25 th. Wedding Anniversary

As 2008 set in, I realised, I had been married to Varsha, for 25 years. It seemed only yesterday that we had tied the knot, and memories of the long years we had spent together came gushing through . Our's was an arranged marriage, and I had met her only once before the D'day. I would some times speak with her on the telephone though. I had even sent her a few letters after our engagement, which by no stretch of imagination could be construed as 'love letters'. Our wedding was attended and blessed by Yashwantrao Chavan (Varsha's grandfather). It was one big public function, lasting over a week, meticulously planned, by my uncle Late Mohanrao Shinde. The wedding feasts were handled by my eldest uncle, Late Kishorsing Shinde. As my father was no more, my youngest uncle, Appasaheb & aunty Rohini, performed all the "Vidhis".

The 25 th. Anniversary was on the 10 th. of Jan. 2008, but we decided to have the party on the 26th. Jan. taking into consideration the convinience of all our friends and relatives.

We had decorated our Bunglow facade, with a lot of "running lights". The climate was a bit chilly so we had lit bonfires. We had arranged for 'live' music, playing mostly nostalgic Kishor Kumar, and Mohamad Rafi, numbers. Guests started arriving by 7 PM and it was past midnight, by the time the last guests departed. Almost all members of our extended family and some close friends and colleagues attended. Shri. Jayantrao Patil, to whom my cousin Shailaja is married and Shri. Satyajit Deshmukh, to whom my other cousin Renuka is married too attended. My friend and Brother-in-law, Ajit Suryavanshi, to whom Anija, my cousin is married was also there. Amongst my friends, Shri Vinod Digrajkar, Phaltane, Kashikar, Satpute, Maniyar, Saudatti, Anil Kulkarni, and many others were present. All of us enjoyed the evening immensely.

"Bhandarkhana"

Mhaisal being on the boundary between Maharashtra & Karnataka states, enjoys a unique blend of cultures, of North and South India. This beautiful interweaving of cultures is reflected in the festivals that are celebrated.
"Renuka" the embodiment of "Shakti", and venerated as "Adimaya", has her seat at "Saundatti", in Belgaum Dist. of Karnataka. She is worshipped in North Karnataka, and South Maharashtra, as "Yellamma"(every one's mother, in Kannada), with many temples dedicated to her.
One of the many festivals in her honour is the "Bhandarkhana", which is essentially, 'breaking bread', together without distinction of class, creed, caste or relegion.
My uncle, late Kishorsing Shinde, was one of Her ardent devotees, he started the Bhandarkhana in our village on a grand scale over Thirty Six years ago. At it's peak, over 12,000 people participated. It was said that on the Bhandarkhana day, not a single hearth was stoked in the village, as every one would partake of the common meal as prasad.
The preparations begin at least ten days before the Poornima (full moon day), in the month of "Poush", of the Hindu, lunar calendar. Many send in their offerings, in the form of money, wheat, Sugar/Jagery, and other stuff. There is a panch committee,(presently headed by my cousin, Kailassing), which oversees all the preparations. The actual cooking starts very early in the morning. The Kheer ( a sweet gruel of Wheat ,Jaggery and added flavours) is prepared in huge vessels called a "Kail" .
In the morning the "Aarti" (invocation and praise of the Deity) is performed. Then the "Pangats" start. The first serving goes as a "Nevedya"(offering) to the Goddess, and then the "Jogtins"("Devdasis", these women are fortunately becoming rarer by the day, and will eventually disappear), are fed, with a lot of respect. It is indeed interesting to see the richest and poorest, the upper castes and the lower ones, Hindus and Muslims, all sit together and share the same simple fare, with piety and humility. A real portrayal of "Sarva-Dharma-Samabhav" (True Indian Secularism)