We’ve only been in India for two days, but we’ve already experienced so much I feel like we’ve been here a week! After spending our first day in Bangalore running errands and grabbing a few gifts (Hey, Mom!), we woke up bright and early this morning to meet Maheshwari, a graduating senior at Shanti Bhavan. She brought us to her home, where we’d be spending the day getting to know her and her family.
Maheshwari outside her home (photo by Kate Lord)
I’m not going to give away too many details here, because Maheshwari is going to be starring in our upcoming documentary, but I will share a few behind-the-scenes tidbits with you–in photo form, of course!
We spent most of the day interviewing Maheshwari and her mom about their lives, and what it means for Maheshwari to be graduating from high school (she’s the first in her family to get any schooling at all!). Watching them interact was a lot of fun; they don’t get to spend much time together with Maheshwari away at school, but you can tell they have a great relationship:
a scene from our upcoming documentary!
It didn’t take long for them to start cooking for us on their wood-burning stove. All of the women worked together to prepare the meal, which would then go to feed everyone’s family within the compound (it’s full of Maheshwari’s paternal relatives, so everyone shares).
Maheshwari's mother prepares lunch (photo by Kate Lord)
Maheshwari's aunt prepares lunch (photo by Kate Lord)
But there was plenty to do while we waited…like play with bubbles:
And drink coconut milk, straight from the source:
And follow this hot pink chick the children had painted (yes, painted!):
a scene from our upcoming documentary!
When the food was ready though, it was worth the wait. I wish I could tell you what this is called (Update: It’s dahl!), but because it is late and my notes are elsewhere, you’ll just have to believe me when I tell you that it might have been the best meal of my life. The yellow bit on the side is home-made curry, and in traditional style, everything is served on a banana leaf. Maheshwari and her mom had to teach Kate and I how to eat ice with our hands–it’s harder than it looks!–but it was every bit as amazing as it looks:
lunch served by Maheshwari's mom (photo by Kate Lord)
At the end of the day, we packed up, said goodbye to Maheshwari’s family, and headed (finally!) to Shanti Bhavan. More on that to come soon!
Maheshwari and her mother outside their home (photo by Kate Lord)
