Yaadon Ke Phool – A Tribute to Mummyji
Morning of Sunday, 12th Nov, time quarter
past nine, I along with Meena, was on
drive from Borivali to Colaba for the weekly US Club tambola, when my
mobile buzzed. I pulled the car to the road side and as I put the instrument to my ears, my
Heart sank. My brother Surinder from Ambala informed me sobbing that Mom had
expired. Immediately back-tracked home. Informed Ravi bhai of the tragedy. His
immediate reponse after consoling me was termination of the ongoing Fest. I
said,”Bhai the show has to go on. Mom wont be happy, if you terminate the Fest”.
Ravi bhai had no choice. At 3.40 pm self
and Meena along with Aakash lifted off
from Mumbai airport
for Delhi, followed by the rest of journey by OLA to reach destination by about midnight the same day. Hugged younger brother
Surinder, sister Anusuya, brother-in-law Rameshwar, Masi Neelam, Mausa Capt
Tribhuvan Bali, Uncle Ravi Dutta, Rita Aunty, Mama PV Vaid and cousins Ashvin Dutta,
Madhu Dutta, Bittu and all gathered
relatives, wept with them and spent some time with Mom, lying in the
casket. I distinctly remember her
cheerful face when I last saw
her off at our Defence colony
Jamnagar home on 26th Oct
recently. Hugged her twice before
boarding the car, even as she slipped some 500s in my palm for Aakash
and Anuj, who were back home in Mumbai. Once again I had come out of the car
and hugged her yet again. She kept smiling as we drove off, bidding good-bye to
Mom, Surinder and Neelam….And now she was lying absolutely still….My tear flood
gates refused to shut…Through my tears I glanced up the roof, as I was sure of
her presence around us.
God created Man or vice-versa is
debatable, albeit with unambiguous certainty we all accept that since
He could not be omnipresent, he created mothers. It is difficult to define the word
"Mother". She is an irreplaceable person in a child's life.... kind,
compassionate, caring and wise who guides her child to become the best person
he/she can be. Dosto, Kya aap
jante hain ki Maa, bhagwan se badh kar kyun hai ? Kyun ki bhagwan hamare naseeb
mein sukh aur dukh dono de kar bhejte hain, Lekin hamaari Maa hamein kewal
Sukhi hi dekhna chahti hai……Sach dosto, is Duniya mein yadi kuchh bhi anmol
hai, toh who hai Maa ki Mamta, Maa ka pyar. Maa ke Aanchal ka mahatva wohi jaan
sakta hai jisne Maa ko kho diya ho.
Crafting an Obituary of one’s own Mother is the most horrendous,
unfortunate and tragic task. Nevertheless, the best tribute that one can pay to
a near and dear one is to remember their good times with moist eyes. Flashes
of the
earliest footprints of my
life transport me, in a train to
Hardwar via Roorkie in company of my
Mother, Daadiji and Chachaji. The next
flash is my Chachaji chucking me up in the air and dipping me in the Ganges, even as I gasped
for a breath. My Mom told me that I was
2 years old then, and my Daadiji reprimanded my uncle for this act. There-after, I vividly remember my Life as a Kid three years on in Mustafabad,
that was once a sleepy little village near Jagadhari. I used to see an old man
who used to walk every morning and come and feed the ant hill outside my house
with wheat flour...I used to see a cow, triggered by its biological clock, come
and stand in front of our house in the morning, afternoon and evening, as my
mother used to make the first Roti and feed it to her...I used to see villagers
feeding the fishes with tiny bits of dough and sparrows/ pigeons with grains...
Now, such acts of micro generosity may seem utterly negligible, in the grand
scheme of the mega universe, but these
are the acts that India could truly be
proud of. When my Mom used to ignite up
the Kerosene stove every morning, I used to sit beside and stare at the light
blue flame of the stove and ask her “Doesn’t it look like the tail of the hawai
jahaz”. My Dad was an airman posted in AF Ambala those days, and indeed the
seeds of my later profession had been sown and flamed in my mind by my
dear Mother. Both of us used to run out
to watch the jet aircrafts zooming past overhead.
One
episode that I vividly recall : Year
1962, I was about 4. My Dad had come on leave
and handed over a Rs 100/ note to my Grandma (half his monthly salary).
Grandma handed that note me and said, “Daman, Ja Ma
nu de aa” …What
little Raj understood “Ja Har-nam
nu de aa” … He danced all the way to Harnam’s
shop,( just as he was sent often by his grandma to fetch small household
items from harnam) to hand him over the note. The shopkeeper in turn gave him a
small toffee. Back home when the loss of note was discovered all hell went
loose. All three homed on to little Raj. Raj uttered “Harnam”….Dad took him in
tow to the shopkeeper. The shopkeeper
declined …Both returned home gloomy faced... Poor Raj was shouted upon by Dad and Grandma. Mom
took Raj to Harnam’s shop once again,
sure that the kid wouldn’t have lied. The shopkeeper refused again. She pleaded with Harnam,
and swore on his family to come
clear, to prevent a mahabharat at our home. Harnam’s soul
woke up, and he handed over the 100 note to lill Raj’s Mom….Mom, oh Mom, only you could have saved
that day for me !!
When my Dad came on next leave he appeared to be happy and had decided
to take us to AF stn Poona (now Pune), where he had then been posted ( 6 Sqn),
on my Mom’s insistence, for our future’s sake ....We all (me, my younger
brother and sister) were very excited…But, still the 5 yr old Chhota Raj was
sad…Sad for his Mataji who would be left alone in that Big house…But she
consoled us, “Don’t worry, I am going to Jammu for a few days to my Eldest son
on summer vacations and shall come to Poona too” …. It was a tearful farewell
to Mustafabad and my 'Mataji', who had come to see us off at the station… Sadly
she breathed her last in Jammu, soon after we had left the village.
We kids grew up under Mom’s umbrella as Dad was a bit strict. Dad’s
transfers took us to Halwara, Tambaram, Jamnagar, Jullundhar (from where I
joined the Navy and got detached), Kalaikunda, Guwahati and finally Jamnagar,
where my parents decided to build a home in 1990 and settle down.
My
Mom had
been a very respectful daughter, devoted wife and an affectionate Mother. She was pleasant, lively, full of
compassion and empathy for everyone. She maneuvered all her children onto the
righteous path and was instrumental in steering their careers and settling them. After the
unfortunate and untimely demise of her husband in 1997, She had been the sole guiding force of the
family. She was a doting grand-mother of five grand children (Aakash, Anuj,
Shreshtha, Bhagyashri and Muskan). Of late subsequent to the demise of her second
son, Jitender (a Hydrologist in Gujarat Govt), two yrs ago, she had not been
keeping good health and last year she
suffered a mild Heart-failure and was treated at MH
CTC- Pune, where all her children looked after her. Recently she had come with her younger son
Surinder for a relative’s marriage at
Ambala Cantt and was staying with her
Daughter. On the morning of 12 Nov, she felt a bit uneasy due to chest
congestion and was getting ready to be taken to MH, but unfortunately she
breathed her last at about 0915 hrs.
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I was
overwhelmed to read Ravi Bhai’s poetry titled ‘Mere Chhote ne bhi Maa ko kho
diya’ The lines evolved straight from
Ravi’s heart as he too had lost his dear
Mom and YKDN’s Mataji a few days ago. The emotive poetry enabled me to
drop some more tears to make me stronger.
दिल तड़प उठा फिर से, माँ की सुनके खबर,
फिर से टूट पढ़ा है प्याला – ए – सबर I
फिर से टूट पढ़ा है प्याला – ए – सबर I
उन्हीं के आँचल में एहसास था जन्नत का,
फ़िज़ायों की ताज़गी, उन्ही का था असर I
फ़िज़ायों की ताज़गी, उन्ही का था असर I
रोतो को मुस्कराना उन्ही ने था सिखाया,
चलने का हौंसला दिया, उनकी ही थी डगर I
चलने का हौंसला दिया, उनकी ही थी डगर I
उनकी पकी चीज़ का स्वाद ही अलग था,
हर लम्हा उनके साथ प्यार की थी नज़र I
हर लम्हा उनके साथ प्यार की थी नज़र I
राज दत्ता और हमारी माँ नहीं है अलग,
उन्हीं के आँचल में था हमारा भी स्वर्ग I
उन्हीं के आँचल में था हमारा भी स्वर्ग I
ख़ाक को ख़ाक से मिल जाना है, कहते हैं,
पर फिर भी रह जाती है यादों की अगर I
पर फिर भी रह जाती है यादों की अगर I
राज, हम सब उदास हैं माँ के बिछड़ने से,
हमारी खुशियां और ग़म बंधे हैं ज़िन्दगी भर I
हमारी खुशियां और ग़म बंधे हैं ज़िन्दगी भर I
प्रभु, इस घड़ी में राज का हाथ थामे रहना,
हाथ थामने वाला उठ के चल दिया आपके शहर I
हाथ थामने वाला उठ के चल दिया आपके शहर I
I dropped a few more
tears when I read sentimental lines by Cdr Madanlal on my FB page.
RAJ uth dekh - ek nayaa sitaara
nikalla hai aasmaan mein
Maan ke challe jaane ke baad
yeh hi to dikhaaye ga raasata tujh ko
--
aansu ab yehi ponchhe ga tere
dillaassa ab yeh de ga tujh ko
moond kar apni aankhein - jab bhi dekhe ga
sahi raasta yeh hi dikhaaye ga tujh ko
---
pahale to dekhati thi maan teri
jab tu saamane aata tha
ab yeh hi dekhe ga tujhe har waqat
aur dil tera ab yeh hi behllaaye ga
----
Na maa na MADAN, na koyi saath ho ga tere
ab yeh hi sittaarra har jagga kaam aaye ga tere
nikalla hai aasmaan mein
Maan ke challe jaane ke baad
yeh hi to dikhaaye ga raasata tujh ko
--
aansu ab yehi ponchhe ga tere
dillaassa ab yeh de ga tujh ko
moond kar apni aankhein - jab bhi dekhe ga
sahi raasta yeh hi dikhaaye ga tujh ko
---
pahale to dekhati thi maan teri
jab tu saamane aata tha
ab yeh hi dekhe ga tujhe har waqat
aur dil tera ab yeh hi behllaaye ga
----
Na maa na MADAN, na koyi saath ho ga tere
ab yeh hi sittaarra har jagga kaam aaye ga tere
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On the sad
occasion, I would like to present a Ghazal by Jagjit Singh that exhibits a lot
of pain, evident from the fact that he had lost his 21 yr old son in a car
tragedy. This video is a tribute to my Dad, Mom and Jati bhai. Amen !
On the sad occasion, I would like to present a song from the movie Khalnayak,
Lyricist Anand Bakshi, Singer Jagjit Singh, Music composer- LP. even as I pray for the noble Soul of my Mom to rest in peace in the Heavens above and
continue to bless us all. I selected this song as the Lyrics of the song hit me
hard. Being a fauji and away from home for 35 long years, I could not take care
of my Mom, as much as I could have, except for the intervening leave periods.
Tributes with this emotive song by Jagjit Singh, to the humble Soul.
KOI LAUTA DE MERE BEETE HUYE DIN
1) MY BEAUTIFUL ADORABLE MOTHER
2) ANUSUYA, SRESHTHA WITH MOTHER
3) JATI, MOTHER AND ME
4) KAKA WITH MOTHER
5) MOTHER, ME & DADDY
1) MY BEAUTIFUL ADORABLE MOTHER
2) ANUSUYA, SRESHTHA WITH MOTHER
3) JATI, MOTHER AND ME
4) KAKA WITH MOTHER
5) MOTHER, ME & DADDY
