The French Connection at Pondicherry

Pondicherry might have a lot of history and culture associated with it, like, the French settlement, the Aurobindo Ashram and Auroville, but a lot of people actually go to Pondicherry to explore and taste the French liquors and liqueurs.


And the icing on the cake is the cheaper rate of these bottles when compared to the rest of the Indian country.

 
Its gets even better when you hear the umpteen choices of exotic drinks that you can taste here.


They range from the Taittinger champagne, exotic and aged French wines straight from the wine cellar, a variety of French liqueurs, brands from the stable of Pernod Ricard, Perrier sparkling water, Carlsberg and other French beers and a whole bunch of other French products that cater to the varied tastes of people.


But, it is not that only French products are available here. Visitors to Pondicherry can also find other global and local alcohol brands here…Absolut, Jack Daniels, Glen Livet and Fiddich, Smirn Off, Kingfisher to name a few.

 
In my mind, Pondicherry is one awesome place in India to get immersed in the French lifestyle.

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Auroville – A Zone of Peace and Greenery

There are quite a few things that one associates with Pondicherry in India. The French settlement and its ensuing lifestyle, Auroville, Aurobindo Ashram and the magic of the east coast.


But, when it comes to finding inner peace, locals and foreigners alike proceed towards Auroville.


Auroville is located about 14 kms north from the town of Pondicherry on the fringes of the east coast road highway.


Auroville or the city of dawn is an extremely green and forested corridor in an otherwise dry and deforested region. This greenery is a pleasant break from the harsh temperatures outside this evolving city.


When I visited this place a couple of weeks back, I found the temperatures inside to be three degrees (in degree celsius) lower than the temperatures outside, which is quite a difference. And the credit for all this goes to the vision of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother.


During my visit here, I got to visit the Matrimandir, which is at a short walk from the Visitor’s centre. Unfortunately for me, the Matrimandir was closed, but I got to admire it and its peaceful and green surroundings from the outside. The Matrimandir or the sanctum of peace is still under construction and is hence only open during the morning hours.


The thing that captured my imagination here is the huge banyan tree with its umpteen roots. Apparently, this banyan tree is the geographical centre of Auroville. Sitting under the shade of this massive banyan tree is very relaxing is what I found.

My short trip to Auroville was great, but I yearn for more. This place deserves at least a week if not more to become one with it and admire and appreciate its peaceful values.

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A modern Tamil Brahmin wedding

This event took place a couple of weeks back. The location was the Green Meadows Resort at Palavakkam in Chennai. This place is a heritage Kerala Ayurveda resort on the East Coast Road. Since this was a family event, most of us turned up with enough reason as this offered the opportunity of getting together with family after what had been a long while.

The reason for the title of this post comes from the fact that we, the family, hail from an orthodox Tamil Brahmin cult of society. Most of the auspicious and important events are celebrated in the most orthodox and traditional fashion. The ante gets upped during weddings and they can get as traditional as they can be.

Having said this, I was surprised when most of the traditional aspects of a Tamil Brahmin wedding were either skipped or replaced with modern or if I may say Western props. There was no jaanavasam (inviting the groom to the wedding) or called the Baaraat in North Indian weddings or any of the hymns and pujas associated with it. Instead, it was replaced with an informal dance programme, which I am fine with as it allows all the guests to participate and have a good time. The killer prop addition was the inclusion of a cocktail bar. Now, for all those of you who understand brahminism, alcohol is a taboo in the life of a Brahmin, rest alone, a wedding, where rituals and rites are performed and gods are invited through hymns and chants to bless the to-be-weds.  

On the day of the wedding, many traditional components, if I may, like kaasi yatra, unjal (swing), the traditional games, etc. were excluded. But, the other traditional aspects like the seven pheras, thaali (mangalsutra), traditional attire, garlands, traditional music were not excluded. Such a wedding doesn't irk me as I am also a person from the same generation, but it makes me think as to whether we are slowly losing a grip on our culture. 

I have read a fair bit on Brahminism and the reasons various processes are followed in traditional events and it makes perfect sense to me as each of these traditions have a certain deep-rooted meaning to it. But, at the end of the day, it boils down to the wishes of the couple who are getting married and I guess we should respect their decision.

Which brings me back to my question...Are we losing a grip on our rich culture? 

Overall, a great and a well-organized event and it provided the opportunity for me to meet with most of my family members and catch up on the latest happenings and musings in the family.
Having said the entire above post, I would like to say that the opinions expressed here are entirely my own and is not aimed to be offensive in any kind.

All pictures have been removed from this post as the concerned couple in this wedding sought privacy.

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