Lookin’ back on how it was
In the years gone by
And the good times that I had
Makes today seem rather sad
So much has changed
Wish things remained the same(a little improvising)
The lines from the wonderful song by Carpenters unlock that familiar yet desolated chamber of memories of that precious childhood-the dreamy days.
And a gust of memories wash over me. Memories of paper planes, paper boats, Tinkle comics, Panchatantra, Toys, chasing butterflies, lizards, frogs and every harmless reptile one could think of, but the most reverberating of them all is the memory of the shows I loved as a child.
During the early 90’s, when cable television had yet to spread its wings and internet was still unheard of in the little townships in India, Doordarshan was the reigning queen of Television.
That was the time when a kid was still as a kid and not some potential wiz kid ,reality star, a multibillionaire manager et all.
That was the time when a kid’s imagination was allowed to soar, devoid of the modern day obstacles. And Doordarshan like Alladin’s magic carpet helped one on one’s escapades.
The shows on Doordarshan were my first teachers. Responsible for telling the good from the bad, the popular from the niche, and the cult from the fad.
The Cartoon hour on DD was when my sister and I, both freshly bathed and with fruit bowls in hands, would park ourselves infront of the TV for an hour long peace-treaty, marvelling at the homework free life of Mowgli.
Shaktiman was the reason many kids .including me, faked tummy aches and risked getting beaten up so that they could watch their brunette and revolving superstar take on Kilwish and romance Geeta. But it was Captain Vyom who made me wonder about life beyond Earth, aliens and the many lives we would probably never meet in our lifetime.
There was also that 9.30 pm movie every Friday that witnessed many a kid-dad tiffs over watching the movie till midnight. That was still the era when mid-nights were still an unraveled zone for kids.
That was the era when soap-operas were meant to info-tain. A Dekh Bhai Dekh episode was watched for its fun-filled moments, a day in the life of Reporter was full of some spectacular nail-biting and nerve-wrenching moments.
Doordarshan always makes me reminisce the innocence of my childhood.
Wish I could still wait eagerly for summers so that I could watch another season of Chutti-Chutti
But my grown up self is now more mindful of the perils of summer, so much that it overlooks the sunny side of it.
And while I dive into another episode of the naughty Swami on you tube and type away my feelings on blogger,i can’t really complain about my present, can I ?
Fingers in symphony 