The tiny boatman of Hippie Island

 There are some moments in life which stays in your memory; could be a smile, a wink, laughs or sometimes tears too. But, most importantly it is the person who makes the difference. He/she could be no one to you, but their tiny impact leaves a huge impact in your life. One such person pin my life was 'Appu'. A small child who gave me some lessons on life, responsibilities, importance of places and of course my favorite one- Food. A child with bare minimum needs but high thinking to bring some change in people, surroundings and the environment where he stays. I encountered him in the best way possible you could see him - Holding his small pant and tightening the cord to let it stay around the waist. 

A tiny boatman whom I met on the the banks of Tungabhadra.

Travelling through the various places of North India, my heart took me to South India- The land of myths, devotion and rich in history. The place I chose to discover was Hampi- The small monumental town in east central part of Karnataka. The town hold utmost importance in Indian history as it magnifies the culture of the country showcasing some humongous temples and monuments which carries historical significances of old Hindu Kingdoms. A place which was the pride of Hindu rulers; flourished under them; saw some major monumental growth; but later stayed in ruins after taken over by sultanate armies in 1600's. The importance of this beautiful historical place finds it's name in Ramayana and Puranas of Hinduism. Being an avid lover of mythology and history, Hampi opened the gateway to some never heard stories and explanations; that the world is still not aware of and still in the range of guesses. But, my feet didn't stop at Hampi, I moved towards the bank of Tungabhadra to land on the island named as 'Hippie Island'. Virapapur Gadde or Hippie island separated by the river, away from the ruins and monuments ; with a unique culture of music, rhythm and food. 

Landing at the Hubli Airport, I took a cab to reach Hampi Town by road. It took me around 4 hours to reach the place , thanks to nice roads and scenery all throughout the way which gave me a soothing journey experience. On reaching the old beautiful town, I decided to move towards north to the banks of Tungabhadra. There were boats waiting on the banks to take people to the island. I reached to one of the boats asking them for a ride, to which they signaled me to wait till they get good amount of people to ride them on to the other side. While waiting and sipping some Nimbu Paani, I could see a small child running here and there and ordering the boatmen and people; aligning them and making them get into the boats. Walking barefoot, he struggled in holding his small half pant; already irritated but didn't give up to hold it so as to maintain his self respect in the boatmen circuit. He walked towards me and asked,

"Want a boat ride to the island ?"

I obviously said a yes to it. He turned back and gave me a signal to follow him. As I sat inside one of the boats, he stood their making everyone sit and I just smiled the way he was managing everything. The boat started and the journey began. I kept on seeing his struggles with pant and irritated with the questions of people. The boatman smiled who sat just behind me. To his smile, I was curious to know who is this child. The boatman told he was his son 'Appu' and he helps him in managing these boat rides. Tired of all the work, he came and sat next to his father and splashed some water from the river, lowering his hand. 

I lend my hand forward to do a hand shake, to which he responded back by lending his hand and smiled at me. I asked him about what he does except this, to which he replied,

"I love the river and this boat of my father. So, this is what I do, helping him in the to and fro journey. Don't worry, I will only bring you back when you return. Do not go to any other boat, they will charge 5 rupees extra. They are thieves."

I laughed on his innocence and the way he told. I asked about the island and places to see , where all I can spend time and move around. He told me everything as an experienced guide and I kept listening to him till the time the boat came to a halt. I got down and called him. I asked,

"Appu. will you help me to go around the island and see the places ?"

He thought for a moment and told,

"Yes, but not for free.", pulling his pant upwards. I told Him I will pay him and give him chocolates too.

" See, if you give me some extra chocolates, I will show you Hampi town also." I readily agreed to the deal suggested by my travel partner. 

The next day we both set out on the island journey seeing different places ranging from mountains, temples, hills, lakes, forests and what not. His knowledge and ideas about the places was commendable. Being such a small kid, he knew the places by heart and could explain the importance of each and every place. One of our primary halt was Anjaneya Temple on the hilltop. It is believed that Lord Hanuman was born on this hill and the historical importance of the temple dates back to the time of Ramayana. It took us 2 days to complete all places in the island as Appu used to be busy with his father helping him in the boat business. On the second day, while we were returning from the sunset point, I saw Appu writing something on the diary. I asked him what he was writing about. He smiled and told, "I was writing about the places that I showed you and how you reacted when I explained you about them." I was pretty surprised by that, so I asked him the reason. He told me.

"when I was only 4 years old, My grandpa would roam around all these places with me and tell me the importance. He also took me to the town to show the temples and ruins. He wanted me to be a child who knows about his place from where he belongs. He should know the culture, tradition and importance; moreover to be proud of it and today I carry his legacy, letting the world know who we are and from where we come from."

I couldn't react to his words as it spoke volume about how good the child is, how proud he his about his roots. I was blessed to meet him. To change the topic, I asked,

"what are we eating today?" He took me to a small restaurant where we both ate authentic North Karnataka meal. It was served to us on the traditional Banana leaf which had Roti, Badane kaayi (Brinjal stuffed with dry stuffing of ginger, ground peanut, garam masala, sesame with some sprinkled onion), Mosarubajji (Also called Raita), Anna(Boiled rice), raw green vegetables as salad, Sambhar, rasam and Kosambari (A dish with dal, cucumber and carrot).

Having a complete meal with continuos burps we couldn't travel anymore that day and retired to our respective places. 

The days ended on the island and I shifted to the town for couple of days. I brought Appu with me with his father's permission so that he can stay with me for a couple of days. As promised in the deal, I gave him lots of chocolates which he started stuffing inside his pants. The pant was about to lose the battle holding on to the waist when I showed him a new pair of T-shirt and pants. He then changed and my very own 'Appu' looked dashing in his new attire. He was quite happy with me gifting him these new clothes and kept smiling the whole day. We went in and around Hampi to see the historical places, where he told me briefly about Hampi. The real name of this place is Pampa or Pampa-kshetra, word coined on the name of Goddess Parvati. According to the mythology, Parvati was the reincarnation of Lord Shiva's previous wife Sati. Parvati vowed to marry Shiva who was in deep meditation and continuously tried to impress him by living his life by being a Yogini - awakening Lord Shiva's interest. This all described in Sthala Purana also says that, Parvati did Tapasya on the Hemakuta Hill, on which we were standing and Appu was describing this to me. Pampa morphed into Kannada word Hampa, came to be known as Hampe or Hampi. 

We visited different places Virupaksha Temple, Krishna Temple, Temple and Public square complexes, Water infrastructures, Elephant stables and fountains. Each and every place had some or the other history. Hampi - The capital of Vijayanagara Empire in 14th century, one of the prosperous city on the banks of Tungabhadra; the town has footfall ranging from the Mughals to the travelers from Portugal and Persia. The surviving sites hold more than 1500 ruins having various forts, shrines, pillars, royal and sacred features. Just a wonder to the eye, how these structures would have been constructed without the use of technology and machines. Appu showed me some Jain and Muslim monuments dating back to the same time out of which Ahmed Khan Tomb being an important one, built by Ahmed Khan - An Army office for King Devaraya II.  

Showing and describing all this, Appu was still not tired. He still kept on describing much more to me; that's when I shut his mouth and made him drink water and sit beside me. He nodded to my gesture and sat quietly watching the sun going down behind the tombs and pillars of the ruins.

"I always wanted to learn about the history of my country, it excites me how our ancestors lived during those times. But, you know everything is not destined, so was this. I was fortunate to learn all this from grandpa and make you all know about the same." I told him, "Let's talk to your father and make arrangements for your study, come." As I rose, he hold my hand and told, "No Anna, I can't. Appa doesn't have much money to his name that he can afford this. All education don't come from books, this is what grandpa has told me. Some of them come by meeting people and some come by learning from your surroundings. Some of them come from younger ones and others from our elders. Left over things are taught by them; these rivers, mountains, sky, structures and ruins too. You know I am so much educated that I can teach about my city and culture to anyone who comes here. I am fortunate."

I haven't seen such a sorted person in my life. Sometimes, younger ones teach us so much. I patted his back and walked down to drink fresh coconut water. Appu slanged the seller for taking 2 rupees extra for each coconut water; typical Appu. The next day I packed my bags to return as my days ended in Hampi. I dropped Appu at the boat site and bid him goodbye. He gave me a cap which read "Genius". I laughed on seeing it and told, "It's actually you, not me." Appu made me wear that and said,

"No Anna. It's you because you believed on me who can make you understand and show my land." As I sat in the taxi, he shouted, "Come back one day again, there is lot more to show you."

 I left the place, bringing a bag full of memories and information which Appu gave me. I will again travel to some other place where another story would be waiting to unfold in front of me. 

Three things never leave us - what we see by travelling, what we hear as music and what we taste as a delicious food. Also, what we absorb as a memory too !!!