Last Name - Heart & Instinct

Last names - Heart and Instinct             21.07.20 

Trekking is an enriching experience. But there are occasions when one can choose to be rebellious, scream from mountain tops, jump into streams, pay attention to the unsung & marginalized, trust strangers and live like a recluse. It leaves a feeling of profound elation. People frequently ask me why I love to hike in the mountains. “Investing in experiences provides utmost satisfaction and comfort” is the answer. In celebration I am narrating my impressions of some of the ‘ordinary’ people I have encountered, whose stories are pleasantly tinged with simplicity and forthrightness.

Gyanbir Singh ………”Aapki Seva Maein”

Daljit Hotel, is a modest cafeteria in Sonmarg on the Srinagar-Leh highway.  As we step out of our vehicle, Mr. Gyanbir Singh, the Owner is waiting at the entrance. ‘Namaste, Sat Sri Akaal’ he greets us. Guiding us to the dining table, he announces “Aapki Seva Maein”. Informed that we are from Mysore, he exclaims “Maszal Dosa”.

Striking up a conversation we gather he is the Son of a farmer in Mansa village near Patiala. Gyanbir visited Kashmir once along with his friends.  Smitten by the Gorgeousness he came again and again and finally never returned to his village.

       With Gyanbir "Aapki Seva Maein" Singh

He started off as a helper in a bakery at Srinagar & worked in a restaurant. Later he opened a grocery store and soon entered the restaurant business .He also picked up a smattering of some major languages.

"You need to have great passion for the business. There will be problems and challenges, passion alone will help you to overcome them." and continues

 “Plain white momos are very common. So I transformed them into colourful dishes using natural food extracts from beetroots, carrots and spinach. I now serve them in three colours. Three different soups are available throughout the day“.

Breakfast is served: Soft Parathas, Colorful momos and two amazing flavours of steaming tea. After Gorging on the breakfast, our unanimous Verdict is:  unbelievably delicious food and warm hospitality more than make up for the basic interiors.

He walks us to our vehicle folds his hands in a Namaste. ‘Hogi Banni’ says Gyanbir “Aapki seva maein” Singh with a wink.

Owais & Ajjad – “can we have some water?”

Sonmarg is a popular tourist destination in Kashmir. Tourists driving from Srinagar towards Ladakh usually take their break here’ Sonmarg Valley  takes one into the land of the shepherds and the lush green valley the grazing ground  of herds of goat .  River Indus flows on the right side of the road just beyond the meadows. There are military convoys and soldiers every few hundred meters.

 After having breakfast we resume our Journey. The landscape changes as the valley narrows down and the road climbs higher to the sight of tents at Baltal (base for the Amarnath Yatra). It lies at the base of the valley just before the climb to the treacherous Zoji La begins. The landscape is barren and devoid of colour, The road becomes narrow, dusty and, at certain points non-existent. The scariest thing while approaching Zoji La is sheep, goats and horses on the road, causing traffic jams at the narrowest stretches. Traffic jam of a different kind!

                Owais & Ajjad

We see a large herd of Pashmina goats approaching followed by two shepherds. As we stop our vehicle to let them pass, Owais and his son Ajjad the shepherds ask us for some drinking water.  Their faces are swollen &  bruised with peeled skin caused by frosty wind burn .Both are  wearing tattered shoes 3 sizes too big , heavy blankets slung over their shoulders.Gujjars & bakharwals  are  a nomadic tribe of shepherds who move to the greener pastures in the hills in the summer. Come winter, they move down to the plains with their entire households and goats. Constantly on the move they are used to living in primitive shelters built with stone slabs in the harsh, freezing mountains

Owais & Ajjad were happy to receive chocolates Biscuits & Bread as gift for allowing us to be photographed with their goats. 

Tashi ……”It’s my Pleasure”

Traversing the Khardungla- Nubra road, we are advised “Have Lunch at Dorjey”. Arriving at Khalsar, we find the humble home eatery.The Owner Rinzin tends to the kitchen garden, his wife Dechan is cook and waiter. Tashi 3 years nothing and still not very proficient in conversing is a revelation.

                                                                      Tashi

As we occupy the timber benches he climbs on to the wooden dining table, lays the plates & thrusts the typed menu card into our hands and points a finger at us, as if to say “now you place the order” and   occupies a stool in one corner. From there on the parents take over. Garden fresh Vegetable curry, Barley Roti and Rice. The tastiest food on tour.

We thank the family for the hospitality. They reply only with a smile, while little Tashi peeps from behind his father.

Sankar – “I have never seen the outside world, mountain is my home” ”:

Shankar, ‘Sankar’ he insists  was  porter cum guide on my Chandrashila trek.My physical attributes and wish to soak longer in nature meant that I  always lagged behind  the trekking group. Sankar was my companion catering to all my needs including massaging tired calf muscles. He served as my personal Valet. At the campsites he also does the cooking.He possesses deep knowledge about mountains & forests and shared many interesting facts and stories.

                                                         Sankar with 'Kaala Chashma' 

Sankar has seen life from a very different angle. He spoke about Mumbai & other big cities and how he wanted to leave everything behind and run away to the city, but the mountains never let him. He has never ventured out of the village he grew up in. I asked him if he regrets this and he replied, “I learn about the outside world from the trekkers who visit Himalayas. But, they are so restless. They are always looking for network! “ I love the mountains. There is so much peace.here”

At Chandrashila peak, I requested him to pose for a picture with me. Adjusting his shirt & smoothing back his hair, he asked shyly ”Saab, photo keliye aapka kaala chashma phehen saktha hoon” ? & so he did!

Biccha Devi – “winters are terrible. I need to make all the money in Summer”:

Carrying a heavy load of fire wood on her bent back the frail old lady is muttering incoherently. Realizing that we are tourists, she hold up her hand visibly angry and screams “Math Kheenchna” warning us not to click her photo. As we are snacking, we offer some to her.  Still muttering she accepts hesitantly. Gradually her grumpiness fades and she opens up.  Biccha Devi is her name. She lost her only son who was in the Indian Army. Her daughter-in-law & grandson left the village in search of livelihood and chose to permanently stay away from the village.

                 Biccha Devi

Left with no means of earning after the Son’s death, she started doing menial jobs and grew vegetables at home for her survival.   She had aged rapidly, developed wrinkles.” “winters are lonely and scary here, city life must be comfortable.” she says We weren’t surprised at the assumption. We told her the positives in her life – clean air, fresh food , most of which she grows herself. She had so many skills – farming, cooking, taking care of her cattle, and earning her living. We told her how it was impossible to grow our own food in cities. Her expressions changed to happiness and some pride “Why don’t you come over and live in the village?” she asked.  It was a bewildering question, in so many   ways !

“No one comes now. Everyone has left. The house is in shambles and I am dragging on, somehow,” mutters Biccha Devi before moving away.

Sona – “I prepare more than 100 bowls of Maggie a day”:

This remote village on the Leh - Manali route, Pang is an important place.  The highest army transit camp is located here. It provides a camping facility for army personnel who travel through this route between the regions bordering Pakistan and China. A number of tented accommodation options and food from the tea stalls and shacks cater to the needs of adventure travellers and trekkers. The rugged, desert terrain   on either side of the village provides a grand sight. An ideal place to take a break from the journey

 Now, every village eatery in the Himalaya offers the ‘Two minute’ temptation.  Sona and her mother own ‘Sonam Pangri’ restaurant at Pang and they serve noodles, tea and a few other items. She is bewildered at how wayfarers relish noodles.She has introduced her own recipe mixing local herbs and spices to cook ‘Maggie’. When told that she resembles Madhuri Dixit, she had no clue about who she was & asked ‘who’? We immediately realized how deeply she is immersed   in her own  world .Despite the hard  life, the mother-daughter duo emphatically say that given a choice, they’d rather live amidst the greatest  High altitude Desert mountains.

There are bubbly streams, Rolling Meadows, villages nestled in the gorgeous mountains, untouched by civilisation, shepherds with their flocks grazing in pastures where time stands still. And there are the people, the Himalayan folk who live far away   from the nearest road. Women who wake up at 4 am to chop wood and carry it on their heads across dreadful terrain. Men who have encountered leopards and bears on lonely paths. Elders who can hop, skip and climb down the mountain which they worship as their life-giver, preserver and protector; big of heart, nature-dependent, strongly ethnic, religious and above all ever smiling and courteous -- qualities which touch the heart