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ShareMumbai: It's been over a year since 23-year-old Astha Verma began exchanging letters with her Milan-based friend and their bond seems to be growing stronger with every passing day.
"She is interested in pursuing her higher degree course in Indian cultural studies here. I informed her about the courses, while she briefed me about pizzas, which unlike our Indian counterparts, is traditionally non spicy. She always writes hola (hello in Spanish) instead of a hi and I learnt that Italian and Spanish languages are very similar. I too sent her the recipe of dal makhani as she wanted to know about pulses. Since Milan is a fashionable city, I have asked her to send me a designer scarf. I guess I will get my gift soon," she says.
For 60-year-old Ramesh Patel, any talk on friendship is incomplete without mentioning his association with the Japanese friend whom he interacted through letters, way back in the Sixties. "He was interested in philately and I sent him lots of stamps from here. He was quite interested in watching Hindi and English movies. Since English was our second language, we didn't have lengthy interactions. I taught him namaste and he used to write sayonara (good bye) in his letters," recalls Patel.
Just when you thought that in this age of e-mails, social networking sites like Facebook, Orkut and mobile phones, making friends was just a click away, there are many who
still prefer communicating through letters, the age old way.
The International Pen Friend Association (IPF) with its headquarters in Australia has its local representatives in 210 countries. The Mumbai group was started in 1992 and has seen an increase in the number of people availing its membership or calling for enquiries.
"We receive at least 10-15 enquiries daily and still get fresh members. The members of our association are aged between 8 to 80 years," informs Yogesh Patel, local representative, IPF.
He too has been connecting with friends within the country and abroad through letters as the medium of communication. "Exchanging postal letters has a charm of its own as one gets to understand the other country's culture, the individual and also one doesn't need to worry about internet connections to stay connected," feels Yogesh Patel. He too has been exchanging letters with his French friend Boudaliez Stawski since 1992. "I have already posted a letter wishing him for his birthday on June 27," he states. Despite not having met him till date, their friendship continues unhindered.
IPF's objective is to keep the art of letter writing alive and to use that form of communication to promote friendship.
For 75-year-old Rajan B, it was the curiosity to know more about other countries and its people which made him join this association. "I have received letters from friends from Ukraine, Russia, Germany, England and also Phillipines."
The pen friends are selected on the basis of one's hobbies. After matching the interests of members of different countries, a list of pen friends with their complete address is handed over to members for further communication.
"Though emails, telephonic conversations are faster, letter writing surely has its own charm," states Yogesh Patel.
There's an exciting anticipation in waiting for letters to arrive -- the stamps, fancy writing paper, postcards, photos, different handwriting styles, the time and care people have taken to write the letters, then sitting quietly and reading the letters time and time again, possibly keeping them for many years as part of personal history.
"If you want to know a person's state of mind, you should read handwritten letters," says Ramesh Patel.
"My grandparents showed me letters they used to send to each other. I felt something was missing in my life and I wanted to experience a similar feeling of reading a letter addressed to me, waiting in anticipation and this unusual way of bonding," reasons Verma.
Says 25-year-old Jimmy D'Souza who used to think that letter writing was a tedious task, "After receiving my first letter through IPF, I realised that it has such a personal touch to it." Now D'Souza is sure of continuing with letter writing to friends and this despite the quicker ways of communication available, the difficulty in getting stamps or even finding a post box.
For IPF membership, contact: Yogesh Patel: 2372 2936 /92234 08952
website: www.ipf.net.au
