Nganga, my name....

Oh, God!! What a strange name I have!! Nganga…..I think I was named Ganga by my parents…a name I couldn’t like in my primary school days. Whenever the name of the river Ganga was mentioned in the class room, the girls would turn to look at me with a teasing smile..
Mother’s younger brother Aniyammavan used to tease me that I was their adopted child and as my father got me from the garbage I was so dirty and father had to dip me in the river Ganga to get me cleaned. He said that is why they gave me that name. And I believed that story for a long time, and hated my name all the more….

I remember the days when Govind started his baby talks . He was the first grandson of my parents. We were all so excited and overwhelmed with many emotions when he came to our life. His each movement and facial expression was noticed and cheered by us.

I don’t remember when he uttered my name for the first time, but when it was clear that he gave me a special name, I was very much excited.. He started calling me too often in that name ‘nganga’, which I think only a Malayali can pronounce. Then came his sister, and she shortened it a bit and called me ‘ngnga’. And so my name got popular and all my nieces and nephews call me so. None of them found it necessary to call me aunty [valliamma or chitta]. Now their spouses too know me by that name….and their children…..Govind’s daughter has already started calling me nganga ammoomma….How strange!

Actually I got used to the name so much that I didn’t notice anything strange in it until now when I got a mail from Govind’s non-Indian friend addressing me ‘Nganga’. Ha ha…I wish to hear her pronounce it, if she ever could......