In the wonderland of washing powders

India is on a mission to clean up its dirt under the Swatchh Bharat scheme and political leaders take up the broom once in a while to sweep the dirt – not from under the carpet to clean the mess but to hide the mess.
Anyway, this is not about such cleaning. My story is about the cleaning of dirty clothes. Gone are the days of bar soaps and the women who struggled to bring the shine back to the clothes. They would use wooden mallet-like stuff to literally beat the dirt out. Those who lived in villages would thrash the dirt on stones positioned on the banks of the ponds.

But, the innovative nature of man relieved the stress from the mothers and a product called the washing powder entered the scene. Initially, there were a couple of brands and the market today is flooded with innumerable brands. The good old days of Lalitaji and her ad with the catch line of ‘Surf ki khariddari mein samajhdari hai …’ have made way for umpteen plus one variants. Some are meant for clothes, some others are exclusive for woolens. And, they contain varieties of blasters like dust blasters, stain blasters, mud blasters.
The advent of washing machines have made the washing powder a mandatory product in every home. And – apart from women, kids have been roped in to promote the products. Obviously, cleanliness has its advantages. If only people would stop spitting pan juice and tobacco juice, our surroundings would be as clean as our homes.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org

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