Di & Dove

The fault is not mine.

Surely its not mine.

Trust me the fault is not at all mine.

If you have to blame, Blame with a caps B, then blame it to Indiblogger.

Yes, IndiBlogger only made my hair look  North leaving the usual West to East laid curly hairy path. Today is the last day and I am yet to submit what I have been thinking for days together!!! I felt that the hard surface below my tangy curly hairs had gone blank. The tank had dried down of all ideas. Devastated with the dryness, i chanced upon my Treasure. Those Black & White four by four sized gems were all around neatly fixed with Golden corners on a black hard paper. Yes, it was those images of childhood which I had not seen for quite some days. Flipping through it, I had hit the jackpot. There was one thing common in all those graying pictures of yesteryear, the word with H: Hair. The ladies of our house loved playing with their hair and Dad loved clicking them with his Black & White Box camera. Yupppy I had HIT the Jackpot!!!

The very next moment I was looking for my cell, dialing for my Di, way back in India, to join me for a  Yahoo! Chat. She was shell shocked as we never had chatted before. Dad being in Telecom Department, we  were born with a phone in the house. Unless we talk, we are not satisfied. Ting!!! And there she is - My DI, who loved me more than my other two Brothers. Being youngest in the family pays.

After exchanging few moments on chat, I was back to my selfish reason :

“Di, I was going through the Treasure, you and ma were so fond of your hair and loved playing with it. Tell me something about your life’s journey with those curly dark and long ones.”

“I guessed it right, you are again into something, Right??. Not me spare me darling..got many things to do than to get into your crazy ideas..spare me” Di said, she guessed me right…

“ Di please, you loved flaunting yourself, I saw  those “lousy” white Bell-Bottoms with metal buttons all around of 70s. Yucks!!!!! you looked so Horrible.” I knew she would not spare me on this as, it was her most favorite dress and picture of her beautiful adolescent days.

“Shut up you rascal (she loved calling me this, I was her Darling Dennis- “the menace”). I guess you missed my bell bottoms and the hair in the pic”

“ Yeah Di, your hair looked awesome. But a BOYish cut would have looked more attractive”. I threw my Bait, my Di took it. Hair CUT!!! Crossed my fingers…here it comes..

“Shut up don’t even utter that word, you know it..” Buttering her a bit, after which  I am sure she would not stop.

“Di how about sharing something on “life with your hair on your head”? I know the rules DI, when you  go down memory lanes you don’t stop and I don’t interrupt. “Go Di Go….shoot Di”. I was thinking…

“My hair, like me, had gone into its own phases. I hated my hair once. Who wouldn’t have. Every summer, we would go to our village and the  torture would start. Dadi (Grand Mother) would take me on our roof with her big bottle of Coconut Oil and massage my life out. Ohnoooo how much I hated those moments, oil, ribbon and pleats..yuck!!!! .”

“I know Di”

“ Dadi’s head massage and the same teachings every day would make me yuck. I could narrate her words back even before she could force me into this daily rituals”.

“What were those rituals Di.” Trying to explore if I could get some hints for the post.. (grinning) cruel me.

 “ 3 things you must learn beta.. Dadi will say,

1.      A neat long healthy hair is the most beautiful part of a woman. It enhances or damages your personality. So never ever neglect it.

2.      100 combs every night and 3 minutes of scalp massage, makes your hair healthy and shine.

3.      Keep it clean ,  more cleaner than your body…”  Di continued.

“You know what, things  I learnt during those torturous moments, I still practice. What started as a torture became a ritual.”

Di was in her mood now, I knew for sure she won’t stop.

“Childhood turned into adolescence, a period when Girls starts noticing themselves. No, not  like today, facials, threading, spas were not so common. Forget that availability, a father earning 200 Rs a month could hardly afford those. But yes 3 teachings which I learnt, continued. We shifted to Manipur those days and got into another experience of chinghi pani. An era began of healthy hair for me ”

“I know Di, I was a part of this  ritual of yours.”

I could recall my favorite place on earth-Manipur. Termed as “Switzerland of India”  Manipur is in eastern part of India. A Remote state, a state with a strong Hindu Culture that mainland Indians hardly knows about the inhabitant Vaishnavas (Worshippers of Lord Vishnu). If I could recall the hair liquid clearly, it was called “chinghi pani”. This was made from Rice water, (the water one drains out while cleaning before rice is cooked), leaf and flower of Hibiscus and  a herb, abundantly found in that region, called “chhinghi pata”. All these are boiled in rice water, till its content reduces to half and then  left to settle down for a night. The next day, one rinses their hair with this liquid and leave it for an hour. Even once in a week is sufficient for keeping ones hair healthy and shinning. All Manipuris  use this  regularly.  I could never find out why, but there were hardly any locals  with graying hair in whole city.  It’s a wonder liquid. Dove should explore the reason and make a new product with the herb “chinghi” ;-).

“I know you would recall this, as this was part of my punishment to you for dirtying the house, I used to clean, haha  poor guy” she continued. “ chhinghi pani” was the next good thing that happened to my hair. It made my hair grow thicker and lengthier” 

“Must say Di, you looked stunning those days” I said.

“ shut up… flirt your wife not me else u know what can happen..!#$%^ ”

I know it Di ..it was my ears ..never mind” I said feeling my ears.

“Di remember the day when you had to cut a lock of hair because I had put a mouthful of chewing gum on your hair… you  had beaten me for some reason..haha” we both laughed like hell…what a day those were…anyways.

 “So what was next” I asked.

“ then what?? I got married, had two little darlings, got busy in life…. God knows I was very happy doing daily chores, bringing up kids”

“hmmm but your hair thinned out as you said you had hair-fall all time” I commented.

“When the elder one was hardly six, she gave me a jolt,  I still remember….

Mumma hair is like rope and pulled out very carelessly hurting me….this is when I got shocked. How and when my hair got so bad. After a long-long time, that I was in front of my mirror..looking at it..staring at myself…”

“hmmm” I wanted her to go on..kept hmmming to let her know we are still online and I was attentive.

“When did it all happen, why and when did I lose all these. Dadi’s words were bouncing everywhere in the room.” I had forgotten: “Rule no 1” . Immediately I was with a bottle full of hair-oil. I wanted to relive all my beauty….”

 It happened for a day but managing a family is no easy task… you know. One doesn’t get time for oneself.”

“Yea Di, you are right, seen you juggling so many things at a time”.

“ after a very long time I was at a spa, begging to get back  my hair and my skin..

..the spa girl introduced me to 3^rd era of my  hair: I still remember her saying : Didi Sab saboon shampoo fenk do sirf Dove le aayiye “(Throw away all soaps and shampoos, Bring all Dove products) try this for a month.”

She continued…

“At first I thought it would be expensive, then decided let it be, let me try once. Trust me it is not at all expensive and moreover I was ready to invest whatever it would cost.. I was prepared. But I was shocked to know it costed nothing much.”

Bringing Dove home, I was in my thoughts, thinking where will I get my Dadi to oil me and comb 100 times, where can I get those Chinghi Pani? Let me start with this.”

“I used Dove or was it love. I noticed the changes right from day one. Guess what, I have never looked back ever since after that. The ritual was in place, my hair became my 3^rd child. I started caring for my lost love. The prescription was displayed on my dressing table mirror:

Rx

- Comb hair                 :100times every night before bed

- Scalp massage          :3 minutes before bed   

- Coconut Hair oil        : thrice- a –week  at bed time

- Dove Damage therapy : Shampoo -minimum 3 wash every week

- Dove Damage therapy : Conditioner every hair wash.

- Dadi’s funda              : Remember every day…..

- Dove Moisturiser      :Every Night and after Every Bath…

- Love  & Be Happy    : Every moment

“I know it DI, I laughed at it when I first  saw it on a post-it, you had placed at your Mirror”.  I said.

“I know badmaash, but don’t you feel proud of my hair nowafter all these years of neglect. I still look pretty at this age. Much younger than you..hahaah. you know what? With Dadi’s tip and lovey Dove.. and that was the end of my hair problems!’

“ Di stop flattering and flirting youself ..go, go your hubby would  be back from his office…hungry like a dog.. start cooking something”

“I knew it Rascal, you must have got what you wanted, now you are pushing me back..you such a mean”

“ I know myself better Di, don’t ever remind me hehhehe….go na am getting late…gtg”

“Ok am leaving…bye my dear rascal..do whatever you want..cya bye”

 “ Bye Di” I said “ Hey Di”

“NOW WHAT?????” She screamed…”TELL ME NOW FAST U FATSO”

“Di …you know what… I love you tonsss ..u an awesome Di. My childhood would have been meaningless without you…  I mean it DI”

“hmmmm shutup and start what u wanted to ….huh god knows what u up to…Ok bye….Cya”

“Bye Di”

I miss those moments, sticking chewing gum on your hair, walking on wet floor when you mopping it,  spreading all the toys on bed just after you finish tidying up, not to forget- tieing my tiffin box with your hair and red ribbon, hmm so many things treasured up, so deep in my heart…. I love you my Di and am proud of you …BE Happy always Di.

I was literally lost in memories, so much that I have hardly any time, to neat these into a post…and lost time for submitting this to IndiBlogger Contest: Dove ... and that was the end of my hair problems!   That’s why I decided to use this chat transcript for the post .,….

Link: http://www.indiblogger.in/topic.php?topic=58     

 Note to my DI: DI Don’t Kill me Please…..I love you DI…its just a post ;-)