PARTITION (MUSEUM)

Newspapers are how I usually start my day, and I try to conclude by browsing news websites to see if there's anything I might have missed.

Although I am kinda consistent regarding newspapers, the latter part is where I mostly fail.

I didn't fail today, and hence the blog!

DASTAAAN

Yes, Meri Dastaan by Taba Chake is one of my favourites, but today, as I was browsing a website, I came across the Dastaan Project, which aims to reunite displaced refugees from the 1947 Partition of India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh with their childhood communities and villages through specialised 360-degree digital experiences. 

People who fled their homes during the partition are now able to return there- to the homes they left behind, the schools they dropped out of, and even the people they thought they would never see again.

This is what it would look like, I guess!

DARMIYAAN

I feel horrified when I read about partition or even just hear the phrase "partition." Khuswant Singh's Train to Pakistan, Manto's Toba Tek Singh, movies like Hey Ram, Garm Hawa, Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, and conversations with people who have survived the division, has had a significant impact on me.

What excruciated this anguish was my visit to the Partition Museum in Amritsar on 4th November 2021. 

The museum is top-notch! In my humble opinion, no piece of art will ever be able to convey the sorrow of division as well as this museum does. And I think that is the point of museums- the ability to take you back in time and make you part of the universe.

This is the exterior. One is already mesmerised by the beauty of the architecture of the building, let alone the interiors.

Clicking pictures inside is forbidden, and I believe is for the right reasons. The experience is meant to be felt there, right there. The documented cries of suffering, images, clothes, and demonstrations are something that won't leave you, despite you leaving the building. 

As luck would have it, I met a lady, a partition survivor, who had come with her husband to visit the museum. She now lives in Hyderabad. We only spoke for a short while, as I didn't want to ruin it for her. Seeing her pointing to certain things, explaining them to her husband and reacting to minute objects, I tried guessing the flow of emotions she must have been going through. But I must have failed, I know! 

Regarding how authentic an experience can the museum provide, the same lady pointing out a model of a house remarked, "Humara Ghar Bhi Aisa Dikhta Tha". That was it, I knew was at the right place at the right time.

Amritsar was one of the best experiences out of all the places I have been to. Not a single rupee was spent on accommodation and food, thanks to the mighty Harmandir Sahib. I still cherish my visit to Jallianwala Bagh, Wagah-Attari Border, Gobindgarh Fort, and Durgina Temple.

I was accompanied by one of my friends and we decided not to spend a penny even on inter-city transport. Yes, we were on foot, except for the visit to Wagah-Attari Border. All the adventures of the Amritsar trip and others, for sure will find a place in this blog, someday!

Wagah-Attari Border

Amritsar has a lot of stories to tell, and so do I.

Until then, bye bye!