Deepti Naval Instagram – Here’s sharing a wonderful memory of my childhood on the occasion of my father’s birthday today – the 8th of April – ‘Out on a walk with Piti’ – I was taught to call him Pitaji, but since I could never get that right, I ended up calling him Piti. Here’s Didi and I with our dear dear Piti, walking in the valley of the Gods.
Excerpt from my childhood memoir –
Mama and Piti were very fond of the Kullu valley, so for our summer vacations we’d regularly go off to the mountains. Mama would make paintings of the rocks, huts, and pine trees, while Piti would be off exploring the landscape, egging us on to do the same. My parents’ love for the mountains and the outdoors was one of the greatest gifts they bestowed on me.
Every year, when our school closed for the summer, Piti’s college also shut for vacations. My parents would pack us into a Punjab Roadways bus and we would all head for Kullu valley. We’d spend the two summer months in the mountains. Getting away from the sweltering heat of Amritsar, especially during the month of June, was a huge relief. Yet that was not the reason why I remember my Kullu holidays so fondly. It was the sheer beauty of the place, the glorious walks in the wilderness, on untouched, solitary mountain paths holding my father’s hand, watching my mother paint, the house in the apple orchard, and encountering a delightful madman at the bridge over the Beas River. These are the things I recall the most. | Posted on 08/Apr/2025 18:25:01
