Music for the mentally disturbed

I am apparently not the only one in Bombay who gets paranoid at the sight of gray skies. The July 26th episode seems to have really shaken up people in general. Now, if it rains for fifteen minutes, Raju, the driver asks if he can go home in case the roads get flooded. The last couple of days have been rather wet, though not overwhelmingly so. Yesterday I decided to visit Anuradha in Powai – a drive of at least an hour and a half from where I am, if not more, depending on the traffic.

Parvati, my grandmother’s maid, was most adamant about my not going, because of the drizzle. By noon it had cleared up though, and since this visit to Powai has been pending for months, I decided to set off. When I told Paru I was going anyway, she flapped her hands grumpily and responded in her usual "Mala nahin mahit" fashion. Then she ordered me to phone her as soon as I returned home, however late it might be, which I duly did. I think Parvati is now gradually taking Nalinima's place. She even phones in the morning to find out where I am and what I am doing!

Yesterday morning Meher and I conducted our first music meditation in the psychiatric ward of Masina hospital. Talk about organizational problems! Meher had spoken to the counsellor in charge who was supposed to be present. We had been offered the use of the play room downstairs, which Meher said would serve our purpose well. But when we got there, we discovered the counsellor was not going to be there after all (blame it on the rains!) and the nurse in charge refused to allow us into the play room because there were some older patients watching TV in there and according to Sister Mean Mind, only Parsees were allowed in this room.

So Meher and I finally decided to conduct the music med in the passage on the second floor, outside the ward. Yes, well. Imagine what that was like, with ward boys and nurses coming and going and shouting loudly and trays of tea and biscuits being transported upstairs and downstairs and people chatting or just gawking at us throughout. In spite of all that, the session went off well and we actually managed to introduce some stillness in the vicinity of our work!

Meher is really very good. I didn't do anything, just played the music and got the individuals to be still. She got them to dance and move. They respond very well to her. In the beginning they were shy and hardly moved but towards the end they really began to enjoy it.

Last night I think our cat Mishi, had a bad dream. She was lying as usual at the foot of my bed at night. At some point I woke up to hear her squeal and I sat up. She was looking around, rather sleepily. I stroked her and talked to her and after that she was quiet and went promptly back to sleep.