We tend to personify gods by imagining their appearances to be like our idols. May be all devis or goddesses we see in our mothers, and hence the term Ma or mother we use in addressing all goddesses – Laxmi, Durga, Kali, Parvati, Seeta etc.

Yesterday was Basant panchami, celebrated as Saraswati Puja also in our country. Saraswati, the goddess of learning and arts, having a book, a water pot, a rosary ( Mala) and above all a Veena ( the musical instrument) is therefore, especially worshipped for wisdom and proficiency in fine arts. The moment you mention the name Saraswati, I am sure most of the music lovers in this country would imagine the face of the nightingale of India, Bharat Ratna, Lata Mangeshkar. It’s like the way we immerse Durga the day after Durgashtmi, Goddess Saraswati also chose immersion the next day of her festival in the form of demise of Lata.

A few days ago only in one of my blogs I had mentioned that we cherished the presence of these idols amongst us as they were born once in a century if not millennium! Starting her career very early to shoulder the responsibilities of her large family following the demise of her father, Dinanath, Lata had to struggle initially as at that time singers with husky and heavy voice ruled the roost. But her thin, sharp but absolutely delectable voice was soon to become the voice of all the top heroines on silver screen. Beginning with Shobhana Samarth ( mother of Nutan and Tanuja and grandmother of Kajol- Lata sang for all three generations) followed by Nargis, Madhubala, Suchitra Sen, Nutan, Mala Sinha, Sadhana, Asha Parekh, Mumtaz, Leena, Babita, Hema, Rekha, Rakhee to the next set comprising Madhuri, Meenakshi, Kajol- Lata was the voice!

And her songs are part of the compendium of Indians for all the occasions – from her early songs such aayega aane wala to later ones such as Didi Tera dewar dewana – she dominated Bollywood for more than 5 decades- from late 40s to late 90s ! There’s no singer in this country who doesn’t want to emulate her or be like her! No competition is complete without bouquet of her songs and no occasion is complete without her songs

Lata will always be remembered- for her persona, repertoire of her songs, her patriotism ( ae mere watan ke logon gives goose bumps whenever it’s played) and as a true Bharat Ratna, born once in millennium! The Goddess of music, “ Saraswati in person “ has left us but with a treasure load of ditties for generations to listen to!

I occasionally read Urdu publications, both – from India as well as Pakistan and sometimes, come across the stuff that leaves a deep impression, provoking me to translate the same for the larger audience.

The other day, I came across an article in which the author talks about his humble origin and very frugal childhood. A two room house occupied by large family comprising parents, siblings as also uncles, aunts and cousins would accommodate even visiting guests. Money was always short, yet the food eaten by the family was happily shared with the guests. Guests were never snubbed but rather egged on to stay for some more time. After completing 10th and that too from Government run school, the author’s father asked him to go to an automobile workshop ran by his friend to make him learn a trade as also earn some pocket money. After 12th, he was sent to a textile mill for part time job and to a publication house after completing graduation. Once the author got absorbed as a sub editor, he was married off and expected to fend for himself, his immediate family as also his parents, who had aged by then.

In contrast, author’s four children live a life of considerable comfort and luxury. They study in private schools and colleges, the younger ones get dropped to school by car while the elder ones go to college riding their bikes. They want independent bedrooms, the latest of the gadgets and are in no hurry to start earning, till they are offered a good white collared job.

Many of us from middle class strata would immediately identify with the Author’s story as children of today are privileged indeed. I understand that in western world and US, College going students are expected to become financially independent by undertaking side jobs along with college going. But in India Papa’s daughters and Mama’s boys have all the privileges even before they attain financial independence.

The author ends the article on a rather sombre note. He doesn’t mind doing all this and more for his children to make up for his deprived childhood, but he dreads their care me not attitude and their ungrateful uttering , “ what special have you done for us that you expect us to remain obliged to you for our entire life and take care of you in your old age? “

I think we are a generation caught in the middle – trying to be good sons and daughters on one hand and good parents on the other, but probably failing in both the roles!

I want to be a good child to my parents

And a good parent to my child

But I am caught in the middle of nowhere

Getting kick in the rear from one and from other – the chide!

In one of my earlier blogs, I talked about all time favourite iconic movie Sholay and how that apart from six main protagonists, even the minor characters – the Jailor, Soorma Bhopali, Sambha, Kaalia etc also acquired the cult status. Such was the power of that movie.

Another very popular movie of yore that along with Aradhana catapulted Rajesh Khanna to superstardom was Anand. Directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee, the story about a terminal cancer patient Anand Sehgal, played by Khanna and his philosophy to live life fullest by spreading happiness, caught the nation’s imagination. Apart from Anand, the main protagonist, Dr Bhaskar, Dr Kulkarni, Moosa Bhai and Mother D’sa also became household names. A light hearted movie with a tragic end , Anand acquired cult status over the years.

Other day, the news of Ramesh Deo’s death, brought back the memories associated with Anand, in which Ramesh Deo played the character of Dr Kulkarni, with Seema Deo, his real life wife, playing his reel wife in the movie. And what an unassuming actor he was, completely melting into the character that he played. Villainous character evoked detestation, gentle role aroused empathy and an odd comical character the mirth! Where are the actors who neither possessed Greek god looks or gym toned muscular bodies and yet made deep and lasting impression in the hearts of cinema lovers.

He lived life to the fullest, dying at the ripe age of 93 after having fun with the family till the last moment. He might have been a minor actor, given the glitz and glamour of Bollywood, but the moment one reckons the variety of characters played by him with conviction and his contribution Marathi cinema and theatre, his stature rises multiple times.

His death creates a sense of déjà vu, for there seems to be a dearth of actors that looked person next door and played characters that we could readily identify with.

RIP Ramesh Deo.

I distinctly remember the year and the month – April 2012. I had just moved to the wholesale bank as Head CBO after spending 2 years in the unchartered territory of retail banking. As it was the promotion time, the then Head WBO was consolidating recommendations for eligible candidates from WBO comprising three verticals- CBO, TxBO and TO. That was the first time, I heard Jattender Dassi’s (JD) name. The then Head, TO was animatedly and passionately pushing JD’s name. Of course, I was pushing my own candidates’ names from CBO, but being very new to CBO and WBO, my voice didn’t carry the requisite weight. Though the results that year were not on the expected lines and I hardly had any major influence on the outcome, as aforementioned, for me it was a very strong first cut impressionistic view of JD’s virtues and qualities, for as a leader myself, I knew when would a leader go out of way in recommending a candidate! Of course, when I took over as Head WBO in 2015, I got the first whiff of what JD was all about and why his bosses rated him so high! Power house of knowledge, hard working, full of spirit of cooperation and camaraderie and yet humility personified that was my assessment of JD. Leave apart TO, for anything to do with WBO, I would run to him as my man Friday, like an administrative assistant and he never let me down, rather exceeded my expectation task after task. And this he did with perpetual smile and enthusiasm. I saw him as the future leader, which, given his versatility, could have been anything! But then he chose to rewrite his destiny and explore possibilities outside me, my vertical and my organisation. It was with heavy heart that I acceded to his request for severance. After all, what a boss is without a great team and how can a great team be formed without great talent like JD? I can only wish him a great journey ahead, which I am sure will be very eventful and rewarding. I will always have the satisfaction of having worked with the likes of JD, who helped me take my franchise to great heights! All the best JD! I shall follow your progress in life from the sidelines and likewise many other admirers of yours will also do the same and not necessarily from the sidelines for youngsters may have several milestones to cross before moving to sidelines!

All the best! Stay in touch and give us liberty to reach out to you, whenever we need you!

Sent from my iPhone

A few days ago, the thespian and one of the most respected Bollywood icons, Dilip Kumar left this world, losing a long fought battle with age related ailments. Yesterday, Birju Maharaj breathed his last and the country lost a legend of kathak dance and Hindustani music. Nightingale Lata Mangeshkar is fighting Covid related complications in Breach Candy hospital and the entire nation is praying for her early recovery.

If you take a realistic look, the above icons had long seized to be active. I don’t think Dilip acted in any movie in the 21st century. Birju Maharaj focused on his school Kalashram, but appeared rarely on the stage. I don’t think Lata has sung for a Bollywood film in the last few years. But there’s something about their stature, their significance in our lives that makes their presence amidst ourselves very comforting. Every time Dilip defeated death and returned home, it was an occasion to celebrate. Yesterday’s loss of Birju Maharaj almost appears to be a personal loss. And every day, we seem to be following Lata’s health bulletin with bated breath.

It’s a similar feeling about our parents. They may be old, infirm, battling ailments or leading a restricted life, but their presence is always comforting. That’s why the loss of a parent – either mother or father- seems so irreparable.

The above feeling just got evoked in my heart while penning the blog written in tribute to Birju Maharaj. Let’s cherish the presence of elderly people – our parents, other elderly relatives, icons from various walks of life, celebrate their achievements and contribution and treasure them. It’s most fulfilling .

Nothing is permanent in this world

Most uncertain is human life;

Cherish a person’s presence amidst us

Whether mother, father or wife!

But our parents and spouse are our own

Their lives for us is precious

There are so many other icons

Whose departure seems as much vicious!

Padma Vibhushan, kathak master and a multifaceted personality Birju Maharaj, as he was affectionately and famously known as, is no more. He leaves behind a very rich legacy through his life long devotion to this dancing form of Kathak, which for him was nothing but divine as also his numerous other contributions and disciples.

While no article or work can comprehensively cover a lifetime as rich as Birju Maharaj’s in a few lines or pages or even compendiums, I would like to narrate a personal incident. It was the year 1969, when my mother was taking to singing as profession as an upgrade from a mere hobby. She soon realised that to succeed professionally, she’d need guidance by a professional teacher or guru, as we call a music teacher to be ! In came a Guru, the way a Guru was expected to be – clad in bright white, starched kurta pyjama, chewing pan and grace and demeanour that protruded deep knowledge of the subject. Of course, how he dedicatedly trained my mother to make her a famous artist of her time will be a befitting theme for a separate blog, but here I would narrate an incident relating to Birju Maharaj, as aforesaid. Birju Maharaj was apparently a cousin of my mother’s Guru and my mother had a great yearning to meet the great man once she came to know of this relationship. I remember the day when there was a lot of commotion in our one room rented quarter upon being told of the visit by the great man , the legend Birju Maharaj himself. Those were not the days of mobile connectivity – even landlines were a rarity and a luxury. At the destined time, we were on the road near our home looking for a big swanky car that we were told was Maharaj’s mode of travel. Of course, after endless wait, we lost the hope and our Guruji felt very disheartened at being short changed by his cousin. It’s another story that our Guruji finally took his disciple, my mother, to Birju Maharaj’s house for his blessings and guidance to a new budding singer, an occasion that my mother cherishes till day. For me, it remained a big disappointment for not having met the legend from close quarters, who attained newer heights in the days that followed.

I couldn’t help but recollect this unique memory from my distant past, more than half a century old, now that the legend is no more!

Let’s pay our obeisance to this great exponent of kathak, a singer par excellence, a percussionist of high stature, an ambassador of Hindustani dance and music and above all a great human being! I bow my head to Birju Maharaj.

Received a beautiful post on WhatsApp from my friend on new year resolution. The post gives one a choice to be either a duck – who just quacks and makes no effort to get out of the rigmarole or an eagle – who soars high in search of new horizons!

Actually, it applies to all of us at all points of time. Let’s take the example of the grocery shop next door. First it’s business was impacted once megastores such as D’mart and Big Bazaar came into play and e tailers like Flipkart, Amazon and Gtofers seem to have put the final nail in their coffin. But who’s to be blamed? Did you ever find any difference between two neighbouring retail shops? Did any of these have any USP? Half of the things they generally don’t have, they just read out MRP and sell their stuff ( worst a few of them put their own stickers hiding the company MRP) and are seldom courteous! In contrast, superstore shelves are well stocked, offering choice to the buyers, they have attractive offers running (1+1 etc), their prices are discounted and they offer shopping in comfortable environs.

Kali peeli taxis and autos have seen their business getting severely dented thanks to Olas and Ubers of the world. Again who is to be blamed? These drivers were rude, discourteous, had rickety and dirty vehicles and were not reliable!

And this is true for all walks of life! Organisations are continuously evolving with newer strategies, business models and technology. Either we as part of the organisation can grumble about the good old days ( like a quacking duck) or re/up skill ourselves to match the company’s expectations and philosophy by soaring high ( like an eagle)!

Things are changing faster than ever before! Any new technology is likely to be replaced by a superior one in no time rendering the previous technology redundant. Let’s gear up ourselves and be ready to accept the challenge! We can just lament about the good old days but this lamentation will take us nowhere.

First promotion is always a very special event and I cherished the opportunity very fondly. A written test was followed by interview and then an endless wait for the final result. A colleague brought the news that the result was already declared and that all the successful candidates knew their names. I was crestfallen but being an eternal optimist, chose to await official declaration. And one fine morning, I received phone call from my controller, congratulating me on my elevation! it was like a bolt from the blue, albeit in a positive perspective.

Very early into my professional life, I was advised to finish my two years of rural stint. However, posted in the western most part of Rajasthan deep in the midst of desert and having a new bride that came from the greenest part of the country, going into further upcountry to a remote, dry and poorly connected village for two years gave me shudders. Little did I realise that I would be posted at one of most sought after rural branches located at the outskirts of a prominent town just 5 minutes drive from my residence. Two years just flew off in fun.

Just after marriage, there were times when towards the month ends, we found it a bit difficult to make the two ends meet, waiting anxiously for the salary day. Once, there was an emergency and the expenditure, albeit small, was unavoidable. Having never asked for money in my life, I was in deep despair, when my wife traced some money lying under the bed mattress! It was a godsend moment.

Locating to Kolkata was as per my wish, but getting my daughter admitted to a reputed school proved to be a nightmare. Everywhere we received the standard reply of no seat. As our hope ran low, the principal of the famous Loreto Kolkata, a catholic nun of Irish origin, took mercy to my wife’s crying and allotted us a seat against heavy odds.

Stuck up at Mumbai Central, with nowhere to go, not enough money to afford a flight and with my wife and infant daughter looking haplessly at me, the final reservation chart didn’t contain our names as our wait listed tickets were not confirmed. My wife went to a TT, who invited us to his compartment and allotted seats to us against cancellation without charging a penny that was not lawful.

At Kolkata, my first residence was in Deep South, quite far from my daughter’s school and my workplace. While travelling to office, I always dreamed about shifting close to a Kali temple that was on the way to my office. It was very central close to my office as well as my daughters school. It was also a very cosmopolitan location. One morning , I just received an offer for a house situated just 2 minutes walk from the temple. It was like the end of all our woes.

Somehow, Delhi posting was not to my taste and I wasn’t doing too well. On the day my boss was getting relieved for Mumbai, he proposed whether I would like to be in Mumbai, which was totally unexpected as I never imagined he liked me so much to take me along with him. And in a moment, my lifelong ambition of getting posted in the financial capital of the country was fulfilled.

At Mumbai, I always thought that any place beyond Andheri would be too testing, but rentals and property prices in Andheri were beyond me. I not only got a good flat on rent in Andheri, but am today proud owner of a beautiful property right in the heart of Andheri.

The above are only a few of the incidents that I readily recall. There would be many more that I might have taken for granted as something that I deserved or was destined to get, little realising that while I have been waiting for a miracle to change my life, all these small miracles that were bestowed upon me were either not gratefully acknowledged as small mercies or just taken for granted by me. Life itself is a miracle and so are all these small things that happen in our lives. However. we fail to notice or do not appreciate this miraculous mysterious inexplicable part of life. We wait for big miracles – big lottery, big success, big money, big opportunity etc – missing the joys of everyday miracles around us and to us!

The year 2021 started on a rather sour note for me personally. Having just recovered from Covid myself, I got the news of my octogenarian mother falling victim to the virus. And mind you, the second wave was very harsh on the senior citizens and was also highlighted by shortage of hospital beds and oxygen as also vital medicines. However, my mother defeated Corona. I and my wife received covishield vaccine and it seemed that the end of the virus was near. But it continued to wreak havoc and lockdowns were back. Several families lost their dear ones and we did not remain untouched.

On other fronts, India did well in olympics and Neeraj Chopra gladdened the hearts by winning gold. India, however, fared badly in T20 World Cup. Farmer agitation that started upon passing of three farm bills came to a thankful end towards the end of the year. The economy started recovery in tandem with recession of coronavirus, but towards the end, a new variant, omicron has raised its ugly head causing renewed uncertainty.

I think, one thing is eminently clear. The mankind must learn from pandemic and collectively try to make this world a better, safer and more liveable place. Otherwise, we may not use destructive weapons on each other, but nature will destroy us.

As per a Scottish proverb, “if wishes were horses, the beggars would ride“, meaning if wishing could make things happen, then even the most destitute people would have everything they wanted.

In the extant case, the wish Is eradication of coronavirus from the face of this earth and beggars are all of us, who want to ride this horse of coronavirus obliteration.

Let’s not lose hope – in our perseverance, our medical fraternity and most of all in the lord almighty. We shall overcome this and with this hope, let’s welcome the brand new year 2022.

Looking behind at the two years of pandemic and the uncertainty arising out of rapid spread of omicron, it’s difficult to make any resolution for 2022. We also know resolutions often fail. Let’s not make any resolution, but promise ourselves that we shall meticulously follow the Covid protocols to defeat this virus within the first few months of 2022 and we, the beggars, would then ride horses for a joyous life ahead!

Happy new year 2022.