Today I caught myself thinking about how different Sundays feel now compared to when I was a kid.
(it’s a longgggggg read)
This was somewhere around 2004 or 2005.
Every Sunday started with the 8 AM “Rangoli” show on DD National.
My sisters and I would clean the house while it played in the background. We’d spend that whole hour sweeping, dusting, and singing along to whatever songs came on. By the time Rangoli ended, the house would be clean, we’d be washed up and ready, and Mom would already have breakfast ready.
At 9 o’clock, “Chulbuli Filmein Chatpati Gupshup” would start. They used to show children’s movies, and we’d happily watch until around 10.
After that, the next part of Sunday would begin.
My uncle’s house next door had a Big TV connection, which felt like a luxury back then. They had so many channels that it almost felt like a different world. If my mom and that Uncle’s mom allowed it, I’d spend the next couple of hours there watching whatever movie was playing.
If either of them didn’t, I’d be at home waiting for the 12 to 3pm movie on DD National. It wasn’t guaranteed every Sunday, but most weeks there was something to watch, and that was enough for us to look forward to it.
Watching movies back then wasn’t just about the movie; it was about the ads too!
Today, if you have an OTT subscription, you press play and watch the whole thing without interruption. Back then, TV was full of commercials. At the time, they were annoying.
Funny enough, they’re part of what I miss now. The ads, the waiting, the anticipation – they were all part of the experience.
We’d watch the movie, have lunch somewhere in between, and by 3 PM the TV finally got a break!
Then at 4 PM, another movie would begin.
I honestly don’t even remember anymore whether it was DD National or DD Lucknow. I just remember that from around 4 to 6:30, another movie was waiting for us.
Sometimes my parents would tell me I’d been watching TV since morning.
That’s when the negotiations would begin.
I’d promise I’d go outside later.
I’d promise I’d study in the evening.
I’d promise I’d help with whatever work needed to be done.
And somewhere in between all those promises, I’d usually manage to earn another couple of hours in front of the TV.
There was one more challenge on weekends.
Fetching drinking water was a daily chore in our house. Our (natural) drinking water source was about 100 to 200 meters downhill, and carrying it back meant climbing all the way up again. On most days, it was just another part of the routine.
But Saturdays and Sundays were different.
Those were movie days!!!
So I’d wait for the longest commercial break, grab the water container, and sprint downhill. I’d fill it as fast as I could and run all the way back, completely out of breath, hoping I’d make it before the movie started again.
Sometimes I did.
Sometimes I missed a few minutes and had to ask my sister what happened while I was gone.
Looking back, it’s funny how a five-minute ad break felt like a countdown timer.
By 6:30, the movie would end and the TV would finally be switched off.
—
We didn’t plan our Sundays around a clock.
We planned them around what was playing on TV.
Today, everything is easier.
If I want to watch a movie, I open an app.
If I want to hear a song, I search for it.
If I need to download something, it takes a few minutes.
No waiting.
No commercials.
No interruptions.
Everything is instant.
But somehow, I miss the waiting.
Back then, we couldn’t just play any song we wanted. There was no YouTube, no Spotify, no playlists. We simply listened to whatever came on. Sometimes it was the song we’d been hoping to hear. Most of the time, it wasn’t. But that never really mattered because we enjoyed what we had.
Today we have access to almost every song ever made.
And yet, I don’t think I enjoy music the same way I did back then.
Maybe convenience has made life better.
But maybe it quietly took away some of the excitement too.
