{"id":1530,"date":"2018-07-13T20:05:59","date_gmt":"2018-07-13T14:35:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/museumofmaterialmemory.com\/?p=1530"},"modified":"2018-07-13T20:08:09","modified_gmt":"2018-07-13T14:38:09","slug":"woven-khadi-from-a-wedding-trousseau","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/museumofmaterialmemory.com\/woven-khadi-from-a-wedding-trousseau\/","title":{"rendered":"Woven khadi from a wedding trousseau"},"content":{"rendered":"
TEXT & PHOTOS BY SURABHI GULERIA <\/strong>
\nWORDS BY ANU GULERIA <\/strong><\/div>\n
Gurgaon, India<\/em><\/div>\n
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I never had a chance to know my nana ji<\/i>, grandfather, Havaldar Bajrang Singh Manhas. And the little that I do know of him is through my mother\u2019s stories. She speaks fondly of him like any other daughter would, and quickly gets lost in a world from a past that belongs only to her parents and her. From what I\u2019ve gathered, my grandfather was an Havaldar in the British Indian Army. He hailed from Sialkot, which is now in Pakistan and was in military service for a total thirty-five years, including his time in World War II, first in the Signal Corps and then in Griff. Later he joined the Border Roads Organization, and it was during his time there that the famous \u2018Jalebi Road\u2019- which curves and loops like the concentric circles of a jalebi- in Leh was constructed. But no matter what his post or office, like the ideal military man, he lived the values that had been ingrained in him during the course of his service. A life of particularity and punctuality, one of order and routine. And whether it was homes or belongings, everything was given great care and affection, these habits passing down to his children as well.<\/p>\n

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When my grandfather passed away on May 7, 1988, my mother, Anu – \u2018guddi\u2019, as her parents lovingly called her- had already been married for four years. As a part of her wedding trousseau, her father had provided her with everything he could think of that might make life in her new home comfortable and familiar. She received rugs, bedroom furniture, and even smaller household items like utensils and a radio. After her father\u2019s death, all his gifts from her marriage became a direct link to him, her escape to her past.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n