Har Ghar Chup Chaap Se Yeh Kehta Hai..

 ‘Har ghar chup chaap se yeh kehta hai, ki andhar usme  kaun rehta hai’, ! These legendary lines from an old advertisement crafted by a maverick ad man who recently passed on, was the first thing that came to mind when I went past the building that used to house the Montessori that I went to, till about seven years ago. One of the few surviving incredibly beautiful art deco structures with a lovely  garden and a park right across the street, I was dismayed to find the building being torn down. As with most old homes in that locality, the space will soon be replaced with a concrete and glass monstrosity; a building that would wipe away traces of the joyous moments spent in that house. While I have no stake in that space, the loss felt deeply personal to the little girl in me, who’d found a sense of belonging there . 

If a time machine did truly exist, a trip to fifteen years ago would take you back to 2010, the year that the barely five year old me stepped into a beautiful house that had just been re-modelled into a school, my steps uncertain at the anxious thought of what lay ahead of me. School had, until then, been a sensory nightmare that was too loud, too crowded and too much of everything- a place that I could not understand, and where I was not understood . What I did not know was that over the next few months I would experience a sense of belonging for the first time ever in an environment outside of home; an environment that was not threatening , but warm, welcoming and happy, where learning was a true joy. 

I have precious memories of the years that I spent in that school, years that helped me become comfortable in my own skin. When I saw that the building was being pulled down, I realised that it also housed multiple memories, some very personal ones even, of little successes and failures that seemed like the biggest deal at that point, of friendships, of birthdays, school trips and so much more- memories that contribute to a building’s character.

Change is the only constant in life. When one visits the lanes that were once an integral part of everyday life, one hopes to find spaces that were integral to shaping one’s persona, but meets disappointment instead , for the space, along with all that it represented, is a mere memory now. Such, dear reader, is the price we pay for ‘development’! 



Comments

  1. vijiDecember 3, 2025 at 5:18 AM

    Not sure if you have watched Piku. ( Irfan- Amitabh-Deepika starter). She returns to Kolkata after a long time. And the same question rises. And has this conversation with Irfan, if you uproot yourself, what will be left. Another irfan dialogue in life of pi, the whole of life becomes an act of letting go. I seem to be in an irfanian mode.

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    1. Aditi SowmyanarayanDecember 3, 2025 at 8:55 PM

      I have seen piku but many years ago when I was recovering from a fracture . I don’t think I focused enough or got this part about what we lose when we sell a home with so much of memories :) but yes , I can relate that it would have made perfect sense in the part where Amitabh Bachchan travels to sell the Kolkata home now:)

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  2. tarun15December 6, 2025 at 12:09 AM

    Loved the way you highlighted that throughout life often our memories become bound to inanimate objects specially perhaps houses and buildings or even just things like books or maybe a piece of clothing. However memories are animated learning experiences that become part of our personality itself. the inanimate object is only a tool that helps you to become the person you want time to grow into.

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    1. Aditi SowmyanarayanDecember 10, 2025 at 12:53 AM

      Yes Tarun and I think with many of us autistics we actually develop a lot more of attachment to places and objects - sometimes even more than the people associated with these places

      Delete
  3. SrishtiDecember 14, 2025 at 12:26 PM

    Aditi I can so relate with your phrases concrete and glass monstrosity and about how a building also has a character. Where we live lot of these new modern communities are coming up and desis end up wanting to mostly buy new houses. When elderly parents from India visit specially for the first time and step out for walks it's very common for them to get lost in the maze of concrete and similar looking houses. Our realtor and a dear friend who passed away untimely always used to comment "no, the house does not have a character, let's go" when we used to go look at houses during open house or for ourselves.

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    1. Aditi SowmyanarayanDecember 14, 2025 at 3:38 PM

      It’s no different here in bangalore- especially in localities that were once the benchmark of typical bangalore culture - to see buildings like these come up is disheartening

      Delete

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