Mahadevia to Mehta

This blog is dedicated to my grandmother, Shantaben Mehta (1914-2002), and the world she shared with me. I begin by posting a studio photograph of her taken in the early 1930s, when she was Shanta Mahadevia. Ms. Mahadevia was the third child among seven siblings, growing up in Ahmedabad. She was popular in her social circles for her inborn talent in cooking, sketching, pleasant demeanour and big black eyes with long and curved lashes. She was also known to be a fitness freak of sorts and used her younger brothers as weights! I remember how impossible it was to free my wrist from her grip!

She married Kantilal Balabhai Mehta at the age of 21. They had three children, a son and two daughters. Mr. Mehta’s job at Scindhia Shipping Company brought him to Calcutta in 1956. Eventually the whole family moved into a flat in South Calcutta. They were among the first generation of Gujaratis who migrated and settled in Calcutta.

The Gujaratis who settle elsewhere are a very close knit community and hence Shantaben got easily included into the social circles of the new city. She continued her various hobbies, she looked after her family and had quite a busy social life. The family soon fell in love with Bengal’s handloom, Uttam-Suchitra films and the Durga Puja. Her younger daughter, Sukriti, went a step further and married their Bengali neighbour, Asim Ghosh – my parents. Shantaben Mehta, my Ba.

Ba has a constant influence on me even though it has been thirteen years since she passed away. She lives through her sarees that I still wear; the name engraved everyday steel bartans and some antique furniture pieces that we still use; her unique recipes we swear by; and her beaded jewellery that can give any boutique a run for their money. As I grew older I have realised how significant was Ba’s feminine energy and aesthetics in my life. A large chunk of my childhood and teens were spent with her, at her home, the bazaars, fairs, temples and her friends.

Her family was nuclear but Shantaben always bought everything in bulk; spices, utensils, towels, sheets; everything was in dozens or kilos. I remember her pantry stocked with masalas in large glass jars, the lower shelves of her steel almirahs stocked with new bed linen, cushion covers, cotton and tussore thaans, napkins, saree borders, cutlery, and various everyday things like clips, mats, buttons, khaddar jhadans, muslin cloth pieces and what not. Storing all this in a not so big an apartment, made all her rooms look like little wonderlands. I would spend hours just going through all her stuff. It was all visually extremely stimulating and very larger than life.

There were three distinct aspects of her Shantaben’s life – her kitchen, her style in both fashion and home decor, and her spirituality. Each very special in its own way and each has had a lasting impact on me. I intend to share little pieces of her life through this blog.