Bali Jatra: Return to Roots
Today is Kartik Purnima. For Odias and especially for people in Cuttack, it is a joyous occasion, as the famous Bali Jatra starts from today with great fanfare. I am in the fervor of excitement as the Mela/Jatra will be held after a gap of two years of the Covid pandemic and though I am not physically present, all the updates are reaching me via my sister, adding fuel to my acute raging desire to be home!
Well, Bali Jatra for Katakis is not just a grand fair or mela. It is an EMOTION! The young and the old alike wait in anticipation for it as it epitomizes seven days of bonhomie, carefree life, fun, and masti enhanced by the most amazing street food and cultural programs by local artists. After a month-long of austerities and fasting during the holy month of Kartik, katakis loose themselves in merrymaking and revelry.
I am one of those die-hard Bali Jatra fanatics and had I been there, nothing, absolutely nothing, would have prevented me from going there ALL seven days. My sister, who is currently in Cuttack, is in a Hamlet state of indecisiveness though: to go or not to go! A general distaste for crowds coupled with the lingering effects of a possible mutated virus seems to have done her in this time. What about eating thunka puri,chenna tarkari and oily gobi bhaja, I incredulously ask? It’s our family tradition, I emphatically state! Holding onto tradition is important but not at the cost of committing hara-kiri , she tells me loftily And then informs me that a digital app by the state government is in the offing and she would be watching it on that! Ha… Well…To each her own!
Let me take you all on a virtual trip too and relive all the memories and excitement!
In Cuttack, Bali Jatra is celebrated annually as a large open fair near the Barabati Fort area, spilling onto the banks of the Mahanadi river. Seven days of pure old-fashioned fun amongst jostling crowds enjoying the Ferris wheels, jhoolas, balloons make us carefree without a care in the world. The atmosphere there is maddening but magical. The energy levels of, both, young and old skyrocket to alarmingly high levels and the whole city pulsates with excitement.
The USP of the Jatra/mela is the food. Baliyatra is all about having a good time and gorging on the street food of Orissa. After a month of fasting and austerities, the jatra coincides with ‘’chaad khai’, permitting the people to simply let go! A vast array of food stalls dish out the most amazing street food. The sheer variety is mind-boggling! Thunka Puri with chenna tarkari & gobi alu bhaja with huge rosogolla is the signature dish of Balijatra. But the kataki dahibara aludum combo gives it a stiff competition with numerous vendors dotting the mela ground, each serving the special street food with their secret masala twist. Next to dahibaras, several delectable snacks such as piyaji, gulgula, bara, gupchup and chaat, moghlai paratha, chicken rolls, momos do brisk business. The Oriya Chakuli with Ghuguni always has its own diehard fans. The combination of piping hot lanka chop and veg pakodas along with green chilli chutney is a perfect snack during chilly wintry evenings. The non-veg chops range from the humble egg chop, chicken chop to crab and prawn chops, all in one place. Several districts of Odisha set up stalls selling their special delicacies such as mudhi mangso of Baripada, achaar and papad of Berhampur, rasabali of Kendrapada, mathura cake, chenna jhilli of Nimapada and Khajja, Pheni from Puri. There always was a mad rush to the Berhampur pickles and papad stalls to buy the mouthwatering Koli achar. Of course, modern cuisines like fried ice cream, mushroom chilli roti, bamboo chicken, mud and pineapple chicken also entice visitors. On my last visit, I came across a different hot beverage named ‘gua Ghia chaa’. Although skeptical I tried out this funny concoction and it didn’t taste bad!
Everyone has a favorite food destination in the Jatra. Mine always used to be the large prawn cutlet with the tantalizing orange-colored tail sticking out of it! ‘Languda ( tail ) chop’ my father would tease me but the enticing tail is one of the best strategic marketing ploys that I have seen! Closely in the lead were the hot, boiled eggs shelled right in front of you and topped with a mouth-watering mix of coriander, green chilly, masala salt and chopped onions. The skill of the moghlai paratha wala in deftly throwing the paratha high in the air was as impressive as that of the Turkish ice cream sellers. While North India is famous for chaat, I can assure you that the kataki chaat, made famous by Muliya ( no longer alive but his legacy ably carried forward by his sons etc. ) offered an un-worldly, celestial delight. Those of you who have had that hot, steaming plate of juicy chaat will understand what I am raving about, no? Of course, how can I forget the mad rush at the state government’s fish stall which sold fish curry, fingers, cutlets and good old fish fry desi style! My prize haul used to bethe koli achara/pickle while the more staid mango pickle was preferred by my sister Gayatri. She was also more partial towards the various biryani stalls and roll joints, which though would attract a huge crowd, was more orderly in as many ‘sitting arrangements’ of wobbly, red plastic chairs used to be in place. I guess, me being Aparajita, braved and vanquished long queues at the gupchup wala! Mention must be made of the mudhi mangsho ( puffed rice with a fiery mutton curry) stall-an unusual combination. a regional specialty from Baripada and finger-licking good. The rasabali is again another unique local delicacy and just melts in your mouth. The delight of eating fried papads with masala on them from the roaming vendors is unparalleled! My horrified Ma would contemptuously tell us that the ‘taste’ came from all that dust that had settled on it but her words always fell on deaf ears.
There are several attractions for children like toy stalls, giant wheels, mini circuses, and a variety of games. I must admit that when it came to the Ferris wheel I am a big chicken! I have never been able to get over that clawing sensation at the pit of my stomach to date. It is, rather, my quiet, elegant,
sister who enjoys all those daredevil rides! Shopping from the vast array of handicrafts and textiles is my forte and I delight in bargaining ( rather poorly actually) with the sellers. A plethora of cultural programs takes place in the evening with huge crowds encouraging the local artists. The housewives are seen buying traditional cooking wares like mortar and pestle, iron pots, pans, kula, changudi etc Much emphasis is on buying spices, turmeric, and honey from the tribal districts.
The risqué part of the jatra is the bottom pinchers galore who typically lurk furtively all over the mela ground despite the deployment of plains clothes policemen. Evading their calls for a certain prowess and agility! Years of going to the mela did make me adept at running roughly shod over these creeps and I feel rather proud of my vigilantism while simultaneously gnawing most unfashionably at a chuski ice cream.
This year there is a lot of excitement in Cuttack, as the Balijatra will be held after a gap of two years of the covid pandemic. The state government has also swung into action and work is on a war footing with many newfangled ideas to modernize the Balijatra. Citizens from different walks of life will make 10,000 paper boats marking the boita bandana Utsav and set an unique Guinness book of records. Gigantic welcome gates and tableaus have been installed at different locations. For the first time, a laser show displaying more than 10 videos on the rich maritime history of Cuttack, including the five visits of Mahatma Gandhi to the city and ‘Bara Putras’ of Odisha. Many big multi-national companies have been allotted prime space in the mela ground and a digital app is also in the offing.
However, caught in the maze of modernization are the poor villagers who have been coming for years to sell their local, indigenous ware. Earlier they would just sit in the maidan and display their meager handicrafts but today the exorbitant rates of the stalls have made it unaffordable and they have been pushed to the fringes of the mela ground. But, I am quite confident that the local populace will reach the periphery and these peripherals, as deep down in his/her heart, the die-hard katakiya knows that his/her jatra experience will remain incomplete without it.
Meanwhile, Cuttack Municipal Corporation has decided to embed QR codes on over one lakh non-biodegradable food and beverage packets every day. The CMC has made it mandatory in an effort to make Balijatra green and clean. A good initiative that will hopefully translate into action and reduce littering undoubtedly.
I really wish I was home in Cuttack for the Bali Jatra! As I guess all those who are in faraway places, both, in the country and continents away! To those who have never visited the Bali Jatra, please do include it in your bucket list… for the richness and depth of the Bali Jatra celebrations express the culture of the state accurately. In that vast melee of surging humanity, while keeping alive the glorious ancient traditions of the past, there is an inexplicable joy as well as profoundity.
As I type this, lost in my memories of the Bali Jatra, John Denver croons ‘ Country roads, take me home, to the place I belong’…I am enveloped in a strong wave of nostalgia. Best wishes on Kartik Purnima, friends….and to all my fellow katakis out there and lucky to be at the Bali jatra, I await your live updates here via your comments!
Cheers!
Author:- Sunheri Sufi
