Anuradha Roy - An Atlas of Impossible Longing

The steamer hooted again, a little closer now, melancholy, hollow.

I noticed irrelevant things: that her sari was the green of a tender banana leaf, that its border had flecks of lemon in it, that she had tiny, fish-shaped gold studs in her ears, that the same thin gold chain still rode over her collarbone and disappeared into her white blouse. I traced the chain with the tip of my finger.

Our clothes were getting soaked in the grey river-bed, our feet were sinking in the mud, Bakul’s hair had come loose, one of her gold studs had slipped off, the number of staring children on the opposite bank had gone up from two to seven, and they were leaping up and down, laughing and pointing and shouting things we could not hear. I took in none of this.

All I felt was that life had finally floated down the river and reached me.

FINIS

aanchal

one end of the sari, covering the shoulders and sometimes the head

achaar

pickle

adivasis

tribal people

almirah

cupboard

aloo

potato

apsara

divine beauty

arre baap

lit. “Oh father”, exclamation of alarm

arre bhai

lit. “Oh brother”, expression of affection

Baba

father

Babu

suffix added to men’s names to show respect

bael

Bengal quince, Aegle marmelos ; a hard-shelled fruit

Bahu

daughter-in-law

bathua

a wild spinach

beedi

a cheap, strong smoke

ber

a wild berry

bhoot

ghost

bhuttawala

corn-seller

Bibi

affectionate Urdu term for a married woman

biryani

richly flavoured rice cooked with meat

bonti

a curved blade mounted on a wooden stand

Boudi

older brother’s wife

Bouma

daughter-in-law

brinjal

aubergine

bulbul

Indian bird with a sweet call

Chacha/Chachi

Uncle/Aunt

chappal

slippers

charpoy

rough, cheap string cot

daal

lentil curry

Dada

older brother

Dadu

grandfather

dalna

a light curry

dekchi

large cooking vessel

deodar

Cedrus deodara , a gigantic Himalayan cedar

dhakai paratha

paratha layered with egg and meat

dhoti

man’s unstitched lower garment

Didi

older sister

doob

a fine, soft grass

duree

rug

Durga puja

an important annual festival worshipping the goddess Durga, who vanquishes evil

Durvasa Muni

a mythological sage renowned for his temper

gaandu

a term of abuse

Ganga

the Ganges, one of India’s largest rivers, considered sacred

Gangajal

holy water from the Ganges

garh

fortress

ghat

steps to a river, bathing area

ghee

clarified butter

goondas

thugs

gotra

sub-caste

grihaprastha

one of the four traditional stages in a Hindu’s life: the householder stage

gulli

alleyway

gulmohar

Delonix regia , a tree which is covered in bright-orange blossoms in summer

hakim

practitioner of traditional Islamic medicine

haraami

bastard; term of abuse

Hari, Hari

exclamation, something like “Dear God!”

havaldar

low-ranking policeman

huzoor

lordship

jamun

Java plum

jatra

folk theatre

jhaal muri

spicy puffed rice

jhinuk

a spoon for feeding babies

jhola

cloth bag

joota

shoe

juldi karo

“Hurry up”

junglee

savage [noun and adj.], used as mild, often friendly, abuse

kachnar

Bauhinia variegata , a flowering tree with elegant purple or pink blossoms

kajal

kohl; black eye make-up used in the East

kanthas

thin, home-stitched quilts

kashi

large, flat-bottomed vessel with a low rim

khadi

rough, handspun cotton advocated by Mahatma Gandhi

khansama

cook and bearer

khurpi

humble garden tool for digging

kukri

curved Sikkimese knife

kurta

long, shirt-like garment

kutcha

unmetalled

lakh

one hundred thousand

lungi

unstitched lower garment worn by men

Ma/Mataji

mother

machan

a high, sheltered bamboo perch

madhabilata

Rangoon Creeper,

Quisqualis indica maulvi

muslim cleric

mela

fair/carnival

memsahib

originally, white woman; any upper-class woman

mishti

dessert; any kind of sweet dish

mofussil

small town

moong

green lentil

moshai

Sir; respectful form of address which can be used sarcastically

mulmul

soft, fine cotton

muri

puffed rice

namaskar

Indian greeting with joined palms and bowed head

neem

Margosa, Azadirachta indica , a tree with medicinal properties, whose twigs are used to clean teeth

nullah

drain/narrow canal

paan

an addictive concoction of betel leaf, areca nut, tobacco, and other condiments, usually consumed after meals

pagli/pagla

crazy girl/man

pakora

salty fritter

papad

poppadum

paratha

fried, unleavened flat-bread

Parsi

Zoroastrian

payesh

Bengali version of rice pudding

peepal

sacred fig, Ficus religiosa

peon

office boy

phirni

Mughal version of rice pudding

poori

fried, puffed bread

puja

ceremonial prayer

pukur

open water tank, often large and used for bathing

purohitmoshai

priest

raat ki rani

Cestrum nocturnum , Lady of the Night

rezala

rich meat curry

riyaaz

music practice

rossogullas

a spongy, syrupy sweet

roti

unleavened, wholewheat bread

rui

a kind of carp

sarangi

a stringed musical instrument

Saraswati puja

yearly festival to invoke the Goddess of Learning

semul

silk cotton, Bombax ceiba , a towering, beautiful tree, almost leafless when it has its showy red flowers

shehnai

wind instrument usually played at weddings

shingara

deep-fried, triangular pastry filled with spicy vegetables or mincemeat

sindoor

red mark in the parting of a married Hindu woman’s hair

stupa

Buddhist monument

supari

areca nut

swadeshi

a phase of the nationalist movement in India when people were urged to reject foreign goods in favour of those locally manufactured. Clothes made from imported fabrics were thrown into public bonfires as a mark of protest.