The twelve Telugu months

Told in English, Telugu.

In a little village near the Godavari river, there lived a seven year old girl named Sirisha. She had two long plaits, one missing front tooth, and a very big problem.

Tomorrow was Ugadi. At school there would be a function on the stage, with mango leaves tied over the door and all the parents sitting in rows. And Lakshmi teacher had chosen Sirisha to stand up in front of everyone and recite the twelve Telugu months, one after the other, without stopping.

That evening, Sirisha sat on the verandah steps and practised. "Chaitram, Vaisakham, Jyeshtham, Ashadham, Sravanam, Bhadrapadam..."

Then she stopped. Her mouth opened, but nothing came out.

"Kartikam?" she whispered. "No... Pushyam? No, no!"

She tried again. Chaitram, Vaisakham, Jyeshtham, Ashadham, Sravanam, Bhadrapadam... and again her mind went empty, like a steel tumbler with no water in it.

Sirisha put her face on her knees. "I can't do it," she said. "Everyone will laugh at me."

Inside the house, Ammamma was cutting raw mangoes for the Ugadi pachadi. She heard the little sad voice and came out, wiping her hands on her saree.

"What happened, bangaram?"

"The months keep running away from me, Ammamma. After Bhadrapadam they all hide."

Ammamma sat down beside her on the step. She smelled of neem flowers and jaggery.

"Do you know why they run away?" she asked. "Because you are treating them like a list. Months are not a list, Sirisha. Months are friends. Each one comes to our house carrying something. If you remember what they bring, you will never forget their names."

Sirisha lifted her head. "What do they bring?"

Ammamma smiled. "Chaitram brings Ugadi, the new year, with pachadi that is sweet and sour and bitter all at once. Vaisakham brings mangoes, so many mangoes. Jyeshtham brings the hottest sun of all. Ashadham brings the first big clouds. Sravanam brings rain, and Varalakshmi pooja. Bhadrapadam brings our Vinayaka, with his modakams."

"And then?" asked Sirisha. "That is where I get stuck."

"Then comes Asviyujam," said Ammamma, "with Dasara and Deepavali lights. Then Kartikam, when we float little lamps on the river. Then Margasiram, when the mornings are cold and we draw muggulu in front of every house. Then Pushyam, with Sankranti and kites in the sky. Then Maagham, when we pray to the Sun God on Ratha Saptami. And last, Phalgunam, with Holi colours. And after Phalgunam?"

Sirisha thought. "Chaitram again?"

"Chaitram again! The year is a circle, like a bangle. It never really ends."

Then Ammamma did something wonderful. She began to sing, clapping softly on her knee. This is the song she made up, right there on the verandah.

Chaitram comes with Ugadi cheer, Vaisakham's mangoes, sweet and near, Jyeshtham's sun is burning high, Ashadham's clouds roll through the sky.

Sravanam's rain on every lane, Bhadrapadam, Vinayaka's here again! Asviyujam brings Dasara lights, Kartikam's lamps on river nights.

Margasiram, muggulu white, Pushyam's kites at Sankranti bright, Maagham's chariot of the sun, Phalgunam's colours, Holi fun!

Twelve little months go round and round, Back to Ugadi, safe and sound.

Sirisha sang it with her once. Then twice. By the fifth time, she was clapping too, and her little brother Chintu was dancing in the courtyard with a mango in his hand.

The next morning, the school was full of colour. The girls wore new langa voni and the boys wore new shirts that still smelled of the shop. When Lakshmi teacher called, "Sirisha!", her legs felt like soft idli batter.

She walked up the steps of the stage. She looked out. So many faces! Her heart went thump, thump, thump. She felt very nervous.

"Chaitram," she began. "Vaisakham. Jyeshtham. Ashadham. Sravanam. Bhadrapadam..."

And there it was again. The empty tumbler. Silence. Somebody in the back row coughed. Sirisha's eyes began to feel hot.

Then she saw Ammamma in the third row. Ammamma was not saying anything. She was only clapping very softly on her knee, just as she had on the verandah. Clap, clap. Clap, clap.

And inside her head, Sirisha heard the tune. Bhadrapadam, Vinayaka's here again... Asviyujam brings Dasara lights!

"Asviyujam!" she said, loud and clear. "Kartikam. Margasiram. Pushyam. Maagham. Phalgunam!"

For one moment, nobody moved. Then the whole hall burst into clapping. Lakshmi teacher was smiling so wide. Chintu shouted, "That's my akka!"

Sirisha took a breath and said, "Can I sing you the song my Ammamma taught me?" And she sang it, all of it, and by the last line half the parents were clapping along.

That afternoon, they all ate Ugadi pachadi together. Sirisha tasted the sweet jaggery, the sour mango, the bitter neem.

"Just like this morning," she told Ammamma. "A little bitter when I got stuck, and very sweet at the end."

Ammamma laughed and kissed the top of her head.

Now it is your turn. Can you sing the song with me? Clap softly on your knee and let's begin. Chaitram comes with Ugadi cheer...