'I have worked every day of my life for the last 62 years and suddenly there is a cap on doctors over 55, who are not allowed to practice.'
Dr Dolly Gurbaxani shares her lockdown experience.
As a busy professional, we seldom get time to do things at leisure.
Every morning I used to rush to practise in my clinic in Colaba, south Mumbai.
Suddenly after March 22, things seemed to have changed drastically for all of us.
Some were stranded abroad. Some in different parts of India. And some of us were fortunate to be in our own homes.
Having fallen in the latter, I chose to spend time with my daughters and grand-daughter who is in her late teens.
We bonded over our meals big time.
Living in the same building, at meal hours we chose to make Sindhi food more often to get Hrithika's palate adapted to the kind of food I grew up eating.
My daughter Gitanjali assisted me here as she is a gourmet chef and is conversant with the cuisine of this region, having learned to cook it from my mother.
It was a challenge for many people to put food on the table for a meal.
At our place, we bonded over home made Sindhi curry, aur ji bhaji, dal pakwan to methi aloo with methi phulkas and Sindhi teewarn, which is Sindhi mutton.
My granddaughter actually got to enjoy eating this and assisting us in making them.
We tried to speak in Sindhi for them to carry on the legacy after I am gone.
They appreciated ghar ka khana with the assistance of a maid to meals from clubs, restaurants etc.
Beyond Sindhi cuisine, we made naan pizzas, homemade hummus with fresh pita bread made just when we were ready to eat.
We even tried our hands at making dal baati churma one afternoon, and it turned out to be yummy.
Never have I experienced a lockdown in 80 years of my life.
I have worked every day of my life for the last 62 years and suddenly there is a cap on doctors over 55, who are not allowed to practice.
My morning now begins with light stretches of yoga done at leisure.
I love to talk with the parrots on my terrace even as I am watering some of the plants.
I have breakfast at 9:30 am instead of 8:30 am, that could go on for 45 minutes.
Reading a newspaper online is something that I have adapted to, now. A fairly new concept for me.
Smart TV has taken over to entertain us whilst multiplexes and standalone theatres are still closed.
Cooking three meals a day in itself is energizing, particularly just the thought of eating food that I grew up eating and introducing my granddaughter to it, telling her tales on how and why they were made then.
At the end of over eight weeks in lockdown, I have enjoyed working out at leisure. This even as I enjoyed bonding with my daughters and granddaughter. The latter feels enriched with knowledge of the culture and cuisine of Sindh like never before.
For a Domino's pizza lover, it is quite a refreshing change to eat home cooked food and assist in making it likewise, several times.
We even made a chocolate cake for my mother's 115th birth anniversary that coincided with Dr Ambedkar Jayanti (celebrated on April 14).
At this get together, we forgot about social distancing for a while as we chose to smile as the photos were being shot. Memories to be captured of a birth anniversary celebration during a lockdown.
Dr Dolly Gurbaxani is a pioneer anaesthetist acupuncturist in India and the honorary professor of anaesthesia (retd) at the J J group of Hospitals in Mumbai.
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