Settled for centuries, but they want a train back home

VRANASI: His Hindi betraying a strong Telugu accent, Tulsi Laxmikant Joshi says, “Saat sau saal poorva, hamare poorvaj paidal aur bailgaadi lekar mahino lagakar Kashi ko yatra karne aaye they aur phir yahi bass gae Shiv ji ke Banaras mai. Itney varsh beet gae, lekin ek railgaadi ab bhi seedhi wapas nahi jaati (700 years ago, our ancestors travelled on foot and by bullock carts, travelling for months to reach Kashi for pilgrimage and they got settled here. In all these years, there has still no direct train back home)”.

Tulsi is eldest of seven Joshi brothers settled in Varanasi with roots in Karim Nagar district of Andhra Pradesh. The small community that calls itself ‘Banarasi South Indian’ comprises 250-odd families settled in pockets around the Ganga in Kedar ghat, Narad ghat and Hanuman ghat areas for centuries. Their demand for a train to Andhra Pradesh they say will reflect in votes on March 8. We have demanded so many times for direct train from Varanasi to Visakhapatnam,” said Ramakant Joshi, adding, “We have to travel for days, changing several trains and members of our community come in large numbers for pilgrimage to Kashi, holiest city for Shaivites,” added Kedarnath Shastry. As lanes to Kedar Ghat get narrower, writing on the wall transforms from Hindi and English to Telugu. Barefoot pilgrims seek purohits from their homeland, for their “right” diction of Krishna Yajurveda rituals to perform ‘Karmkand’ (rituals). Banarasi kachaudi shops are replaced by idli-dosa stalls. “People travel from Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka to Kashi to spend from nine days, nine months to nine years to perform the rituals. Government should work more for the community, however small it is,” he added.

Varanasi: His Hindi betraying a strong Telugu accent, Tulsi Laxmikant Joshi says, “Saat sau saal poorva, hamare poorvaj paidal aur bailgaadi lekar mahino lagakar Kashi ko yatra karne aaye they aur phir yahi bass gae Shiv ji ke Banaras mai. Itney varsh beet gae, lekin ek railgaadi ab bhi seedhi wapas nahi jaati (700 years ago, our ancestors travelled on foot and by bullock carts, travelling for months to reach Kashi for pilgrimage and they got settled here. In all these years, there has still no direct train back home)”. Tulsi is eldest of seven Joshi brothers settled in Varanasi with roots in Karim Nagar district of Andhra Pradesh.

The small community that calls itself ‘Banarasi South Indian’ comprises 250-odd families settled in pockets around the Ganga in Kedar ghat, Narad ghat and Hanuman ghat areas for centuries. Their demand for a train to Andhra Pradesh they say will reflect in votes on March 8.

We have demanded so many times for direct train from Varanasi to Visakhapatnam,” said Ramakant Joshi, adding, “We have to travel for days, changing several trains and members of our community come in large numbers for pilgrimage to Kashi, holiest city for Shaivites,” added Kedarnath Shastry. As lanes to Kedar Ghat get narrower, writing on the wall transforms from Hindi and English to Telugu. Barefoot pilgrims seek purohits from their homeland, for their “right” diction of Krishna Yajurveda rituals to perform ‘Karmkand’ (rituals). Banarasi kachaudi shops are replaced by idli-dosa stalls.

“People travel from Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka to Kashi to spend from nine days, nine months to nine years to perform the rituals. Government should work more for the community, however small it is. As permanent residents who vote, we cannot be ignored,” he added.

While the community celebrates its New Year, Ugadi and Sankranti preparing prasad from mango, jaggery, tamarind and neem flower, instead of their Lord Subramaniam, the Banarsi South Indians pray to Ramchandra, chew on the Banarasi paan and manage both south Indian lungi and north Indian dhoti effortlessly.