“Chai! Dant pale kitle chakchaki jalle, jeebh phuta jalle pale (Look your teeth now appears brighter (chakchaki) and your tongue is so clean)” said my cousin grandmother admiringly. My eight-year-old self-had agreed to follow her out of the world advice of brushing with a leaf from the cashew tree. The leaves neatly folded to rub on the teeth and the midrib used to drag over the tongue to cleanse it. In a previous experiment, it had been mango tree leaf.
It wasn’t the first time she had introduced me to something quirky. The week before she had made me eat a piece of the tender coconut – not the tender flesh but the cream coloured semi-hard chagru tasting layer beneath it. All of these were definitely better than the taste of the then popular Monkey Chaap toothpowder.
But by far the most disgusting experience was when she suggested brushing with the charcoal remains of the traditional cooking fire. But now considering that ‘charcoal toothpaste’ are a hit in the western market, my Ajji’s ideas weren’t outrageous!
In those days, who really cared about dental hygiene! If they did nobody certainly expressed it like parents today do. My maternal grandfather had always been toothless as far as my memory stretches. He refused dentures. My maternal grandmother had dentures and her toothless version gave her a much calmer grandmotherly appearance.
We were stopped from overeating sweets not to protect our teeth but to protect our tummy. Mast godshe khallari potta dukhi jatta! Dant padta mhonu koni sangani. Nobody bothered brushing before going to bed. I think the most important ritual was gargling after meals. Sama ghotu bhara.
As kids, we used the same toothpaste as the adults. And when we were staying over at someone’s place we used our forefingers to rub the paste against our teeth. And then there was salt ‘ mitta pitti’ in the absence of a toothpaste!
So when this song below mentioned ‘Mitta pitti halla dant ghasuchak’, all these thoughts ran through my mind. Unlike the usual lullabies, this song is actually to wake up your school going child. Babies are early risers, they don’t need this song!
उत्थ रे कृष्णा वेळू जाल्लो वास्सरू सोडूक्
मिठ्ठा पिट्टी हाळ्ळा पळे दाँत घास्सुक
प्हूल घेव्नु राधा आय्ली तुक्का माळूक्
घाघर घेव्नु रुक्मिणी आय्ली पाय्या घाल्लूक्
वस्त्र घेव्नु दरीचो आय्लो तुक्का नेसुचाक्
पुस्तक घेव्नु भट्टु आयला पँचांग साँगूक
पेंटाक घेव्नु मास्टर आय्लो तुक्का शिकोचाक्
उत्थ रे कृष्णा वेळू जाल्लो वास्सरू सोडूक्
uttha re kṛṣṇā veḻū jāllo vāssarū soḍūk
miṭhṭhā piṭṭī hāḻḻā paḻe dām̐ta ghāssuka
phūla ghevnu rādhā āylī tukkā māḻūk
ghāghara ghevnu rukmiṇī āylī pāyyā ghāllūk
vastra ghevnu darīco āylo tukkā nesucāk
pustaka ghevnu bhaṭṭu āyalā pam̐cāṃga sām̐gūka
peṃṭāka ghevnu māsṭara āylo tukkā śikocāk
uttha re kṛṣṇā veḻū jāllo vāssarū soḍūk