“Early Indians: The Story of Our Ancestors and Where We Came From” by Tony Joseph, published in 2018 by Juggernaut Books (New Delhi), is a fascinating narrative about the link we Indians have with our ancestors, going back 65,000 years.

Around 300,000 years ago modern humans or Homo Sapiens emerged in Africa - a new human species distinct from the ancient human/ species such as Homo Erectus, Neanderthals, Denisovans and others who were here before us. The book first tells us how the world got populated with modern humans, then goes into detail about our ancestors in the Indian subcontinent and their links to the current population i.e. with all of us, providing evidence and tantalizing perspectives on who we are and how we came to be.

Three major prehistoric global migrations spread modern humans across the world.  It was the Out of Africa migrations that began this spread circa 70,000 years ago when a small band of people migrated out of Africa. In the millennia between 70,000 years ago and 16,000’ years ago, these few hundred people and their descendants populated the entire world. A glacial period between 29,000 years ago and 12,000 years ago made migrations almost impossible resulting in groups of migrants getting isolated from each other in different regions. This led to genetic mutations in populations adapting to climatic and other conditions of particular regions. Although these differences (e.g. racial features) seem stark to us, in reality they are small compared to what is genetically common across Homo Sapiens.

Neolithic or farming related migrations began around 12,000 years ago when the earth began warming up again. Modern humans experimented with agriculture in different parts of the world. As agriculture progressed populations increased significantly followed by more migrations. Around 3000 years ago nomadic pastoralists - the Yamnaya people - from the Eurasian Steppe region (present day Ukraine to Southern Russia to Western Kazakhstan) migrated to Europe, and a millennium later to South Asia, spreading their language and leaving their genetic mark on a large area of the world. Three technological innovations - the wheel, the wagon and (domestication of) the horse - that these nomadic people used, to carry water and supplies as they traversed the vast steppe region, shaped their role in history. This was the Steppe Migrations or Bronze Age migrations.

When modern humans figured out how to cross oceans, especially in steamships, it led to the colonial era. This set of Medieval Migrations (Colonial migrations) had a tremendous global impact. In continents such as Australia, America, colonial migrations greatly altered the demographic composition of existing populations.

Four major migrations over several millennia went on to make the population of present-day India. The migrants who moved out of the African continent around 70,000 years ago and populated the world, reached the Indian subcontinent about 65,000 years ago. They are the First Indians. They reached different parts of the subcontinent at different periods of time. By 20,000 years ago scientists believe India was the most populated region in the world - a world record we still hold!

Between 12,000 and 8000 years ago a population related to early farmers and herders from Iran, especially from around the Zagros Mountain area, reached the subcontinent (likely close to Mehrgarh in present day Baluchistan) and mixed with the first Indians living there. This mixed population of hunter-gatherers-herders went on to develop agriculture. Over the next 5000 years this region and its first farmers grew into the Harappan or Indus Valley civilization, believed to be the largest civilization of its time with a seven hundred yearlong mature phase marked from 2600 BCE to 1900 BCE. At its peak the civilization covered much of present-day Pakistan, North-Eastern Afghanistan and Western India. When the civilization began to decline due to long drought the Harappans moved out both to the East and to the South.

Around 2000 BCE, after the agricultural revolution in China, migrants originating from there crossed into South-east Asia and India. These Austroasiatic and Tibeto Burmese Language speakers brought with them new agricultural practices and the Austronesian languages. In India these languages are still spoken by groups like the Santhal, Mundari, Ho, Khasi people as well as northeastern and Himalayan groups such as the Bodo, Garo, and Meitei (Manipuri).

The last set of migrants into the Indian subcontinent were the pastoralists – the Arya - from the central Asian Steppe (approximately present-day Kazakh steppe) who came in multiple waves between 2000 BCE and 1500 BCE, bringing with them Indo-European languages as well as new cultural and religious practices.

The mixing between all these populations that were in the Indian subcontinent by 1500 BCE was such that every population group in present-day India (with the exception of the Andaman islanders) carries mixed ancestry in varying proportions. 

For me reading ‘Early Indians’ was as fascinating as it was intense. The content IS complex! Not recommended if you are in the mood for something quick or easy! Timescales are epochs where a millennium is a mere moment in time. The landscapes of geography and climatic changes traversed in less than 300 pages is mind boggling. Yet as I travelled through the pages I could conjure up riveting scenes in my mind - of prehistoric humans braving through hostile lands.

Tony Joseph’s writing is simple yet lucid, straightforward yet compelling, sometimes provocative. He makes the complicated story of Indians accessible to the reader. He presents evidence from several fields of scientific enquiry – archaeology, linguistics and philology (study of history of languages), ancient texts and importantly recent studies of ancient genes.

I found the arrangement of the book’s content helpful - although I still had to re-read some portions, go back to an earlier page or chapter to check a reference to wrap my head around some aspects. The book starts with a chronology of modern humans in Indian prehistory, then Introduction to explain context, followed by four chapters on the making of "Indians", an epilogue as "subjective commentary" on the book's content. The Appendix, Summary and Frequently Asked Questions sections reiterate key points from the book which helps to recollect and retain.

At a time when the issue of migrants dominates politics around the globe, reading “Early Indians” makes you see the world and its people anew.

Look, Scooobus!

 



Nirav, our two-and-a-half-year-old grandson, loves Scooobus! 

a.k.a school bus.   

A hand-me-down-toy school bus is among his favourites. It often surfaces, after days, in one of the innumerable boxes filled with toys that are strewn about the house. With a delighted, "Scooobus" Nirav runs and picks it up. He spends the next few minutes playing with it - for some reason always lying on the floor. 

Spotting a school bus pass by on the road while he is in a park or in a car, or even if he is looking at a picture of it in a book or a phone, brings on an excited, "Paati* look Scooobus!" (*Paati - grandma- that's me🙂) 

Recently though Scooobus came even closer... into Nirav's exciting little world! 

Both Nirav and his older brother Pavy, our first grandson who just turned five, have been going together every morning to the Daycare across the street. This changed a month ago when Pavy started kindergarten at the regular school that is a little further away from home. Pavy now takes the...(guess!) ...Scooobus! 

However, Nirav had not yet had a chance to see Pavy go to school. He gets dropped off to daycare before Pavy's bus arrives and gets picked up in the evening after the bus drops Pavy off.  We did however tell Nirav that Pavy goes to school in a bus, but he did not seem impressed!  Which is why I was keen for Nirav to see Pavy's bus. 

Soon an opportunity presented itself. On a Friday evening, before setting off on a family weekend trip, I got Nirav from daycare first. Then off we went, Nirav and Paati, to get Pavy... 

....and see Pavy's Scooobus! 

Normally a five-minute walk up the hill to the bus stop, we set out fifteen minutes early. A useful decision - for we made numerous stops enroute to look at little beetles, tiny ladybugs🐞, spiders 🕷️, bumblebee...We watched trees "shaking" in the breeze...and importantly stopped to examine every drain along the sidewalk to see if there was water below. We crossed the street after looking right and left and telling each other " No car! Good to go!" Despite our many pauses we were at the bus stop in good time, with a few minutes to spare. There were dads and moms already waiting. 

But Nirav did not want to stop! He kept walking further up the road. Luckily, I spotted his friend Sophia. She was at the bus stop with her parents to get her older sister Claire.  And even more luckily, Sophia was digging in the mud and had found a roly-poly! 

That got Nirav's attention and halted his rebellious strides! Both Nirav and Sophia were down on the mud peering at the roly-poly, which had rolled into a tight ball. Clearly the bug was not used to so much attention. 

And then...... finally.... there it was....

Nirav heard it first. He turned and saw the long yellow body trundle down the road. His eyes opened wide. As it came closer his eyes grew bigger and bigger. He began to jump in excitement as he pointed and squealed in absolute delight, " Paati, looook Scooobus!"  

Then the bus stopped - right next to the sidewalk where we were waiting. He looked up in utter amazement. He had never seen a school bus this close. Not taking his eyes off the bus, he said in awe, "Paati, biiiiiig Scooobus!" 

Soon the door of the bus opened and all the neighbourhood kids began getting off. Nirav kept up his excited jumping accompanied by finger pointing and exuberant comments, “wheel...window..." Then he suddenly let out a shriek, "there's Pavy!"  

What a thrill!

As Pavy was getting down he caught sight of Nirav standing next to me. His face broke into a surprised grin! He came running to us and pointing to the bus said, "Nirav look that's Pavy's School bus!" Nirav, still jumping, repeated, "Pavy's Scooobus!" 

We began walking down the hill towards home, a motley bunch - school kids, some siblings, moms, dads, a couple of pets and one grandma! But Nirav's adventure was not over yet. For we heard the bus revving up. And there it was again driving past us down the hill. Nirav, Pavy and Paati - the three of us stopped to look at the bus driving down the hill...

...and chorused together, " Bye bye Scooobus!" 

Nirav & Pavy with Sophia & Claire 



 

System at Work

 

Every year my husband and I spend a big chunk of the summer months in Redmond, a thirty-minute drive from Seattle, USA. My write ups posted from this evergreen state, Washington, have often been about the beautiful city landscapes of dense deep creeks, tall lush trees, lakes, flowers, birds......

While I continue to delight in the gorgeous nature around me, this year I shifted focus - to observe the functioning of the city; something I realize, I have taken for granted so far .  

I step out of the house on to well laid out pavements that are consistently even along all the different walking routes I take each day.  Sometimes I see a large vehicle parked and a couple of men nearby attending to some maintenance work on, what appears to me, an already well-maintained pavement! Or sidewalk - as they say in American!

Crossing the road is a well-choreographed act. Easy, stress-free, a breeze! Press the button at the crossing and wait for the white figure to appear on the traffic lights signalling 'ok to cross'. I walk between the white lines on broad white stripes to the other side with confidence because motorists rarely make unpredictable manoeuvres. 

I've noticed too that vehicles stop a polite distance behind each other at traffic lights. At smaller intersections that do not have elaborate traffic lights, drivers stop and wait patiently even if I haven't yet reached the crossing to begin my walk across. Often, I pace up simply because I hate to make them wait😀

School buses are an entitled lot. All other vehicles are required by law to stop and wait at least 20 feet away from a school bus that has stopped by the roadside for kids to get on board. 

One morning I was walking on the pavement of a broad busy road. I stopped to watch the scene unfold on the other side. A school bus had just stopped. Immediately a dozen or so cars that were either behind or on the side of the bus, all stopped. One solitary little boy got into the school bus. His dad, who was seeing him off, climbed into the bus and had a fairly lengthy conversation with the bus driver. All this while the other vehicles stood where they were...patiently 😮. No impatient honks or other signs of urgency. Once the dad got off and waved to his little boy the bus moved forward. And the rest of the traffic moved on too.

One day in the week is scheduled garbage collection. Large colour coded trash cans are lined up outside every home, the colours indicating garbage segregation categories - compost (food & yard waste), recycle and trash. Garbage trucks come around and pick up garbage with their giant mechanical arms. There are separate trucks that come for each category of garbage; they all complete their turn by noon. By evening residents have wheeled back the trash cans to their regular spots. A neat operation.

What else...as I mull ...  stray images from my city walks pop up in my mind. A police car standing in a cul-de-sac and a policeman peering into the lone car parked there while his beat partner, a lady constable, made some notes. A street maintenance worker using a leaf vacuum machine to efficiently suck up all dry leaves from the roadside. Park maintenance staff going around the park on buggies trimming grass, clearing weeds, emptying garbage boxes...etc. 

Staff and volunteers working together wearing appropriate gear - gloves, inflatable jackets, waterproof boots - to clean and maintain wetlands, lakes and the other water bodies spread across the city. 

Smooth movement of vehicles in crowded parking lots that function effectively even though there is no one present to keep order. And people in the carparks are still courteous to one another 😊

Roads, traffic, parks, lakes...the city commons and the city's people...seem to groove together with mutual respect and care. 

Nothing dramatic, nothing exciting, mundane stuff.

 Some might say it's all just part of a system. And yet...

…I found my muse... hidden inside a system at work.

 

The Spider & The Stormtroopers - living a wildlife in Seattle

 

The Spider & The Stormtroopers 

The Spider lived a peaceful life in the bathroom. Its eight long slender legs were perfect limbs to make nimble excursions across the ceiling and walls any time of the day or night, as he pleased. It was a good life. Until the little Stormtroopers crashed in! 

Actually, it was my husband and I who first disturbed the Spider's peace. We arrived from India and claimed the Spider's bathroom, which was attached to our room located on the lower portion of the two-storey house. Initially each time one of us turned on the bathroom light the startled Spider would scurry across the wall or ceiling or both, trying to find a dark corner to hide. I would look on nervously hoping he would not crash land on me. 

However, after a couple of days the Spider and us, we realized neither intended the other any harm. We learnt to live in harmony. As soon as I entered the bathroom I would look for the Spider and spotting him in one of the corners on the ceiling, greet him silently. In a return gesture of camaraderie he would stay put in one of his corners or do a relaxed amble across the ceiling signaling "it's cool". Until one evening............

……. when the first little Stormtrooper arrived - Nirav, our toddler grandson.

It was early evening when Nirav came into the house through the garage door, right across from the Spider bathroom. Seeing the bathroom door wide open he walked in, or rather, stormed in. And immediately went full throttle picking up every single item on the sink counter top - toothpaste, toothbrush, floss, talcum powder, lotions, ointments..... to examine and then toss away without a care. Before he could cross the line of control, I had to do something.... FAST.

"NIRAV, look there's a spider!" He stopped, abandoned his casual destruction, and turned around to look where I was pointing. Eyes wide open now, "Paati, BiiiiiG spider there." As we both looked at the Spider there was a pause, a lull..........

…….and that is when the second, bigger Stormtrooper arrived - Pavy, our nearly-five-year-old grandson and Nirav's older brother. 

"Where's the Spider, Paati?" He came into the bathroom demanding. One look and, "it has thin legs" he pronounced. "It won't sting" he informed us. And proceeded to explain in detail everything the Spider could or could not do. Right through Pavy's informative talk Nirav kept up his high decibel, "Look Spider..... Hiiiii Spider......Spider sleeping....etc etc." By then Loony and Shelby, our curious grandpets, were also in the bathroom. The Spider, I must say, admirably stood his ground - or corner, to be precise - through the burgeoning bathroom mob and mayhem.

Over the next month and a half this scene was repeated albeit with a few adaptations. It mostly begins with the Stormtroopers ambushing us in our room (next to the Spider bathroom remember?). Nirav goes straight to the far side, picks up Thatha's bedside daily vitals brought from India - bottle of Vicks vaporub, Vicks nose inhaler, eye drops, eye mask, spectacle case, book...... One by one he throws them behind the cot a delighted "ha" accompanying each throw. Pavy laughs but does not join Nirav. Afterall he, as a toddler, invented the "throw behind the cot" manoeuvre. He now seeks a higher plane.... on our bed. 

He begins jumping on the bed. Nirav joins him with a squeal. Thatha and I are beaming as we watch them. Our daughter - their mom – reminded me that jumping on the bed used to be an absolute NO on my mom rule book when she was a kid. So how come it is ok now? What can I say? They are.... well.......my grandkids🥰

In a few minutes the jumping gets more vigorous and progresses to rolling to the edge dangerously. Then Pavy begins a campaign for 'Thatha Cookie' – aka ParleG biscuit. Pavy knows Thatha stashes them away in his room. Nirav supports the campaign loudly. Of course they get the cookie. But they must eat them on the bed (another of Paati's mom rules shattered) because Loony and Shelby (of course they are in our room too) are sitting on the carpet waiting for an opening to get the cookies. Soon the troopers are ready to wrap up the action here. 

Guess where they strike next?

Nirav pushes open the bathroom door. An exuberant greeting follows, "Hiiii Spider! Look Paati, BiiiiiG Spider"! Pavy has a question. "Paati, where's the Spider's web?" Good question - we have not seen any in all these weeks. But then why would the Spider? Spin a web that is. All that effort, why? when as the one-Spider occupation army he has exclusive rights to a property with four corner options. But then without the traditional web to trap his food how does he eat? My guess - the Spider probably has his own hidden web network. Maybe he uses that to order self-delivering bug-meals.

It is almost seven weeks and he is still here. Up in his corner(s) the Spider maintains a dignified distance. But I suspect he now secretly enjoys all the attention and fun.

Early one morning in the Spider bathroom... …….

Now wait a second......Is that a second Spider? Yes, it is! Oh my God - are you the wife? baby? the evil twin? Should we let you join the family? 

Hmmmmm...... will have to ask the Stormtroopers.......

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

 

 

“Flâneuring” here, there and everywhere: my urban walks

 

"Flâneur", I read a few days ago, is a French word for a person who walks the streets looking for fun, a loafer or ”saunterer”. A kinder use of the word refers to a dawdling observer, a person walking with no particular destination in mind other than noticing little details along the way. Well, what do you know? ‘Flâneuring’ is what I apparently have been doing for several years – only I didn’t know that’s a thing.

In the last two decades or more I have walked in several cities across the world. Walking has become a way for me to explore, get to know a new place, discover new beauty or rediscover forgotten joys. However, from the time I stopped working for a living, my work-travels to exciting locations have stopped. Looking back, my city-walks then were actually more typically flâneuring in approach. My walks have progressively become more regular, more brisk, more enthusiastic –as more years got added to my age! Now there’s a fitness quotient mixed in, which explains the brisk pace and added zest.

Some years back I read a marvelous book on Bangalore called “Nature in the City” by ecologist-author Harini Nagendra. Connecting with nature in cities as I walk has since become an uplifting part of my urban wanderings. A young naturalist introduced me to Google Lens which I use to identify - not always successfully - trees, plants or flowers that I come across. Old faithful Google Maps helps in my dogged attempts to master topographies. And, of course there’s my phone camera to click and store away little moments of joy.

 Sitting at my son’s desk in Edmonton as I write this, the city’s flat prairie landscape is uppermost in my mind. Edmonton, where I have spent several summers, is the capital of Alberta province in Canada. A beautifully planned city - rows of elegant homes with gardens, broad tree-lined sidewalks, parks with grassy knolls and wild flowers, a lone dandelion, water bodies where ducks swim lazily - there is beauty waiting for me at every turn. Bursts of colour delight me every time I see beautiful flowers in gardens. 

Now familiar with the vegetation here I feel a thrill every time I think I have identified one more tree - hardy Elms with vase-shaped canopies, Aspens whose leaves tremble and whisper in the breeze as I pass (aptly also called ‘quaking aspen’), Mountain and other Ash, Willow and of course Maple trees. Cherry, Plum, Apple trees tempt with low hanging fruit.

I walk past a summer pop-up dog park where dogs are running around off-leash, madly joyful! I stop to exchange greetings with a couple of dog owners while their dogs come running to put their curious faces on the fence to take a sniff. A bunch of chirping sparrows fly out dramatically from a tree only to go sit on another tree nearby. I had thought the magpie’s loud harsh chatter was to warn companions of my approach. Turns out these birds could actually be “scolding” me for intruding their space    Sorry rude bird! 

Keeping me away from the road and traffic are quiet walking trails (one of the things I absolutely love in Edmonton) that meander between neighbourhoods. I often stop to chat with friendly kids and their families. 

 

Walking is faster than you’d think, but distances here can be deceptive. The clear flat terrain persuades me to set a goal to reach a building or landmark which is actually further away than I had estimated. Several times I have ended up walking longer than I had planned to –no complaints though for its still beautiful! Edmonton is a walker’s dream come true.

 

We spend a good slice of the year also at our daughter’s US home in Redmond, near Seattle. Tall Douglas Firs, Western Red Cedars, large Oaks with dense foliage, Japanese maple, London Planetrees and more, stand on hilly landscape providing green cover along pavements I walk on.

Bunches of Hydrangea form strikingly 

blue clusters in home gardens. Huge 

fragrant pale-coloured lilies stand in 

mud pots swaying gently, gorgeously. 

I feel like a queen walking on a sidewalk breathing in the subtle scent of wild roses that line my path. 

Around August-September thorny black berry plants are growing aggressively all over the town – an invasive growth the city struggles with. Plucking a ripe berry that feels sweet in my mouth gives me a sense of triumph! 

During the Fall months spectacular colours of trees and shrubs add a breathtaking dimension to the beauty of my walking paths. 

Do crows here caw one by one? It sounds that way to me! Is the loud Steller’s Jay (always thought they were Blue Jays) related to the noisy Canadian Magpie? Robins and smaller birds flit about from tree to tree. Sometimes I stop to watch one of them walk across a street. I can never walk past a Little Free Library (here and in Edmonton) without stopping to open the little door to browse and borrow. I just so love these cute markers of trusting free-spirited bookworms. 

 

A high point of my walks this summer has been walking to Marymoor Park along the Sammamish River trail, an unbelievably serene path right through Redmond town even passing under the expressway. Bikers, joggers, other walkers greet with friendly waves as we pass each other. 

Neighbourhood walks with my little grandsons end up being flâneuring by default! We dawdle more than we walk making several stops to watch bees hovering over lavenders, bunnies that try to hide from us or tiny bugs on leaves. Sometimes we stop to pat Sparky a friendly dog we know, watch sprinklers jet out water on lawns or squat on the edge of a sidewalk to peer into a roadside drain to see water flowing, and on occasion have even taken a “pedestrian” U-turn to chase after garbage trucks!  

 An abiding image in my mind of my North American walks is of courteous motorists who stop and wait patiently for me to cross the road. I mouth a ‘thank you’ as we exchange a smile and a wave.

 Well before the onset of winter my husband and I fly to India, to Bangalore where we are based. It takes a couple of days to get over the feeling of having landed on another planet. After that I easily slip back into my life here which includes going on my walks. My daily walks are almost always within the relative calm of our apartment complex. The grounds still have old trees – a large peepal surrounded by a “katte” (raised platform), teak, jackfruit, neem, ‘palash’ (flame of the forest) – trees that have been here before our apartment buildings came up. The call of Koels fills the air in the hot summer months. Barbets call incessantly. Sunbirds flutter in and out of trees and bushes so quickly I can barely manage a glimpse. Mynas hop about, butterflies hover and if I’m lucky I see Bulbuls. A small patch of ‘urban forest’ next to our apartment complex has miraculously survived the city’s onslaught of development. This green cover houses Raintrees, Copper Pods, Gulmohars, Eucalyptus and a large Banyan tree. I only walk along the border on our side of the wall as stray dogs pose a risk if you venture into these woods.

 It is when I get out into the city’s streets (and indeed other cities I visit in India) that the walks become exuberant, vivid, sometimes overwhelming but always fascinating! Of course, its crowded and of course the cacophony of traffic is crazy but none of that dampens the spirit and enterprise on the streets where my husband and I often ‘take a walk’. 

It could be Malleshwaram or Jayanagar or Basavanagudi in Bangalore or Mylapore in Chennai - everywhere we dodge past pedestrians and shoppers who flock around street vendors (men and women –high work-force participation of women here) to buy the innumerable items being offered on sale - dupattas, bindis, steel utensils, apparel, flowers, bangles and more. No place to put your foot on this footpath! And to think that’s a term used in India. Loud voices all around are trying to strike good bargains. Do vendors earn enough to meet their families’ needs and aspirations? 

We go past carts laden with vegetables, fruits, healthy "soppu" (greens), tender coconuts. 

Unexpectedly I see a beautiful work of art around a tree amidst all the chaos. And a beautiful Kolam in front of a gate.

Art in the city streets

Lush ‘honge mara' (Indian beech) and other large trees line a street in Jayanagar where I'm taking a stroll-walk......................

.....................while my husband gets his dental work done at the charming heritage property that is the clinic. A large tree has coiled wire on its thick branches, presumably connecting something somewhere.

Dental clinic 

Quaint boards pop up promoting products like “Tandoori Chai” or services of a matrimonial agency that probably promises couples to back-up their marriage wows on “cloud nine”! There’s a ‘By2Coffee’ café – a uniquely Bangalore concept that ‘officially’ allows customers to split and share their coffee sometimes even  allowing 1by3!                                                                                                                                                                                           Our walk down Bull Temple Street during the "Kadlekai parishe” (annual festival of groundnut harvest) is enthralling. Groundnut farmers (again men and women) from across South India spread out their harvest on – where else? -  the footpath, with QR code sheets for phone payments stuck into the groundnuts. We stop to chat with several of them. 

 As we come on to the broader main road, we see passengers of a town bus literally lending a hand, both hands in fact, to push the bus and get it moving. Our walks in urban India rarely come without the unpredictable. But it’s the people here, always the people who win our hearts.....

I’m often asked, “where do you like it better? India or US/Canada?” My honest answer every time – “When I’m in India I love being in India and when I’m in US or Canada I love being there”. In today’s connected globe, why choose one? When you can pick from the best of all worlds.......