Whispering Tunnel: BLAST FROM THE PAST

"BLAST FROM THE PAST"

Buy a Railway platform ticket and enter platform no.1. Take a stroll from one end of the platform to the other end, viewing every thing, everybody..

Are you missing something that was a common sight a long time back? Yes you are !!

It's the bulging big khaki "HOLDALL" !

It was made of tough canvas cloth, pale green or khaki in colour. Three feet wide, six feet long when unrolled. Deep-closed two ends where you tucked in the pillows, towels etc. Three feet long open area in the middle with full flaps on both side to wrap the open portion securely. It would carry a bedding - gadda, a couple of small pillows, a bedsheet, a blanket and quite a few other items including the ones you could not pack into the suitcase or the trunk. Bigger the family, more the children, bigger the packed stuff in the holdall.,

And then the overstuffed holdall posed a CHALLENGE ! How to roll it up and close it securely. And buckle the leather straps securely!

YES. It had to be rolled up to close it and then buckled shut with the two tough long leather straps. You sweated and managed to roll it up but as soon as you stretched a hand to get the ends of the leather strap it would loosen up again!

Enter the Kids! Yes that's right. They would be watching you toil.. They were a great help. And they were expecting to be called in ultimately to help!!

As soon as you rolled it up again, the kids instanly sat upon it to prevent it from loosening - giggling and enjoying the "fun"! Now you could wipe the sweat off your forehead and buckle up the straps.

In those days usually a big black steel trunk was also there to keep company with the holdall if the family was travelling.

In north India the best trunks in the days of my grand parents were of the famous R.C Brothers, chowk, Allahabad. Totally rust proof and tough.

As you arrived outside the railway station, the red shirted coolie would be there to pick up the trunk, hoist it on his head and the holdall on top of it.

He carried the massive burden to whatever platform you had to go. Just for fifty paise !!

Once you were settled inside the compartment after locating your reserved berths, you would unroll the holdall on a reserved berth—that would transform the berth into your prime territory throughout the journey. Then you would distribute beddigs for your other berths.

And if it was the dinner time when the train hissed out of the station, tiffin careers of various sizes would soon materialise out of wicker baskets all over the compartment, filling the air with the irresistible aroma of poori, paranthas fried vegetabes and pickles!!

And the steam engine would happily carry you all, and countless holdalls, through the dark wilderness towards your destination!