It was September 2014, and the rainy season was coming to an end in North India. Thanks to an academic engagement, I was on the beautiful campus of the University of Rajasthan in Jaipur. Artistically laid out and spruced up, it is a lush green vista, set against the background of the Aravalli Hills sparkling after the rains.
Ever since I went there, the sun was playing hide and seek among the playful clouds thronging the city’s sky from far and wide. I did have some taste of the summer heat in this city in the past — blasts of heat and the swarming dust storm. The Pink City would turn dusty, birds hide in groves, the roads and lanes lie forlorn, and the humans take shelter wherever they can to escape the heat.
And now it was rain, rain and rain! There was a flourish of life everywhere. The heavenly showers had enriched the green cover. The trees and plants had turned emerald green, lively and vibrant. There was relief everywhere, a sense of ease, and life was blissfully at peace.
At the Academic Staff College, I met a bouquet of enlightened souls from all over the desert and beyond. We talked about the new trends of research and history and culture. With the rain drumming at the rooftop and splashing at the windowpanes, my meet with the university teachers was inundated with ideas and opinions. Like the plants and life all around, the ambience in the lecture hall was exuberant and thriving, delightfully attuned to creativity. We went on a cosmic voyage into time and space, into the lives of all on this planet.
After my assignment was over, it was time to enjoy the ambience, the clouds and the rain, and life all around. Sitting in my balcony at the University Guest House, I watched the spectacle of the celestial drama in the sky. The bright sun played hide-and-seek with the clouds, and the clouds, in turn, sailed playfully, often plunging the Pink City into a dreamy darkness. Cool winds swished around. I could see an old man, weak and emasculated, heaving a sigh of relief out of his rickety abode, a mother holding her child leisurely, and street dogs running around playfully.
And every morning and evening, the guest house was agog with the chirping of the birds. Early morning, they beckoned me to the portico. I saw many of them sitting there and on the rooftop quietly, fondling each other, or contemplating in the quiet of the dawn. What did they think? We would never know. What was sure was that they were at peace and admiring the offerings of the day ahead. In the evening, they had larger congregations — chirpy, loud and exuberant — until the rain returned and send the city into darkness.
And thereafter, the cosmic drama began once again: the sky turned overcast with the thundering flashes quivering across the vast expanse of the Thar Desert, winds pepped up, and the rain sent life into an ocean of bliss.
This is Jaipur in the rains I would look forward to visiting again.
jnsinha@rediffmail.com
