. I mean a full-fledged, lose-control-of-your body guffaw.
It would be on Holi, after the chaos of colour would settle down. All the aunties and some of us children in Sainath Colony in Khargone in Madhya Pradesh would congregate in one of the residents’ verandahs to partake in a modest feast of homemade sweets and snacks. It was during this specific period of merrymaking that my mother would get up, unprompted, and launch into a series of raucous role-plays. She would enact multiple characters far removed from her own: a drunk husband, a thief, stereotypical in-laws, a lover. She would tease her friends about their sexual fantasies. She would rustle their saris, tickle them, razz them; she would police anyone acting too ladylike. Others would join her, making up whole scenes as if we had our own local annual auntie improv troupe. At its zenith, this drama would make the audience roll on the floor, holding their tummies in helpless fits of laughter. A shameless hilarity that defied reason.
The gathering would last a couple of hours before everyone would return to their homes. My mother would clean up the aftermath of these Holi celebrations in our house and take a bath, almost as if she were physically washing off her alternate personality that loved to be spontaneous, goofy, creative and childlike. The woman who had helmed such a lively gathering would then transform back into my mother—a serious, driven, busy homemaker who handled four kids and a husband and never had time for fun and frolic.
Where did this person, who was capable of so much pleasure and play, hide the rest of the year? I did not ask this question until my mother died when I was 23.
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Denne historien er fra January - February 2023-utgaven av VOGUE India.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Breathe In, Breathe Out
A powerful tool to help you master your nervous system or another biohacking buzzword? SIMONE DHONDY explores the inhalations and exhalations of breathwork
Red Pill, Blue Pill
India's nutraceutical industry is booming thanks to advanced technology, distrust of the medical system and rising vanity. With multivitamins becoming purer and more effective, NIDHI GUPTA finds out if supplements have become the new serum
Sign of the times
No longer do you need to have an answer to, \"What is the significance of this?\" when people point to your new tattoo. ARMAN KHAN discovers that everything is on the table when you get inked temporarily
Return to form
Watching the world's most elite athletes deliver the best performances of their careers rekindled SONAKSHI SHARMA's own love for sports
Dimple, All Day
YOU MAY HAVE WATCHED HER ON THE BIG SCREEN FOR OVER FIVE DECADES, BUT DON'T MAKE THE MISTAKE OF ASSUMING THAT YOU KNOW DIMPLE KAPADIA.
MUSIC, TAKE CONTROL
As someone who had always sought safety in numbers, ALIZA FATMA often wondered what her own company would feel like. The answer arrived unexpectedly when she attended her first-ever music festival, one of the largest in the world, all alone
Let it grow
When we think of hardworking farmers toiling in India's scorching heat, we often think of men, the sweat on their brow, the sinews in their arms. JYOTI KUMARI speaks to four women who are championing the invisible female labour that keeps these fields running
YOU'LL NEVER WALK ALONE
When armless archer Sheetal Devi set her sights on the Paralympic Games this year, she knew she had a tough journey ahead of her. Luckily, her mother was with her every step of the way.
Beauty and the feast
The appeal of Indian weddings has always been in a sprawling spread. For additional bragging rights, Aditi Dugar recommends going beyond designer tablecloths and monogrammed napkins.
Sweet serendipity
From a scavenger hunt-inspired proposal to a Moroccan-themed baraat, Malvika Raj and Armaan Rai's love story prioritised playfulness throughout their blended celebrations.