Navaratri Decorations
….
We generally only think of Holi as the festival of colours; but I think every festival is, quite literally, so colourful….here’s a shop in Jayanagar 9th Block which is selling decorations for the festive days of Navaratri (tomorrow, Ashtami or 8th phase of the growing moon; Sunday, Navami; Monday, Vijayadashami)….just look at those colours!
I have been thinking that circumstances may dictate that I have to live in the U S at some later point….how will I learn to do without all these wonderful sights that surround me here? Find similar ones there, I suppose!
There are custard apples on the cart at the extreme left. In an overflow of patriotism, Indian flags have also been strung out, a month and a half after Independence Day! Some of the hangings actually fold perfectly flat and are easy to store; those garlands are not! And alas, these blue tarpaulins have become ubiquitous here; I must say, though this particular one adds a dash of blue across the picture, offsetting all the red and orange on the right-hand side. Don’t miss the sewing machine in the picture. We still have tailors who can make up garments in a jiffy, or alter clothes…for a pittance! Oooh, I love the 9th block market…didn’t snap any of the fruits or flowers as I have posted them before! It was tough to take a picture quickly without having a gathering of urchins surrounding me curiously! Indeed, two of them crowded in, smiling, and asking me to click them, and I as smilingly refused to have them pose in front of the shop. The minute I am seen with my camera, I can feel curious looks boring in….I feel pretty self-conscious..and a bit of a fraud, because someone asked me if I was a “generalist” (journalist) and seemed very disappointed when I said I was taking the photos for myself.