Onion Bread / प्याज-रोटी

Documented by Coralynn V. Davis and Carlos Gomez
Transcription by Nidhi Anand and Translation by Neeraj Kumar

Teller: Sheela Devi
Location: Jitwarpur
Date: 9/13/16

September 13, 2016: Session A9
Maithili Folklore 16_09_13_a_9

View the transcription in Maithili.

उनका समधियाना में मिललयन मरूआ के रोटी आ नून, ढ़ेकरी वाला ढ़ीला वाला नून, नइ पहिले चले छलै, से नीमक आ प्याउज देलकैन, आ हरा मिरचाइ।

At his child’s in-law’s place, he was offered bread made of ragi flour with rock salt — you know the salt we used in the old times, the one which was in practice those years, that salt and onion, and also green chilli. 

त उ मरूआ रोटी कते सुदंर लगै छै खाए में। मरूआ रोटी आ नून ढ़ोकरी आ हरिहर मिरचाइ प्याउज खाए में हुनका बड़ स्वादगर लगलैन, स्वादिष्ट लगलैन।

You know how delicious ragi-flour bread is. So he liked the ragi-flour bread with rock salt, onion and green chilli. He found it very tasty.

आब उ खूब खेलैथ आ ओतअ से सोचलैथ कि जे आब इ त हमरा बड नीक लागल खाए में से इ खा…आंए

जे जाइ छी अपना घरे ना त हम आब इहे चीज कहबन जे हम घरो पर बनबय लै मरुए रोटी, नून, मिरचाइ , प्याउज आ हम कहबेन इहै खाइ लै दइ लै। जे हमरा बडा अच्छा लागल।

Now he ate a lot and thought that since this food was so delicious, he said, “Now I will go and ask at home that this food combination be prepared more often, as I really liked it.”

ओतअ से जे खा कर विदा भेल न त ओतअ से कहलकय हमरा याद केना रहत इ बात त से नइ त… (आब ऊपरे ऊपरे कहै है देखियौ ने।)

Now, as he was leaving his child’s in-law’s place, he thought, “What if I forget about the delicacy?” So… (Now my child is speaking over me in telling the story, see.)

त ओते से के शुरू क देलक, जे कब घर जाऊंगा, प्याउज रोटी खाऊंगा, कब घर जाऊंगा, प्याउज रोटी खाऊंगा। मने कब घर पहुंचेंगे त हम प्याउज रोटी खाएंगे वहाँ पे जा के।

So he started repeating this mantra from there forward on his way home: “When I go home, I will eat Onion and bread. When I go home, I will eat Onion and bread.” This means he will eat Onion and bread when he arrives home. And he was anxious to reach his home for this reason.

कब घर जाऊंगा, प्याउज रोटी खाऊंगा। जाइते जाइते जाइते जाइते एकरा रस्ता में लागल लैटिंग, खेने रहै से लैटिंग लाइग गेल। त उ लैटिंग करअ लै गैल। लैटिंग गेला के बाद…

 “When I go home, I will eat Onion and bread.” Repeating this he was on his way home, but midway he felt the need to go to relieve himself. So he goes to do that. After relieving himself…   

(हइया ऐलै… आबा आबा आबा आबा आ। आना खिस्सा कहि छी आ ना। ओ बड होइ खिस्सा)

(Hey, see this now… come, come, come, come here. Come here, I am telling the story. He is at ease telling stories.)

त उ लैटिंग लाइग गेलए ना त उ नहर के पास में जाके लैटिंग केलक, आ एगो डबरा रहे पानी वाला डबरा रहे न तालाब ओइ में जाके उ पाइन छू ल लेलक।

So he went toward a canal to relieve himself. And once he was done, he came to a nearby pond to wash off.

पाइनछू लेलक ने से इ मोन में जे रटना रटै छलै से भूइल गेलए, मन से निकइल गेलए। निकल्ला के बाद इ कि केलक सोचलक जे हमरा अनपढ़ आदमी, नइ बूझै छियय केहन दिमाग रहे है अनपढ़ के, उ होथरैं लागल उ पानी में। उ जे बिसरा गेलए त उ होथैं लागल। हा हा हा

The moment he touched water he forgot his mantra,  which he was repeating until moments prio”r. It slipped his mind. After he came out of the water, he thought,  I am an illiterate person (you see he must be thinking that he didn’t have much sense in his brain) so… in desperation he started smacking the water, because had just forgotten the mantra he had been repeating. Ha ha ha.

होथरै लागल त गाँव के आदमी सब ओइ माहे जाइत रहै न त कहलकय कि, ” हो भाई साहब, तोहर कथी हेरा गेलह? “

Many villagers were passing by, and as they saw him doing this, they asked him, “Hello, what happened to you?”

त रे तोरा नइ बतेबौअ, हेता बड़ा बड़ा लाल लाल नइ हुअ है वही हरा गया है।

“I won’t tell you; I have lost… you know what that big, red thing is called? That is what I have lost here.”

तो, अरे भाई हेता बड़ा बड़ा लाल लाल कोन चीज हुअ है।

“Oh, but what is that big, red thing you are talking about?”

त ना हेता बड़ा बड़ा लाल लाल न हुअ है वही हरा गया है इसमें। उ प्याउज के बाड़े में बतबै जे हेता बड़ा बड़ा लाल लाल न हुअ है वही बिसर गया अथी हरा गया खो गया है।

Oh, actually I have lost, you know, that big, red thing, that is what I am talking about. I have lost that very thing here.”  

उ एतबे बात कहे त कहलकय, रे भाइ तोहर कथी हरा गेलौ हन? त तू हमरो देबही ताइक देबौ त हमरो देबही।

He kept repeating this to the villagers. Finally, they asked him, “Oh brother, what is it that you have lost here? We will find it for you, but would you share that with us?”

कहलकय ठीक है, हाँ तोरो देंगे तुझको भी देंगे। ढूरो।

He replied, “Fine. Search for  it here. I will share it with you.”

अइ में होथरो लागल। सब दिशा से आबे सब होथरा लागे बुझाए सोना चांदी हेरा गेलए अइ में बुझाए गेलए न से हेरा गेलए। सब के मोन होए जे सोना चांदी हेरा गेलए है।

They all started slapping at the water. Everybody present there engaged in this act, all assuming they would  discover some gold there.

तकैत ,तकैत, तकैत, तकैत झुके है न त होथरे त नइ कतऔ भेटए त ओकरा पदा गेलए। त ओहने महक लगलय प्याउजे सन के महक।

The man kept on with his act, and in the process as he continued leaning for a long time, his stomach was pressed for a long time, and thus he farted. It smelled like onion and it immediately spread.

हवा जे छूटलै त ओहने प्याउजे सन के महक आइब गेलए। बदबू जे… हां मिल गया मिल गया मिल गया भागा के शुरू केलक ओता स। नइ अथी कहलकय त…

Since he farted, it smelt like what he had eaten, the onion. The foul smell… “Yes, yes, hurray, I found it!” And then he started shouting this…

अरे साला उ कहलकय, अरे साला कैसा गंध किया प्याउज के तरह । दोसरा बगल के आदमी है ऐ साला कैसा प्याउज के तरह गंध किया ।

“Oh, that idiot,” he said, “Oh you idiot, it smells like onion.” The other person there also said, “Oh, idiot, how it smells like onion.” 

यही हरा गया था। भेट गया भेट गया। दौड़ा के शुरू केलक फेर, कब घर जाऐंगे प्याउज रोटी खाएंगे ।

“I found it, I found it! This is exactly what I had lost here.” And in his happiness, he started racing around, proclaiming, “When I go home, I will eat Onion and bread!”

आब ओकरा पीछा लोक आब पहुंचल रेवारा के लिए जे हमरा औना देलैं त तू ल क भागल जाइ छैं।

The villagers who were searching for the thing with him ran after him, and when they caught him, they demanded, “You made us run, and now you are disappearing from here?”

हमरो दे बांटि क अइ में से आधा। कहे भाई ,हमको कुछ नही हराया था उसमें। हम भूल गए थे। हमको बिसरा गया था। आप जो बोले प्याज का नाम लिया ना वही हमको याद पड़ गया जो हम गए थे समधियाना त हम खाए थे प्याउज रोटी बहुत अच्छा लगा तो यही हमको भूल हो गया था।

“As promised, you must now give us as our share half of the thing you found.” He said, “Oh, sorry, actually I hadn’t lost anything. I had lost just this word – onion.” The moment you guys uttered this word, I got my memory back. I had been returning from visiting my child’s in-law’s place where I had eaten onion with bread. Since I liked it so much, I was going back repeating this, so…”

त फेर घर पहुंचल, फेर ओ अपना बेटी कनिया के बतेलक जे हम एना एना खा क ऐलौं मरुआ रोटी, नून, मिरचाइ , प्याउज जे हमरा बना दिया हम खैब, बहुते नीक लगै है।

Then he reached home and told his wife, “I ate such and such delicious food, so please get me ragi-flour bread and serve it with onion, salt and green chilli. I like it very much.”

यै हरा गेल रहै। खेलक, हां फेर खेलक।

“This was lost in water.” Yes, he got to eat it once again.