At Cheru Resmi my work continues. I am drafting the conditions the sisters would find acceptable to agree an out of court settlement. We get something concrete done and email it to sister provincial. The ball is now out of our court. Sister has meetings in the afternoon so I disappear off home before lunch-time. It feels good to be home early and have some free time. I decide I should get my blog really up to date before the New Year! I make some progress but there are distractions.
I remember to leave enough time to primp myself and get ready for the long awaited Big Night Out! The evening fetches up being very Bollywood. Six of us got tickets to celebrate at the Sri Mulam Club. Babu is a member. We arrive at 8 pm to a deafening stage show, which continues all evening. Local TV stars and singers and local folk groups produce number after number before 200 red plastic chairs, 2/3 occupied by members and their families. Every age is represented from babes in arms to grannies.
I am definitely over-dressed in my best sari (I had thought it would all be indoors in air-conditioning) but what the hell!
Frustration as my camera battery dies without notice - so no chance to immortalise moments for the blog. These two are from somebody's mobile phone.
The buying and drinking of booze is difficult and prone to excess amongst the men. On the whole, Indian women don't drink in public. They also don't dance in public! There is actually no proper chance for dancing and only men are up - trying (and succeeding) to get on stage with performers - gesticulating wildly, and of course children who are tolerated no matter what they do. They are quite exhibitionistic (the men). I did wonder what that means about the way they were brought up. I am always curious about these things.
Our group consists of Babu who doesn't drink, Me - one drink [Old Cask brown Indian rum and Pepsi] - and the other 4 who drink like fish - some mixing Scotch with brandy! Ughh! They are Shoba and her brother Sam, the new volunteer Alexis and Dr. Ajith Kumar the "barefoot doctor" who wanted to join us for some reason! The drinking is weird as we have to drink upstairs in an enclosed seedy bar. There is not a single woman there until Shoba and I enter so we get ogled in an inappropriate way. No alcohol is allowed downstairs or outside.
I keep Babu sane and distracted with lots of conversation, but deep down he is really anxious that one of his "guests" will make a scene (caused by the drink) in public and this will reflect badly on him. Oh dear! Anyway noone does and we see plenty of worse behaviour around us. The food selection is far from ideal - from greasy outdoor stalls all run by different restaurants. A scruffy way to consume food especially if one is sari'ed up! Then others don't notice or mind. Dr. Ajith keeps them occupied by singing soulful love songs.
The best thing of all is the terrific fireworks at midnight, which, since Hong Kong, are an essential part of the event - as far as I am concerned - so I am happy! After that I am ready to call it a day and Babu is keen to get going as well.
Home by 1 pm. No headache the next day !
The whole season has felt definitely strange and neither like Christmas or New Year. My concept of time is definitely warped at the moment.
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