Whose Sari Now?

Mr. Ginley was watching a sporting event the other night. I was reading my book.

Cricket Bat (Artist's rendering)

A typical scenario in our humble home. Except that the voices coming from the TV were Hindi (or some form thereof.) It was a commercial for insurance, in which the husband was trying to find some for his mother-in-law. Success! The right company was found, Mrs. was happy, fade to black.

As often happens with me and sports, I was drawn in not by the event but by the commercials.

And so it was that I found myself planted on the sofa watching cricket.

I'm still very foggy on the rules of the game. There is a cricket bat and a ball. A pitch, a wicket and a bail. They play innings (plural, even if they're talking about one). And can rack up lots of points if they hit the ball to the boundary (four points by land, six points by air).

Listening to the announcers was great. And then one of them said something about a great googly.

Wha?

A googly is a way to deliver a pitch. When they pitch, it's called "bowling."

My head was starting to spin. Time for another commercial.

This one promoted a show that looked like the Indian version of American Idol. Several performers in saris had the stage and were belting out a tune and making the moves. I was mesmerized.

I didn't watch for long, but long enough to feel as though I'd stepped into another world and back. Which is one of my favorite things.

I don't know if it's a coincidence, but lately I've been drawn to all things Indian. The dulcet tones of the Hindi language are velvety soft. I love Raj on Big Bang Theory. I found myself looking at a sari the other day, trying to imagine if I could pull off that look. There's a mini gamesh on my desk at work that I picked up recently. And then there's that clothing booth at the Hooley, where I purchased two garments from a woman who was from that part of the world.

Maybe it's a phase. Maybe I was Indian in another life.

Maybe it's time to find out what jalebi tastes like.

Stay tuned!