Quarantine Chronicles: ‘Lockdown has changed since Hachiko came’

Varsha Bollamma unlike others doesn’t mince words. As soon as she starts talking about the lockdown, the first word she utters is ‘monotonous’. “The first two to three months of lockdown was pretty monotonous. How much could one keep doing the same things over and again? I started reading a novel, The Woman in the Window by A J Finn. Also, I last practiced guitar when I was in school. Since then I hardly had time to play it. I knew the basics, so I started playing it again and glad I struck the right chords. It has been a while since I sketched or painted. So, I was inspired by one of the artwork and finished painting it. I was always into drawing cartoons and illustrations, and make time for it whenever I could,” she says.

 However, things started changing in June and time flew away for Varsha. “We brought a puppy home. His name is Hachiko, who is a black Labrador. All these while I never had a pet because they need extra care and attention. Moreover, Hachiko caught a virus that’s common among pets and I had to spend extra time with him. It’s called the Parvo Virus. I also shared it on my social media where people whose pets had the Parvo Virus had pinged me to ask what the solution is.

 All they need is extra love is what I have been telling everyone. It is quite common but there is no awareness about this,” adds the actress. On the fitness front, Varsha says that she took to meditation. “I follow Deepak Chopra’s meditation which is popular now. I also started going for walks with Hachiko and I had a fall. Though the injury is minor, it will take a week’s time to heal and I will be back with him for my walks. Apart from that I dance to burn extra calories,” she says.

 As calories reminded us of cooking, we ask the actress why she hasn’t spoken anything about her gastronomic abilities during the quarantine. “I haven’t tried cooking. Back in my school days I tried making wheat momos and that’s when I decided not to risk it anymore,” she quips. Varsha says that she has been listening to a few scripts. “Things are slowly getting back to normal and I hope to be back at work soon,” she concludes.