OUR CHILDHOOD GAMES IN KGF

Childhood in K G F was blissful. We had no luxuries like the present generation but never the less we were happy with simple pleasures and entertainments.

There was a huge open ground or ‘Maidan’ behind our house and all our friends would join us there to play after school and on holidays and weekends. The games we played in childhood were Hopscotch or Butch, Football, Throw ball, Spinning Tops, Rounders, Seven Stones, “ L O N D O N”, ‘I Spy”, Running and Catching, Robbers and Police, Kabbadi, Kho-Kho, Gilly Danda etc and many other simple games. Cricket, Hockey and Tennis were also part of our repertoire of childhood games.
Kite flying was another exciting game for us. Besides having a lot of fun flying our kites, we had a lot of enjoyment making the kites ourselves with Broom sticks or Bamboo sticks, kite paper, newspapers etc. We’d make a paste of flour and water to stick the paper to the kite frame and then settle down to make the Manja. Making the Manja for the kite string was a well kept secret. The “Manga” is a mixture of glass pieces, flour paste etc which is smeared on the kite sting to make it sharp, so as to cut the strings of other kites midair.
Besides all these above mentioned games, we also played our favourite childish games of Police and Robbers, Doctor and Nurse, Hide and Seek, Running and catching and of course the very girly game of ‘House House’ We had a lot of pots and pans or ‘Chapus; for this game. The Chapus were either made of mud, metal or plastic and we had tea parties with the dolls, cooked over our little stoves with our pots and pans, and hosted dinner parties with the dolls and teddy bears. We also played a number of board games like Chinese Checkers, Ludo, Chess, Drafts, Bagatelle, etc These games are indigent and native to India, but nonetheless played by us with much enthusiasm
All these games seem so outdated now. Apart from playing Cricket, Hockey, Tennis etc which are part of the School games curriculum, Children hardly play outdoors nowadays. Instead, they play with high tech video games, play stations and other fancy gadgets and I’m pretty sure they don’t experience the same capacity of happiness and the joys of the simple and inexpensive games that we played as children.
We really enjoyed our childhood!!!

Golconda Shaft, Balaghat

A distant view of the Golconda Shaft in Balaghat

The Ambedakar Group of Schools in Coromandel

The Government Maternity Hospital, Robertsonpet KGF

The Government Maternity Hospital in Robtersonpet KGF where my brother and sisters and I were born. It hasn't changed in all these years. A new annexe has now been added.

CHILDHOOD MEMORIES OF CHRISTMAS TIME IN KGF ..4

On Christmas morning, trays of Christmas goodies were distributed to our friends and neighbours. We children dressed up in all their finery would be entrusted with this task. All the servants, the sweepers and other helpers would be given a ‘bakshis’ or money gift, also clothes and Christmas sweets. The men would also get a quarter bottle of booze.
We usually attended Midnight Mass dressed in our new Christmas frocks, specially tailored for the great day and bundled up in our jackets and coats as it was very cold in KGF in December.

A small mini fair would invariably come up outside the church gates, with vendors selling balloons, crackers, cheap plastic toys, plastic sunglasses, plastic spinning tops, bugles, trumpets, little bamboo sticks with balloons attached, etc., which we would gleefully buy and enjoy. After midnight Mass, we'd sometimes visit our firend's houses for a small sing song session and have some cake and wine or just go home and do the same thing.
As Christmas day was usually hectic with visiting and socializing, most of the cooking was done beforehand on Christmas Eve, except for the turkey or chicken that was left to slow roast on a low fire or ‘Dum’ over night. Other Anglo-Indian delicacies such as Oxtail Vindaloo, Tongue Roast, Trotters etc., would be left to cook the whole night on low heat, so that by Christmas morning the meat was succulent and tender. We normally woke up late on Christmas morning and then enjoyed a Hearty breakfast of Eggs, sausages and bacon. Christmas morning invariably had family and friends visiting us and enjoying some of the Christmas goodies prepared by my mum.

A typical Christmas lunch at our house was usually a large meal comprising of a Meat Pullao, Chicken Curry, Stuffed Roast turkey or Chicken Roast, Pork Vindaloo, Duck Vindaloo, steamed vegetables, mashed potatoes, bread, dinner rolls, Christmas pudding, Cakes, Sweets, etc, etc, all washed down with a glass or two of Wine or a peg or two of Whiskey, brandy or other liquor. There was always fun and banter round the festive table and small tiffs as to who would get the ‘lucky bones’, the gizzards, ‘the pope’s nose’, ‘the chicken neck’ etc.

My mum always served the Christmas pudding cold at the end of the Christmas Lunch. Just before serving it, my dad would pour a glass of brandy or Rum over it and he'd then light it with a match stick. The lovely blue flame for those few minutes, would encompass the pudding and the heat would help the rum or brandy to soak in. We usually ate it plain or with Fresh cream.

We usually spent Christmas evening visiting our grand parents, Aunts and Uncles and cousins at White Haven in Robertsonpet.

The 31st of December was another occasion to celebrate. A huge new year Ball was normally held in the Skating Rink to bring in the New Year, and just like the Christmas Shows local Anglo-Indian Bands or bands from Madras or Bangalore were engaged to play at it. A huge bonfire was lit outside the Skating Rink and an effigy of an old man representing the old year was thrown into the bonfire at midnight and firecrackers were lit to signal the start of the New year and fresh begininnings.

CHRISTMAS TIME IN KGF..3

The month of December also saw us getting ready for Christmas, shopping for dress materials and visiting Pansy Tailor to get our dresses tailored. We normally had 3 new dresses or outfits for the festive season. One dress for the Nandydroog Mine Christmas Tree Function, one for Christmas day and one for New Year’s day. Some times our parents made a trip to Bangalore to buy the material for our Christmas dresses and also to buy our shoes from Reliance Shoe Shop on Commercial Street in case we didn’t buy them during our visit to Bangalore in September for Our Lady’s feast. Our Christmas shoes would invariably be a white pair so as to match all our new frocks. In case they couldn’t fit in a trip to Bangalore, then we went shopping for dress material in Town. Mohanlal, Sohans, Bhora and some other shops had quite a good selection of dress materials to choose from.

Pansy Tailor was the most sought after ladies tailor and dress maker in KGF. He was always deluged with stitching orders for dresses this time of the year, by almost all the Anglo-Indians in KGF for the various dances and for the Christmas. He warned all his customers to bring him their Christmas tailoring orders before the middle of November so that he was able to plan his schedule. He was a fantastic dressmaker and never disappointed anyone, most often sitting late into the night with his assistant Gopal to help him so as to deliver the dresses to his customers on the dates he promised to give them. Pansy Tailor’s actual name was Eshwar Rao, but since he spoke English with a funny accent, and walked like a lady, he was nicknamed ‘Pansy Tailor’ and the name just stuck. In fact we still refer to him as Pansy tailor even though he’s now no more.

My mum would start the preparation of the traditional sweets and treats that are a part and parcel of Christmas a fortnight before Christmas. Kalkals and Rose Cookies, Fruit Cakes, Coconut Sweets, the Christmas Pudding, Bole Cake, Dodol, Beveca, Marzipan Sweets, Peanut Fudge, Cashew nut Fudge, Murkus or Rice Crispies, Adarasams or Fried rice pancakes etc., were some of the goodies that were prepared in abundance by her. The house and neighbourhood would smell enticingly. One of my strongest childhood memories, is this enticing aroma of the preparation of these Christmas Goodies.

We children would wait for the Christmas holidays to begin so that we could all help mummy in the preparation of the Kulkuls, Rose Cookies, etc, We’d all sit around the dining table and each of us would take a lump of dough and spread it on a fork to make as many kulkuls as possible with it. These kulkuls were like small shells. To make other shapes, we would also roll out the dough and cut out various shapes like hearts, clubs, diamonds, etc with the cutters. It was fun competing with each other to see who made the most. Mummy would fry the kulkuls as soon as we completed a good number, till all the kulkuls were fried and a huge heap was kept on the table to cool. She’d then ice them when they were cold by pouring hot sugar syrup on the kukkuls. We had a lot of fun helping mummy and sometimes even our non-Christian friends would join us and help us in this happy task. Of course, a good portion of the fried kulkuls would go into our mouths while helping to make them.

Making the Doldol at Christmas time was especially exciting for all of us as this particular sweet dish needed more than 3 hours to prepare and had to be stirred constantly. We would all take turns to stir the gooey mixture till it reached the right consistency. Making coconut sweets was another treat. All of us would fight to scrape the residue left over in the pan.

We also helped to churn the butter and sugar for the Christmas Pudding and the Fruit cakes. In those days there were no blenders or beaters and we churned the cake dough with the ‘Dhal Churner Stick’ or the ‘Mathu’ as it was called. We had to wait for our turn as each one wanted to put their fingers in the bowl while churning and lick the cake dough as it was getting smooth.

I mustn’t forget to mention the Grape Wine and Ginger Wine that mummy made specially for Christmas. She would soak the Grapes and sugar in the month of October so that it was ready for Christmas. The wine would be strong and sweet and mummy would add a dash of rum to it to give it a bit of punch. She also made Ginger Wine at Christmas time. This Ginger Wine wasn’t exactly a wine but more like a thick concoction that acted as an aid in digestion for all the rich food at Christmas.

CHRISTMAS TIME IN KGF..2

Christmas had its own gaiety and charm in KGF. All the Anglo-Indian homes were always beautifully decorated with colorful paper streamers, buntings, Chinese lanterns, balloons, etc. Every home put up a huge Casuarina Christmas tree that was decorated beautifully. In those days there were no plastic or synthetic Christmas trees and hence every family put up a Casuarina Tree. A huge drum or Flower Pot was filled with sand and the Casuarina Tree was placed securely in it.

The Christmas tree was always placed in a prominent place in the drawing room and was beautifully decorated with fairy lights, tinsel, colourful baubles, sliver and gold paper, and little China Ornaments. The Angel would be fixed on top of the tree, while the other tree ornaments and decorations were placed at intervals interspersed with gold and silver streamers and tinsel. Some of the Christmas decorations were saved over many years and were lovingly hung on the Christmas Tree each Christmas. Cotton wool was liberally placed on the branches to look like snow. The family’s Christmas gifts were usually placed under the tree and opened only on Christmas morning. Of course there was much excitement and mirth while the decorating was in progress and the children could hardly wait to open their Christmas gifts.

Besides the Christmas tree, every family put up a Crib without fail. The Crib was always placed in a prominent spot, sometimes beside the Christmas tree. It was normally made with straw or grass, cardboard, brown paper etc. The children used their imagination to create their own Crib and would innovate each year. The statues of Baby Jesus, Mother Mary, St. Joseph, the shepherds, the sheep, the three kings, etc, would be carefully removed from their cotton wool packing and loving placed in the Crib. Baby Jesus was placed in the Crib only after Midnight Mass and the three kings and the camel on the 4th of January.

Every Home would also hang a star with a light bulb fitted in it in front of their homes. Some times,people made their own huge paper stars out of thin bamboo sticks and kite paper or else they just bought the stars from the shops selling Christmas decorations..

The Christmas holidays usually began on the 20th December and the schools would reopen only after the first week of January. The children were on hand to help with the preparation of the Christmas Treats and also with decorating the house. There was always much fun and frolic when all of them got together in this happy task

CHRISTMAS TIME IN KGF..1

Christmas time was the most enjoyable time of the year in KGF. A number of dances and variety programs were arranged during Christmas time, starting from the 2nd week of December and going on till the New Year.

Each Mine held their own Christmas celebrations. There were a variety programs such as sports competitions for the children, Fancy Dress Competitions, etc and a High Tea for the children with Santa Claus arriving in a special sleigh to distribute their gifts. Games of skill such as Hoopla, Ringing the Bottle, Ringing the Duck, Lucky Dip, Lucky Arrow, The Chocolate Wheel, Darts, etc were some of the sideshows of the event., followed by a grand Christmas Ball later.

The grand Christmas Balls were occasions to remember. The Dance Invitations would specify ‘Lounge’ or ‘Dress Suits Essential’ and woe betide anyone who turned up in their casual clothes!! So the men and boys would dress in their suits and Tuxedoes and the ladies and girls wore their prettiest dresses and gowns made of lace, silk and satin specially tailored for the occasion.

Local Anglo-Indian Bands or bands from Madras or Bangalore were engaged to play for the dances. The MC of the show would ensure that everyone had a good time and took part in the Square Dances and other group dances. The Jive, Fox Trot, Cha Cha, and Rock and Roll etc were popular dance steps.

The ever green Waltz was all the more popular as it gave couples a chance to hold each other closely and dance cheek to cheek!!! In between the dances the men would disappear to have a small ‘sly tot’ to recharge their batteries. The dances would go on throughout the night and sometimes end only at 5 O’clock the next morning, when they would head straight to Church for Mass.

REQUESTING EX-KGF FOLK TO SEND IN THEIR MEMORIES OF THIS SPECIAL SEASON IN KGF...Bridget

THE CHAMPION REEFS WORKSHOPS

This is a recent pricture of the Champion reefs Workshops. The windows are missing and this old stone building lies in ruins.

THE CHAMPION REEFS WORKSHOPS

St. Micheal and All Angels Church, Oorgaum KGF

St. Micheal and All Angels Church, Oorgaum KGF

TENANTS SHAFT, CHAMPION REEFS, KGF

This is a picture of the Tenants Shaft near the Watch and Ward Department,

Champion Reefs, KGF

KGF SCHOOL... News item in the times of India dated 14/2/09

FIVE LIGHT'S CIRCLE, Nandydroog Mine

This is a picture of the FIVE LIGHTS CIRCLE, in Nandydroog Mine. It was on the main road to Oorgaum Station and Robertsonpet. The four Roads branched off to various areas in KGF. It was / is one of the landmarks of KGF

THE BUTCHER'S SHOP

This is a picture of the Beef Butcher's Shop in Nandydroog Mine , close to the Swimming Bath and the Rescue Station. It looks the same as it did more than 50 years ago.

The Butcher whose name was Gafoor, would supply the different cuts of meat, depending on the dish that was to be prepared for lunch and dinner that day. Sadly Gafoor has since passed away. His son-in-law is now the proud owner of this shop.

BASHA'S SHOP

This is a picture of the 4 Shops opposite the Skating Rink and Nandydroog Club. We lived in the house practically adjoining them except for a small lane between.
Pansy Tailor's Shop is at the far left with its Trellis still intact. Pansy tailor passed on the shop to his assistant Gopal so it later came to known as Gopal Taylor Shop.
Basha's Shop also known as Ahmed Shop is in the middle and is now closed.Basha and his wife have since passed away. His sons Afzal and Amjath live in Bangalore. The tiles are missing from the roof.

The Hotel or Eatery is still there but has changed many managements over the years. They still blast tamil film songs on their old radio. The Bondas, Vadas, Kajurus are still as tasty as they were in our childhood.

Abraham or Ibrahim's shop is at the far right and is still doing business. However its not in the picture. Ibrahim is now a grand old man but still going strong. God bless him.

THE SKATING RINK, NANDYDROOG MINE, KGF

This is a picture of the Skating Rink in its present dilapidated state.
The Skating Rink which could be called the only auditorium in KGF at that time, was the most popular venue for Wedding receptions, Parties, get-togethers, Concerts, Musical Recitals, Meetings, Dances etc. The Cement floor was highly polished and very smooth and was initially used during the times of the British for Roller skating and ice skating and also for Ball Room Dances.

The building itself was not much to talk about, with corrugated iron sheets for its walls and roof and a false ceiling of Tatty Cane inside. It was more like a huge Shed that one sees in old Country and Western Movies and didn’t resemble an auditorium all. However this ‘Hall’ was close to everyone KGFites's heart and was iconic in its stature.

The Skating Rink was a land mark for the people of KGF. The Christmas Dances, May Queen Balls, Easter Balls, June Rose Balls, The Anglo-Indian Association AGM Ball, New Years Eve Ball, Wedding Receptions, Social and Religious functions, Conferences, etc, were all held at the Skating Rink. Its very sad to see it in its present neglected and rundown state.

MYSORE MINE CLUB

The Mysore Mine Club was a familiar hangout for the folks in Mysore Mine and Marikuppam just as the Nandydroog Club catered to the recreational needs of people of Nandidroog. The members played Badminton, Tennis, Snooker, Billiards etc and there was a well stocked Bar as well.

Old Map of KGF

This is an old map of KGF which is displayed in the KGF Club. This will give you an idea of the place

OUR LADY OF VICTORIES CHURCH, CHAMPION REEFS, KGF

The Steeple of Our Lady of Victories Church, Champion Reefs, KGF

According to the History of Bangalore Arch Diocese, Our Lady of Victories Parish Champion Reefs was established in 1890 by Fr. J. Fraysse, (MEP)

OUR LADY OF VICTORIES CHURCH, CHAMPION REEFS, KGF

Our Lady of Victories Church, Champion Reefs, KGF

THE MOTHER OF MINES SHRINE, OORGAUM, KGF

Mother of Mines Shrine, Oorgaum, KGF

SAFETY WEEK AWARD

This is a picture of my dad Sydney White with his award that he received at the Safety Week celebrations in 1965 at the Gymkhana Grounds. My brother John, Mr Rajan, Viswa and Murthy are also see in the picture.

SAFETY WEEK AWARD

This is a picture of my dad with his award that he received at the Safety Week celebrations in 1965

The Cynaide Dumps

The gold mining process at the KGF mines has generated about 32 million tons of tailings called Cyanide Dumps. These dumps are the accumulation of the slurry waste and residue that was piped out of the mills, after the gold was extracted from the ore. The residue slowly hardened over time and formed huge hills around all the mines in KGF of soft fine dust. They were known as the Cyanide Dumps because of the cyanide content that was used in the process of gold extraction. The Mines used a special technique for gold processing that involved dissolution of gold in the ore by water soluble alkali metal cyanides such as sodium cyanide or potassium cyanide. The gold ore was first crushed and agglomerated in the mill and then dissolved in the cyanide solutions in order to recover the gold. This process was known as Gold smelting and the chemicals would give out a bad odour whenever the smelting process was done. The whole of KGF would stink on smelting day!!! Due to the continuous mining activity of over a century and the regular pumping of the slurry waste, these cyanide dumps occupy almost 20% of the total area of KGF. The dumps have hardened over the years and look like hills all around the place, some of them more than 30 metres in height. These Cyanide Dumps that have been deposited here since inception of mines have now become a tourist attraction and are used as a film location for shooting dance sequences of many regional language films. However, they are still an environmental hazard even today. Many people suffer from respiratory related diseases such as Asthma, Wheezing etc because of the fine dust from these dumps.