Padma
was introduced to the ghost when she was, may be, three years of age – that’s
what she remembers. She was not sure of
her accuracy on this count. That was
when her relative mentioned the word ‘Deyyam barukulu’ (Ghost scratches) for
chapped skin in winter.
Padma
had got curious. She wanted to know what
the ‘Deyyam’ (Ghost) was and how it managed to scratch her. When she asked her cousin as to how those
scratches appeared, the latter bit her tongue and promptly told her, ‘Actually
they are called ‘Gaali Geetalu’ (lines caused by the air). They occur during the winter. Some people also call them ghost-scratches’. Those were the days when cosmetics had not
invaded our dressing tables in the way they have now. Awareness of moisturising the skin was quite
low – it either took the form of application of coconut oil (which, some people
worried, would cause thick body hair) or, for those who could afford, petroleum
jelly, on the body. Needless to say,
with no fragrance to enjoy, and an oily skin to handle, children naturally made
a lot of fuss to let their mothers lubricate their body, and therefore, usually
ended up with chapped and scraped skin during winters. With low levels of awareness about the skin,
people attributed the scratches on their skin to the invisible air or to the
equally invisible ghost.
