Update on Travel Granny, Saroj Gopal Kulkarni book

Update on the TechnoGranny meets Travel Granny project.  There was so much background on Saroj Gopal Kulkarni coming to America from Inia tht we decided to write an introductory book about her life from her and her siblings birth in India to her exodus to the United States.

Saroj in this book tells wonderful stories about her childhood, some sad, some inspiring but none boring.  She tells of meeting celebrities like Nehru's sister who helped her while traveling on her first trip to the the U.S. with a toddler and a babe in arms and many other stories.

Watch for this introductory book announcement coming the end of May, 2013.

The second book will be a pictorial journal of her travels to 58 countries with her geography professor husband.

A Westerner Finds out about Ukdiche Modak

At 3:08 PM today as I searched to discover if I had spelled Mahrathi lentil soup correct and arguing with Saroj that it was spelled uhmti instead of ahmti I came acoss and Indian dish on Wikipedia under Maharastran cuisine.  You must understand if you are a westerner reading this that Mahrathi is written in Sandscrit which is a character language that does not transale into The Englsh alphabet so there are always variations of how words are spelled phonetically.

So while searching I discovered on Wikipedia  ukdiche Modak and asked Saroj what it was.  She said, “My God, how did you find out about this?” and she just laughed. I was worried that I had messedup the pronunciation and just described some unmentionable bodily function in public.  Instead Saroj patiently explained to me the purpose of  ukdiche Modak and the delicate process of making it for holdays of Ganesha. 

A modak (Devanagari:मोदक,Modaka) is a sweet dumpling popular in Western and South India. It is called "modak" in Marathi and Konkani, "modhaka" or "kadubu" in Kannada, "modhaka" or "kozhakkattai" in Tamil, and "kudumu" in Telugu. The sweet filling is made of fresh coconut andjaggery while the shell is of rice flour. The dumpling can be fried or steamed. The steamed version is eaten hot with ghee. Modak has a special importance in the worship of the Hindu god Ganesh. Modak is believed to be his favorite food and thus is also known as modakapriya. During the Ganesh worship ceremony, known in India as Ganesh Chaturthi the puja sometimes concludes with an offering of modaks to the deity and as prasad.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modak

According to Saroj,  Ganesha and Saroj’s father, Hanmantherao, had something in common they were both modakapriya.  Saroj explained to me that while I was a sweet eater, they are modak eaters.  Somehow putting Mahrathi and English together in her inimitable way always comes out humorous.

But the process of making  ukdiche Modak for modakapriya.  Saroj explained that everything has to be measured precisely and you can't "fool around."  So you measure salt and rice flour and add rice flour after the water boils.  But turn off the gas before adding the flour.  Then you mix coconut and jaggery (Indian brown sugar)poppyseed, crushed almond powder and cook all in milk  then after dough cools,  make a peaked pastry type shape stuffed with the mixture.  Watch for Saroj on Healthy Indian cooking channel when she makes ukdiche Modak.

Saroj Gopal Kulkarni's Hometown and Background

Saroj Gopal Kulkarni was born on Jan 25, 1931. Her life is a testimony


to overcoming an early childhood tragedy and turning her life into

a triumph of self education, love and service. But to start at the beginning

it’s important for the reader to understand some of the culture that Saroj

grew up in and also the geography.

Saroj’s birthplace is Shankeshwar Mahrati State. Her family

later moved to Chickodi

Sankeshwar is located in Hukkeri taluka, Belgaum District of Karnataka state. It is located on National Highway 4. It is 50 km from Belgaum on north direction. About the Transportation - Nearest Airport - Belgaum 50 km. Nearest Railway stations - Belgaum 50 km, Ghat prabha - 30 km River - Hiranyakesi, Factory - Hira Sugar Factory, Near by picknic spots - Gokak falls, Hidkal Dam, Gudachana malaki.

(Today Sankeshwar has good schools in different medium like Kannada, Urdu, Marathi and English.) It has Murarji Desai residential school. It has Arts, Commerce, Science, BBA, BBM and Homeopathy colleges. It has nearby Engineering and Diploma colleges in Nidasoshi.)





Geography (from Wikipedia)

Sankeshwar is located at 16°16′N 74°29′E / 16.27°N 74.48°E[1]. It has an average elevation of 638 metres (2093 feet).



As of 2001 India census[2], Sankeshwar had a population of 32,511. Males constitute 51% of the population and females 49%. Sankeshwar has an average literacy rate of 67%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 75%, and female literacy is 59%. In Sankeshwar, 13% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Sankeshwar is well connected to Karnataka, Goa and Maharashtra by National Highway No.4 by Road. Nearby Railway stations are Belgaum (50 km), Ghataprabha (32km) and Kolhapur (64 km), Nipani (22km),Gokak (48km). Belgaum has even airport which has flights from Bengaluru and Mumbai.

There is a temple in Sankeshwar

Location : Modhera, Gujarat.

Famous As : Jain Pilgrimage.

Houses:

Image of Parsvanath. Shankheshwar Temple is a well-known old Jain pilgrimage site where a newer temple dated 1811-1812 AD, now stands. The village where the temple stands was given on a rent - grant by Emperor Shah Jahan to the Nagarsheth of Ahmedabad, named Seth Shantidas. The temple ranks next only to Palitana in importance for the Jains. The image of the main Tirthankara Parshvanath belongs to Samvat 1666 while the inscriptions date back to 1656-1686 AD. The cells are built of brick, which have been molded and not cut to shape.

Time for Festivity

Fairs are held here in Hindu months of Chaitra and Kartik corresponding with the solar months of March/April and October/November respectively on the full moon days and Margashirsha Vad 10.



The Kulkarni family later moved to Chickodi—

population 30,000 because Chickodi

at that time had a courthouse and school.

More about Chickodi in the next blog!

Saroj Gopal Kulkarni's Hometown

Saroj Gopal Kulkarni was born on Jan 25, 1931


in Shankeshwar State and later moved to Chicodi.

Sankeshwar is located in Hukkeri taluka, Belgaum District of Karnataka state. It is located on National Highway 4. It is 50 km from Belgaum on north direction. About the Transportation - Nearest Airport - Belgaum 50 km. Nearest Railway stations - Belgaum 50 km, Ghat prabha - 30 km River - Hiranyakesi, Factory - Hira Sugar Factory, Near by picknic spots - Gokak falls, Hidkal Dam, Gudachana malaki, Schools and Colleges - Sankeshwar has good schools in different medium like Kannada, Urdu,Marathi and English. It has Murarji Desai residential school. It has Arts, Commerce, Science, BBA, BBM and Homeopathy colleges. It has nearby Engineering and Diploma colleges in Nidasoshi.



Geography

Sankeshwar is located at 16°16′N 74°29′E / 16.27°N 74.48°E[1]. It has an average elevation of 638 metres (2093 feet).



As of 2001 India census[2], Sankeshwar had a population of 32,511. Males constitute 51% of the population and females 49%. Sankeshwar has an average literacy rate of 67%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 75%, and female literacy is 59%. In Sankeshwar, 13% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Sankeshwar is well connected to Karnataka, Goa and Maharashtra by National Highway No.4 by Road. Nearby Railway stations are Belgaum (50 km), Ghataprabha (32km) and Kolhapur (64 km), Nipani (22km),Gokak (48km). Belgaum has even airport which has flights from Bengaluru and Mumbai.

There is a temple in Sankeshwar

Location : Modhera, Gujarat.

Famous As : Jain Pilgrimage.

Houses:

Image Of Parsvanath. Shankheshwar Temple is a well-known old Jain pilgrimage site where a newer temple dated 1811-1812 AD, now stands. The village where the temple stands was given on a rent - grant by Emperor Shah Jahan to the Nagarsheth of Ahmedabad, named Seth Shantidas. The temple ranks next only to Palitana in importance for the Jains. The image of the main Tirthankara Parshvanath belongs to Samvat 1666 while the inscriptions date back to 1656-1686 AD. The cells are built of brick, which have been moulded and not cut to shape.

Time For Festivity

Fairs are held here in Hindu months of Chaitra and Kartik corresponding with the solar months of March/April and October/November respectively on the full moon days and Margashirsha Vad 10.



The Kulkarni family later moved to Chicodi—population 30,000 because Chicodi

at that time had a courthouse court house and school.


Listen to premier espisode of TechnoGranny Meets Travelin Granny to hear more background on Saroj's origins at:  http://www.talkshoe.com/tc/83808

Introducing the Travel Series Partnership of TechnoGranny and Travel Granny

When I, TechnoGranny, met Saroj Gopal Kulkarni I decided immediately that her travel stories were worth recording and eventually her cooking ability.  It was an easy fit for me having lost my own mother three years ago who would have been 79.  Saroj has the same welcoming attitude that my Italian mother had.  Welcome, Namaste, and a big hug will always greet you.  Like my mother she will ask how you are and tell you a little story of how she is and then you must eat.  She will ask if you are hungry and of course like in my mother's kitchen, there is always something wonderful either cooking or just cooked.  The smells are always tantalizing.  And the aromas never lie.  Sorry, mom, but Saroj is equally as good a cook as you.

Saroj, Mom, has a wonderful talent for making you feel at home and making you laugh.  She has a homespun sense of humor that belies her cosmopolitan education.  Although she never attended college, she can tell you more about the countries of the world than most Geography majors. Do they still study Georgraphy in the United States?  If they don't, in schools, they should and if they don't want to pay for it, then they can just come and have lunch with Mrs. Kulkarni.  Soon you will be calling her mom and hoping earnestly that she invites you back for wonderful Indian food.  Being a vegetarian does not seem distateful in her kitchen as both she and her daughter, Sunita, have such a wonderful way with vegetables that you will never miss meat.
And when I get lucky enough to bring some leftovers home, my son always wants to know if either of them are single.

During my first background interview with Saroj, the Travel Granny, I tried to remain stoic and professional although her many stories at times made me want to just crack up with laughter.  She was so amusing that her daugher, Sunita, had to leave the room not to disturb the interview.  You will hear that interview soon on the TechnoGranny Show and also on a unique, soon to be released show, Techno Granny Meets Travel Granny.  I assureyou  I will probably not be able to maintain my business like demeanor and you will hear my laughter from Pittsburgh to Indiana or perhaps the state of Maharashtra.  I have not yet learned to spell the name of Saroj's home town.

So until the next time, remember, when you are travelling to engage a lovely older woman in conversation, she probably has an amazing story to tell besides the one of her arthritis and her bad knee.  If you are charming enough, she will probably forget any aches and pains in a sincere attempt to entertain you.