Growing up in Kumta

After my mother's death, we were staying temporarily, in Hubli. Prakash, my brother, who was only four was shifted to Kumta, where my paternal grandparents stayed with their son, my eldest uncle. I followed suit and Usha remained at Hubli in the care of maternal uncle, B.D. Nadkarni who was a judge. His parents, i.e. my maternal grandparents, stayed with him. Those were days of joint families. Many children, relatives, young & old, lived under a single roof. Proper care and affection was bestowed by the elderly and the youngsters never had occasion to feel orphaned or neglected. The old would never feel lonely in the company of kids.

It was midyear (my Ayee died in August); we were put to school nearby. The Kannada language I spoke and the textbook I studied in the III std at Hirekerur were very different than at Kumta. At that tender age, I suffered humiliation, when my classmates made fun of my Kannada accent. The spoken Kannada of Dharwad district (of which Hirekerur taluka was part), has different accent, is pure, though sounds rough. Karwar (of which Kumta is a taluka place) Kannada has Konkani twang with lots of Konkani and purer or old Kannada words in between. They use neuter gender to one and all of women folk. This was the most `demeaning' part for me. How could my old, respected and loving granny, and a dog and cow in the shed, be "it" with the verb as well in neuter gender? Alas! There was nobody in the house who could reply to my queries. Baba was away in Sirsi, after his transfer, and mother was gone forever. But care and affection for Prakash and me were bounteous. We were the only two young children in the house and our eldest cousin, some nine years older to me, who did not loose a single opportunity of teasing me or poking funs of my "ghati" habits. Coastal people always think that those from ghat (plains) are rough and uncouth.

My grandfather's house was big and spacious with plenty of trees. I had not seen coconut, cocum, mango, jackfruit, rose apple, bimble (the sour fruit used in pickles and curries) trees, till then. The garden surrounding the house was full of flowers. Jasmine of three varieties oleanders, dasawala  of three colors, ‘Nanta' and ‘Ananta' varieties. The latter had an exotic smell, which is as pleasant today in memory as it was, when I smelled it for the first time more than sixty years ago.

The garden was full of humming and twittering birds, which was missing in Hirekerur in early morning, sharp and sweet sound of sunbird was very pleasing.

The well in the backyard was a great attraction. We had no well in Hirekerur house. The waterman fetched it from a distance, sometimes accompanied by his wife. In Kumta plenty of water was there, hand drawn & pulled with coir ropes, for men, plants and cattle. Yes. there was a cowshed attached. Prakash and myself followed granny and auntie, wherever they moved, cowshed, garden, temple, market. Grandpa's house was an eternal wonder.

See Also:

• Synopsis of Suragya Sar -Garland of Suragi Flowers
• Memoirs of Ankola