Nil Kusum Documentation Project Introduction

Nil Kusum...Those two words are so evocative and conjure up so many memories for me. Literally translated from Gujarati, Nil means "blue" and Kusum means "flower"; so literally Nil Kusum means "blue flower". But Nil in this case is short for Nilam which is the name of my grandfather's eldest sister and Kusum was the name of my grandfather's second youngest sister. Nil Kusum was also the name my grandfather, great-uncle, and great-grandfather chose for the home that they built in Morvi in 1941.

My mother, aunts, uncles, cousins all grew up and/or spent summer vacations, Diwali holidays, and lots of other times at home in Nil Kusum. It means so many things to so many people. If its walls could speak, they would ring with the laughter of so many children, the conversations from so many dinner parties, of music lessons and concerts, of Bhikhabhai - the math tutor's - lessons, of mischevious children, of sad times like the flood, of happy times like weddings, firecrackers at Diwali, the birth of many children, and countless other events big (like the earthquake) and small (like the goat that would sneak into the garden to eat flowers which Halubhai would catch and milk before releasing).

This home which has sheltered so many is currently vacant for all its children have scattered in four directions - all over India, the United States, and indeed all over the world.

In April of 2008, I am hoping/planning to visit Morvi along with Rajesh Vora, an architectural photographer and Silvia Rizzi, an architecht, in order to document Nil Kusum through precise measured drawings of the plan, elevation and section, supplemented by photographs.

After the initial documentation is complete, I plan to request all the past residents of Nil Kusum and close family, friends, and guests to share stories, thoughts, pictures, haikus, drawings, and memories from Nil Kusum.

I hope to prepare a book including the documentation and selections from the memories and stories shared.

After the documentation phase is complete, if the family members express interest and the practical aspects (financial, legal, logisticial, timing, etc.) can be worked out, I would like to embark on a Green, Environmentally Sustainable, Energy Efficient renovation of Nil Kusum.

I would also like to establish a trust, society, NGO, or other appropriate entity to engage in social and environmental development projects using Nil Kusum as the registered office and initial main base of operations.

Nil Kusum and Morvi have given so much to me and my family.

From my grandfather, Ramniklal Jayashanker Daftary, and my grandmother Jayalaxmi Ramniklal Daftary, I have learned the importance of Tri-Kalyan:
1) Swa-Kalyan - Take Care of Yourself
2) Par-Kalyan - Take Care of Your Family
3) Param-Kalyan - Take Care of Society (or literally the Universe).

If you have an interest in the project, have any ideas or suggestions, or any questions, please feel free to contact me (rajenp@gmail.com) .

Also I will try to regularly update this blog as the project progresses.