Two Thoughts on Nostalgia
Of late I am coming across many
nostalgic articles, pics and videos of those good old vintage years back in 80s
and 90s. Too many but they are indeed nostalgic, certainly giving goose bumps
and make you not to shrug off those days from the memory in the midst of current
revolution of mobile and smart devices. Truly so, kids born in 80s and 90s have
witnessed almost every technological inventions and innovations right from the
heavy 12-channel cathode ray TV sets to the remote controlled lucid LED
screens. Not just technology, it is also in the manner how we have been receptive
of those inevitable changes going on around us. Majority of them were trend
setters, weren’t they? Take a trivial case of men’s trousers itself. First were
the star-look bell bottoms, then came the formal parallels, next came the
official slim-fits and tapers. And not to forget, that our generation was the first
owners of denim jeans apparels.
Every other horizon you were or are
acquainted with has perpetually presented those trends which ultimately moved
many a thing out of fashion; be it a video game, a TV serial, a sport or
sometimes people themselves. Yes, Sports too. And that has been the sole point
in my mind all along while nagging about nostalgia.
Though hailing from a small town,
I would rather consider myself lucky playing many outdoor sports in those days.
I’ve come across both, popular ones like cricket, football and badminton and
less popular ones like Kho-Kho, Kabaddi and Volleyball. I’ve a very genuine
reason to draw the line between popular and less popular. And by all means less
popular does not imply they are unpopular; they are popular but relatively in
much lesser degree than the mainstream popular ones. Some of you may disagree on
this observation which is humbly acceptable. Nevertheless, these sports are
officially recognized by institutions all around and they will sustain even if
they keep shrinking in their popularity amidst all the onslaught of computer
and video games.
Parallel to these, there are or
were many outdoor games which have become so rare to be seen among the current
generation kids. There was this gilli-danda and there was that Lagori. There
were marbles, there were tops and then there were kites. Indeed, they’ve become
so rare except in few rural parts, children of this generation are surely
oblivion to these traditional games. These are the very games that still make
me feel nostalgic and bring back those childhood memories of the bloody
injuries, unforgettable escapes and hilarious jokes.
I can still recount the incident
which brought upon a scar on my forehead while playing the Top. Those free
falls off the tree while trying to free the kite from its branches. And on one
occasion, unawares to my senses my palms were covered with bloody scratches in
the process of coating kite’s thread using some glue amalgamated with glass
powder.
Sometimes, when we are
discussing
these games and the memories that one has about them are so refreshing
and
rejuvenating. They quietly make you feel elated and for once your
complex problems look simpler and sometimes seem irrelevant. Unlike the
mainstream and
scholastic games which are either too popular or officially recognized,
the
games of folklore are highly traditional with no rule books and word of
mouth
has been the lonely means of publicity for them. The lesser this
generation
knows about them the lesser its next generation will be aware of such
games.
May be a decade or two from now, it looks quite imminent that these
games would
just be stories and disappear or dissolve into the unwritten pages of
the folklore.
Hoping against hope that they will sustain just like the less popular
games and
that they continue to spawn their charm among the young and the future
generations.
