MY DAYS IN ZANNAT-PART 2.

In Srinagar at our beautiful house located between Jawahar Nagar and Raj Bagh Colony,both Vinita and I were not very fond of cooking. Somehow we would prepare dinner, but lunch was always out. We would walk up to Budshah Chowk or was it Lal Chowk (forgot) and go to one of the restaurants where local Kashmiri cuisine was served. It was always either gushtaba or rishta with rice for me. In those days it was not a very common sight to see women (bankers) walking into a restaurant unescorted by a man! Both of us were liberated enough not to bother about the inquisitive glances that came our way. One day there was a big commotion outside our favourite haunt and we came to know that Rekha , the famous actress was in the car in front of a Jewellers store. We also went to have a dekko. The lady in the car was quite dark, beautiful and did look like Rekha. In those days Srinagar was the place where most Hindi films were shot, so seeing film stars was not strange.

That reminds me that once we had gone to the Oberoi Hotel. In the drive we saw Randhir Kapoor, Babita and a cute little three years old, who later on became the famous Karishma Kapoor.

Our days in the Bank were becoming more interesting. The ladies at the Branch started befriending us and invited us home. I can’t recall all the names of the girls, but I vividly recall Janak and Santosh. The houses we visited were mostly wooden and the rooms were small with small windows There would usually be a sun room which was a covered verandah with glass all round. This was made so that in winter the sun could be felt without opening the windows. The food in their house was amazing. Tabak maaz, Hak and various preparations of kamal kakdi or lotus stems were part of the daily menu. The names of the dishes were unique too. Their cuisine was as out of this world as the beauty of the place and the people.

We even attended a wedding where the food served will deserve a page all to itself.

Winter in Srinagar was severe. I did not have to stay there in winter as I was posted there from May to September. But I was told that before us there were two other P O's who shared the flat with KBS Bedi. They used to get so bored of looking at each other throughout the day that every evening they would go in three different directions to have dinner. Loneliness and boredom stared straight in their face, as they were confined within the four walls of the house. In those days there were no televisions and no other ways of keeping busy in the confines of the house. There was only the radio and programmes were broadcast by All India Radio and Radio Ceylon.Ameen Sayani was a rage with his Binaca Geetmala which was broadcast on Wednesday from 8 pm to 9 pm.

 Almonds the green ones were a delicacy. Almond trees were all over the place, just as walnut trees were. Badam halwa was a great treat and a friend Sudhir Mehra used to say that he came to Srinagar only for its badam halwa!The chinar was a tree with amazingly beautiful leaves. The leaves looked like the Maple tree leaves. The Char Chinar was an island in the middle of the Dal Lake. Four Chinar trees had been planted on the four corners of the island which enhanced the beauty of the place. One had to go there by a shikara only. Dal Lake was massive and walking along the lake was a delightful experience. Looking at the fruit trees and fruit stalls would make me gape wide eyed at the variety in front of me. I had never seen so many colours in the fruit that we called the plum or potato fevera...puzzled? It is the literal translation of aloo bukhara!. They were ripe, juicy delicious and yellow, orange, red, maroon and almost black plums. Cherries were large and plump, apples were a delight to see and also eat. It was a veritable paradise of fruit.

Once we went to Pahalgam and on the way crossed Matan. There we saw the ruins of an ancient Sun temple called Martand.. Matan is the place where a copy of the Bhrigu Samhita is kept. Bhrigu samhita is supposed to be the book where every person’s future can be predicted! 

Pahalgam was exactly what it was supposed to be. A small town along a beautiful river. The beautiful Liddar River flows by rapidly. It is pristine, clean, frothing and foaming, unmindful of the rocks, it simply goes fast. The bridge over the river was beautiful. The sound of the river was divine. The place was not overflowing with tourists and so life was still calm, peaceful and clean. The smell in that area was amazing. It was the fresh smell of pine. The area was full of pine trees and one walked on pine leaves and looked for pine cones which fell all over the place. If there was heaven on earth it was in Kashmir indeed. Even remembering this place fills my mind with the fresh smell of pine!

The Mughals loved Kashmir and laid out fantastic gardens. These gardens followed a geometric pattern and had hedges, trees, shrubs and water canals. The Shalamar, Nishat baag, Naseem baag were very large, beautiful and very well maintained. Imagine the gardens with the backdrop of the magnificent Himalayas and one could be transported to another world where only beauty ruled.

Our training at the Bank was going on at full pace. We even attended a State Level Banker's Meeting with our Branch Manager when he was meeting the Finance Minister of the State. We were quite awed by this and were learning what an important role the State Bank of India played in the development of the State and its people. We were still very new to the Bank so every event was a learning experience.

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MY DAYS IN ZANNAT

Long, long ago, in the year 1976, I was posted to Srinagar (J&K), by State Bank of India, for my second branch training. I and my friend who had joined the Bank on the 10th of September 1975, arrived at Srinagar. The wonderful, beautiful, enchanting Srinagar, which one had seen in numerous Hindi movies, was mine to see, enjoy and stay in. I couldn't believe that I had got this lovely opportunity to actually spend time in this Heaven on Earth! People used to visit Kashmir for a holiday and go back, but here was I, going to stay here for four whole months! I was thrilled and excited!

We reached the stately building of the SBI on Residency Road. Our Branch Manager was happy to meet us, and we were happy to meet the people in the branch. We were in fact delighted to meet Mr. K B S Bedi, who was senior to us and was a Field Officer at the branch. He quickly took us under his wing and invited us to take over his house which he called the Probationary Officer's(P.O.) house! Before him a number of P.O's had stayed in the house, and therefore it was sort of an inheritance. He was under orders of transfer and the house was a two bedroom house with a huge drawing/dining room, and also a beautiful covered verandah in the front. Vinita and I quickly grabbed this opportunity. This house was across the Jhelum and wonder of wonders, we had to actually go across the river by shikara twice in a day! Wow, Hindi films, and the effect of the shikaras made us feel like Sadhana and Sharmila Tagore in no time! We loved the place, we loved the shikara and we loved Srinagar.

A shikara

We would walk about half a kilometer, catch the shikara and get off in front of the backyard of the Grindlay's Bank. Then we walked another half kilometer on the embankment of the Jhelum and reached our majestic SBI building. The staff was amazing. Each person was more good looking than the other. We were both getting trained in Agricultural, Small Business Finance, Small Scale Industries, and Foreign Exchange business.

The Forex business was mainly about encashing and selling currency and travellers cheques. Once we saw a beautiful sight of four women in a row come to encash travellers cheques. They had a unique covering on their faces. It was like a masquerade mask made of gold. The forehead was covered, and the nose and cheeks were covered. They wore black robes and were following a Sheikh. It was actually a Sheikh with his harem in tow!Inspite of so many years having elapsed that picture is still vivid in my memory. 

The veil

Agriculture banking took us to the nooks and corners of Srinagar and the neighboring areas where financing had been done by our Bank. We used to tag along with KBS Bedi, who had to often go to the villages unannounced and quite early in the morning, so that the borrowers did not get an opportunity to run away from the bankers who had come to collect their installments and repayments to the bank. We would sit in a room with a number of men all wearing Phirans and holding kangdis close to their chest to keep warm in the cold winters. Incidentally, we were there in the peak summers. Yet Srinagar being at a high altitude it was considerably cool. Although not cold enough for holding kangdis! We were offered boiled eggs and absolutely milky tea  as refreshments.

Almost every evening we climbed the Shankaracharya Hill and looked down at the view of the gorgeous city, the Dal lake, the Pari Mahal, and the Char Chinar.

Every Monday we had to report to our Branch Manager and tell him about the training that we had received during the past week. The gentleman would first of all ask us what we had done during the weekend. He would say, you have come to Zannat, and must take this opportunity to see the place. Vinita and I religiously and dutifully visited every nook and corner of the state. 

Incidentally in the ground floor of our flat lived two Probationers of a batch senior to ours. They were undergoing their third branch training. They were posted at Anantnag, but often came down to Srinagar. Besides this we had SPS Singla, and Sudhir Mehra from Lead Bank department of LHO(Local Head Office) New Delhi visiting our branch off and on. Singla would stay with Bedi too.

After dinner we would all walk down the road up to Zero Bridge, we would cross the bridge and have a cup of coffee, at a small wayside cafe. We would have endless discussions about everything under the sun! No one was in a hurry to get back to sleep, no one bothered about security. Life was serene, peaceful, beautiful and absolutely delightful!

I have lots to tell about Zannat, so watch out for the next episode...it will be coming soon!