Bajara Diaries – Part 2
A piping hot cup of ginger tea prepared by SD kick-started Day 2. The Banjara had a long day ahead planned with partition museum, Jallianwala Baug and a visit to the Attari border.
The Bungalow owner suggested we go to Kanha Sweets on Lawrence Road for breakfast. Since it was close by, we preferred walking through the city lanes. The entrance to the lane had two men dishing out hot puris. A bit ahead was the hotel. A nice cozy place, it was filled with a group of friends meeting for their weekly chitchat, families and us who were there for the Amritsari Chole Puri. The plate was filled with two big puffed up puris, a tangy sweet potato curry, Amritsari Chole (slightly spicy), a relish of onions, beetroot and raddish. The server came around asking of second servings and we knew we wanted more than seconds. Between the four of us we had two big lassi glasses filled to the brim. All in all, it was a perfect start to a perfect day.
Partition Museum
Our first stop of the day was The Partition Museum. It is a multi storey building. Each level chronicles events from 1850s till 1947 which eventually led to Partition of “अखंड भारत” (Undivided Bharat) into India and Pakistan.
The museum has a detailed collection of newspaper articles, photos, videos and interviews. It starts with the situation in India before partition, involvement of Radcliffe, the riots at both ends and the heart wrenching stories and photos of citizens at both ends of the country.
Listening to the audios and watching the videos left me in tears. Gulzaar’s “Raavi Ke Us Paar” was playing right in front of my eyes throughout the museum walk. I was left in tears.
For three hours we relived the most painful chapter in the history of India.
I would suggest each and every citizen of India visits this museum atleast once and understands the importance of freedom and independence. It’s not just about rights but also about responsibilities.
At the final level, in all this pain were few examples of partition giving us excellent entrepreneurs.
We all have seen advertisements of “असली मसाले सच सच, MDH,MDH” on the TV. The owner Mahashay Dharam Pal Gulati migrated to Delhi from Sialkot during partition and started selling Masale there. Today the company MDH Masale (Mahasian Di Hatti), is one of the leading spice manufacturers in India. He was recently conferred the Padma Bhushan award for Trade and Industry. It is his masalas, that a lot of households in India and abroad use to prepare a delicious meal for their family and friends.
Another one was that the owner of Hero Cycles, Om Prakash Munjal who had migrated to Amritsar in 1944, setup his factory in Ludhiana post partition and flourished the business here. Thanks to him, multiple generations of Indians have traveled on bicycles to their schools, colleges and workplaces.
After a tearful adieu we proceeded to another chapter is history.
Bullets on walls
Jallianwala Baug , thousands of Sikhs who had gathered for peaceful Lohri celebration were killed on orders by General Dyer. Some of the walls still have the marks of the bullets. The well in which women and children leapt, was closed for some restoration purposes. We didn’t venture much further due to the construction work .
Somehow watching people click selfies against the place didn’t go down well with me. We left within a few minutes.
Didn’t click any picture there since all I could sense was pain and massacre.
A jewel in the lanes of Amritsar
By now it was well post noon and we were hungry. SD then reminded us that we were supposed to lunch at the oldest Dhaba (more than 100 years) of Amritsar, Kesar Da Dhaba. The by lanes of old Amritsar city are one of a kind. We crossed multiple lanes of the cloth market, to reach it.
The Dhaba had quite a waiting time and we finally got to share a table with another group. We ordered a Laccha Paratha, Matar Paneer, Sarson Ka saag and Dal Makhani. Within minutes, piping hot food arrived. Prepared in desi ghee, fresh masalas and local seasonal produce, the food was just perfect. After a quick peek into the kitchen area, we rushed out, Attari border was calling.
A line in the hearts
It’s an hour ride from Amritsar to Attari Border. One can only imagine what the route must be back in 1947 after the partition was declared, filled with thousands of people walking to cross the border.
As we approached the border, we saw people rushing to ensure they got to the stands on time. We joined in the run and reached the sitting area just in time. The Flag lowering ceremony started soon with groups of BSF jawans walking towards the border gate performing different styles of marches. The entire crowd was giving out slogans of Vande Mataram and Bharat Mata Ki Jai. A similar march could be seen on the Pakistan side. The patriotic atmosphere at both sides could be felt. I particularly loved the song played for BSF prior to the start of ceremony. Can still hear the tune to words “हम हैं सीमा सुरक्षा दल,हम हैं सीमा सुरक्षा दल” in my ears.
The parade ended with the Indian National Flag lowering . As the flags were lowered, one could sense the patriotism up in the sky. The love for both the countries was present simultaneously, just on the respective sides.
It gave me goose bumps to imagine, how it would have been when it was still a single country and all that patriotism didn’t have to choose sides.
A line drawn on the map had resulted in a line drawn in hearts.
Click below for the beautiful snowy Khajjiar and many more surprises.