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| Fire burns in the cold night in Delhi. |
-Brian Mendonca
It was a joy to see the photo and video shared by uncle Kumar just now. In Delhi on a roof in Sheikh Sarai, Phase II, they are celebrating Lohri.
I used to be part of this ritual every year when I stayed in the barsati on the same terrace, before we moved to Goa in 2011.
But the passage of time did not seem to matter. I spoke to uncle, and he quickly gave the phone to aunty. Aunty inquired about all of us, specially Dwayne who was born in Delhi and whose birthday is tomorrow.
Siddharth their son, visited us in our home in Porvorim, along with his wife years back in 2015. He sounded the same. In fact it was his name that prompted me to stay in their room on the rooftop. Surely someone with the name of one who would later become Gautama the Buddha augured well.
Siddharth was saying there is a cold wave in Delhi now. The temperature on the windy terrace is 6 degrees.
I also wanted to speak with aunty Mehta but I was told she had gone to sleep.
'We remember you on every occasion,' uncle texted. I replied thanking aunty and uncle for taking care of me and advising me during my years in Delhi. It enabled me to become what I am today.
I carry some of the tradition with me. Lohri marks new beginnings and the burning of remorse. Tomorrow we celebrate Makar Sankranti.
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Pic and video shared by Mr. Kumar on 13 January 2026.
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