Well, I wrote most of this post over a week ago, so it's been more than a couple of days since this actually happened, but here:
So I just returned from a week in Jaisalmer, a Rajasthani hill fort in the middle of the Thar Desert, close to the Indian border with Pakistan. I think if I had any sort of developed picture in my head of what India would look like, this would probably be it: a golden town surrounded by a fort, built entirely of yellow sandstone, rising out of the desert like it is a living part of the landscape. The town is full of winding roads enclosed by buildings that are just tall enough to block any sort of peripheral view, creating a maze that would be all too easy to get lost in (I
did somewhat get lost for a little bit--luckily walked for awhile and hit the fort). All of the buildings are lined with carvings of intricate designs. The main roads are busy, but the side roads are quiet, offering views into the doorways and lives of Indian households. Many of the outside walls are lined with brightly colored and elaborately ornamented Rajasthani skirts and handmade tapestries for sale. There are lots of old Rajasthani homes called
havelis throughout the town, some of which are converted into museums and some into hotels. The families who own these havelis often still live in parts of them. The hotel we were staying in happened to be the home of the king and queen of Jaisalmer, so we actually got to meet them, along with the prince and some princesses, no big deal.
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| View of Jaisalmer from the roof of a haveli, main fort in the distance |
So five of us (Anna, Ashlin, Gordon, Dylan, and I) were in Jaisalmer to learn traditional Rajasthani folk music and dance. We were learning from a family of musicians, and basically everyday we would go to one of the central courtyards of the haveli and sit in a circle and jam with them. We were all learning these instruments called
khartal, which are thin wooden sheets that you hold in your hands (four at one time, two in each hand) and clack together, sort of like castanets. It's actually very difficult! Especially to clack quickly. Imam, the man who was teaching us, could do it so quickly that it sounded like a drum roll!
Aside from the khartal, we also got to try out the harmonium, which is a cross between a piano and an accordion, and the
dholak, which is the drum played by the guy in the middle of the video. It's so much fun!! We learned to play and sing two songs which we would practice over and over again! I actually lost my voice on the third day. We also danced with a gypsy girl occasionally (only Anna and I, as dancing is traditionally only for females, though the guys joined us once or twice) which was very fun but also very difficult as the teaching style was watch and imitate (hard to do when the girl makes you go in front of her--constantly craning my neck to look over my shoulder at what she was doing!). It was pretty funny, but also very fun.
The whole family was great and very eager for us to learn. This family in particular has been playing music for Jaisalmer's royalty for hundreds of years, passing down the tradition. The kids start learning the instruments as early as 4 or 5. Imam especially was really a character, very animated and enthusiastic about the khartal. He played very expressively and with very intense eye contact! The father of the family was one of my favorites. His name was Akbar and he was just the sweetest old man with a great smile that made his eyes crinkle in the best way.
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| Akbar playing the harmonium; the gypsy Reka on the left |
In the middle of the trip, we went on a camel safari through the desert! Anna and I were on a camel together and it was so cool! Such beautiful skies. The camel behind me kept sniffing me though and I thought it was going to bite me, ahh!
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| Hey there. Too close for comfort! |
The ride was very bumpy! Our camel was the only one that actually ran with us for a little, which was really cool. So we ran through the desert atop a camel, singing our folk songs. After we got off the camels we were in the middle of the sand dunes, just after sunset.
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| Sunset in the desert |
So the week was glorious, dancing and jamming with this family of musicians. On the last day, just before we boarded the 18-hour overnight train (woohoo!) we visited Imam's home and got to meet the many children and women in the family (women are not allowed to play music in public--so this whole time we were only interacting with the grown-up male family members).
I've spent the past two weeks pulling together my ISP proposal, booking trains/hotels, setting up interviews and everything. We had our last few classes and finals this week (yesterday was Hindi!--actually went to an Indian wedding the night before and went to bed around 2:30 AM just to wake up at 6:45! Exciting! The wedding was worth it though) and now I just have one final paper to write due tomorrow and then ISP begins on Saturday! I'll be staying in Delhi until the 11th of November and then I take a train to Shimla, where I will be until December 4. I'll be researching Amrita Sher-Gil and doing watercolor self-portraits up in Shimla. I'm so excited!
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| Sunita-ji and I at the wedding |
Lots of love to everyone back home! I'm gonna try and upload a few more videos in a new post.
मैं आपको प्यार करती हूँ
