To the generation growing up in the 1960s & 70s, Ameen Sayani was the name that belonged to that unmistakable voice on the Radio (& countless shows) and captivated hearts across the country and continued for many decades till the winds of change took over the music world & his incomparable telling style sadly became a lost art !

So when around 2015, “the man with a golden voice” decided to return to radio for a second innings, it seemed like happy days were here again for music lovers like us. Ameen Sayani was then heard on Radio City 91.1 FM in progs. for which he had tweaked some of his old interviews and was presenting them with added research and more information. After tuning in to one such radio prog. I, who was by then a retired banker, sent him an e mail commending the choice of the singer and songs.

To my utter delight, the 84 year old announcer par excellence, promptly replied to me beautifully but briefly. I reproduce below for those who may find it interesting :

“Dear  Mr. Somnath Sinha,

Thank you for your wonderful letter. The entire interview featuring Kishore’s tribute to Burman Dada will be played in “SKSKM” on 26/08/2015. But don’t miss any prog. in between.  Best wishes. Ameen Sayani.

 P.S. I was a very close friend and associate of Bank of Baroda, Bombay – for many years, until my health started declining. “

My E-mail sent to Ameen Sayani Saheb is also reproduced below for context :

“ Respected Mr. Ameen Sayani ,

I am one of the thousands of avid listeners of your popular radio programmes and am responding to the lovely tribute that you did , as usual so effortlessly, on FM this afternoon i.e on 21^st July, on the incomparable legend that was, Kishore Kumar  ! It was so utterly spellbinding to hear some lesser known gems from the Kishore magic box like “Jin Rato Ki Bhor Nahi Hai … “ from “Door Gagan Ki Chaon Mein “ and the lovable “ Munna Bada Pyara … “ which we sing to our 8 month old grand-daughter !

Sir, I am a retired bank officer of Bank of Baroda but for us, you have been a part of growing up and our obsession with film songs came largely through Binaca Geet Mala on Radio Ceylon and your inimitable style which remains ageless. You will remain an idol and inspiration to millions of Indians all over the world for your charming grace that still binds us to priceless wealth of vintage Hindi Film Music !”

Later, on few occasions, we found Ameen Saheb in the audience, quietly catching up on plays at theatres in Mumbai, then much advanced in years, yet so dignified and humble. Today, an era of most endearing & entertaining style of anchoring ended but  it stays alive in hearts of music lovers with that inimitable call ‘Bahno aur Bhaiyon !!’      

In this era and age, they don’t have too many people as their cheer leaders, having been overshadowed by their versatile better halves, turned ‘Mater’s Incomparable’. However, of late, the less heard Dads and Fathers are making a remarkable comeback of sorts. They are being publicly hailed as ‘heroes’ by none other than their illustrious sons and daughters who’ve made a mark in their lives.

On the landmark day as Indian off-spin wizard, Ashwin achieved the huge milestone of 500 Test wickets, he dedicated the achievement to his Dad, Ravi Chandran for being his driving force. And just a little earlier, a sublimely gifted batter from Mumbai, Sarfaraz was making his debut in Test Cricket (against England) and emotional pics of his Father hugging his son, realizing his long cherished dream, got splashed all over social media ! Yet another big super-star on the Indian Cricket scene, Shubman Gill, spoke about his father’s contribution to his growth and success in a recent post match interview.

It’s not just in Cricket, that the Dads have earned a good name for themselves. On prime time TV news, great Ustad Zakir Husain, fresh from winning the Grammy Awards, paid rich tributes to Father, table maestro, Allah Rakha, along with many other legends of the rich Indian classical music tradition. Celebrated Bollywood icon Big B, never misses a chance to recite Father, Harivansh Rai Bachan ji’s poems. A budding actor, Baabil is desperately trying to fill the giant shoes of his late Dad, superb actor, Irfan Khan.

Also, it’s not only the rich and famous have had Dads who deserved high praise, though many have been responsible for pushing their prodigies to greatness. One of my friends had confided that she’d appeared and cracked the UPSC exams (IAS) only to appease her Father. My brother (cousin) aced in Badminton and played for his State, but after hours of backbreaking practice on courts. In fact, all families have their ‘Daddy’ stories !

Quintessentially, the Dads come in various types and shades, as do all species, but have certain common features. They seem preoccupied, eternally busy with work and office calls, tend to forget birthdays of important people, don’t have great dress sense, make embarrassing faux pas, cannot haggle with vendors and are rarely emotional enough. In a kind of nature’s balance, redoubtable Mothers & Moms make up for these deficiencies.

Despite their faults, Dads who aren’t known to get along famously with their sons (who prefer to be different and upbeat), are favorites with daughters for their unflappable coolness quotient, utter generosity and ability to overlook minor shortcomings in others. Moms may feel that’s ‘sparing the rod and spoiling..’ but Dads of today are not only liberally patient and can accept they too were ‘wild’ in their youth ! Much has been said, Dads are rocks, guides, inspiration. So it’s easy to be a Father, but difficult to be a Dad !  

Most of modern lovers of the game of cricket are hooked on to the shorter limited overs version (One-day and T20) for its high octane action, thrills & entertainment where one team can emerge victorious, by thinnest margins – on a last ball hit or even in a suspenseful ‘edge of seat’ Super Over ! In all this, the classical five day Test Match has understandably lost its charm.

However, like retro fashions of the earlier era make a comeback from time to time albeit in altered avtaars, Test Cricket seems to have received a fresh lease of life. The firebrand ‘Bazball’ style of play that’s now been adopted by the English Team is finding favour with other teams, for the massive excitement it generates with it’s strong positive intent at providing great contests between players of incredible skills and courage that sets no limits.

Of the most famous terms associated with Cricket is that it’s ‘a game of glorious uncertainties’. Nothing is for granted with its ‘outrageous swings of fortune’ as the Bard would’ve said. As it’s played outdoors, it might be bright sunshine the first day, but may turn overcast the next and playing conditions change as 22 yards strip, called the ‘pitch’, docile the first day & good for batters, starts turning from second day to delight of the spinners.

Even consistent performers can lose their form suddenly at start of a game and those out of form earlier may rediscover it & run into a ‘purple patch’ where they can do no wrong. A brilliant innings by one can exhort others to keep up the tempo while on the fielding side, an incredible catch or run out of a batter going great guns, can change the course of the match. That’s why it’s also famously said ‘the match isn’t over till the last ball is bowled’ !

That said, to students of the game it has such a familiar ring to the vagaries of life where dark clouds gathered above can suddenly clear with emerging rays of sunshine and vice versa. Good times, bad times come for everyone yet they aren’t there for keeps. Cricket teaches us ‘it’s not game over’ until you’ve ‘lost’ it in the mind. Skill sets have to be constantly honed to meet the challenges but luck will play its part too ! Above all it’s a team game and we only excel in life, when we play with and for the success of others too !

For most senior folks despite all the worldly wisdom accumulated with the mop of grey hair, one definitive answer eludes them. From times immemorial, among the FAQs that defy the right responses is one relating to inexplicable emotion that rules the affairs of the heart, making people behave strangely under its spell. Men and women over the ages from different backgrounds, groups and cultures have expressed divided opinions on what it’s all about.

Writers, lyricists and poets have verbally painted the most fascinatingly pristine idyllic pictures around it. It’s a truly many splendoured thing they say, irrational and not logically designed to function smoothly, such that it’s even considered as being ‘blind’ at times. For the first timers, ‘love’ when it hits them is that uncanny feeling that’s quite indescribable ! Innumerable Hindi films, songs and ghazals that have formed an integral part of film’s storylines, adding socio-cultural value, have the word ‘pyaar’ imbedded somewhere. Inspiration was drawn from trials and tribulations of legendary pairs like Romeo-Juliet, Shiri-Farhad, Heer-Raanjha, Devdas-Paro. Shakespeare describes in his plays ‘the course of true love never did run smooth’ but also ‘What’s mine is yours, and what is yours is mine’ ! 

Let’s also look at what many great wits and actors had to say about ‘love’. From the flippant ‘Love is sharing your popcorn’ (Charles Schultz), and ‘Love is being stupid together’ (Paul Valery) to the funny ones like ‘Love is something sent from heaven to worry hell out of you.” (Dolly Parton), ‘Gravitation isn’t responsible for people falling in love’ (Albert Einstein) or ‘Love is a temporary insanity, curable by marriage’ (Ambrose Bierce) to the profound ‘There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness.’ (Friedrich Nietzsche). No wonder the Gen X, Y, Z are confused about how to deal with this emotion.

We had in the 1970s seen a film called ‘Love Story’ which had a famous line ‘Love means never having to say sorry’. Later we had singer John Lennon say ‘Love means having to say you’re sorry every fifteen minutes.’ Thankfully, we are now not in competition in this field but we still feel, if there’s life there must be love !

Today we are asking ourselves to rediscover our old heritage and culture in embracing the virtues of dharma, courage, patience, compassion, sacrifice and obedience embodied in Lord Ram, our Deity but sometimes we have in our families, those who lived their life with these very principles but without any pretensions or claims to greatness.

Sameer Kumar Mitra, also called ‘Niluda’ and ‘Boromama’, left Harinavi, his home of many decades in  Kolkata city, for his heavenly abode this Monday, after a valiant but quiet struggle with advancing years but which was a part of his indomitable persona. To all who came to know him at any stage, he was an gentle, soft spoken person with extraordinary qualities. An Engineer in the Indian Railways he served with brilliance and devotion. However, without achieving success in its highly conventional materialistic sense and in terms of very high positions, he leaves a legacy of human values of the highest order.

He gained love and respect and despite facing the biggest personal setbacks in life, he filled his niche and accomplished his tasks like a banyan tree that takes the heat but gives protection. He leaves the world better than he found it, looking for the best in others and gave the best he had in the gentlest of ways .

There are countless memories we treasure of an Uncle like Boromama. In him we found a role model & also the wonder, the joy and the tender moments of the ‘Mamar Barir Apdaar’ and affection in such an idyllic place like Harinavi. Boromama & Maima attended our wedding in 1980 and he had encouraging words for me ‘You married a wonderful girl, just be kind and gentle with her’.

Mortality is inevitable. When a man has done what he considers his duty to his people and family, he can rest in peace. We all know he made that effort, and that is why he will sleep for eternity. We’ll miss you, Boromama !.

PS  : Picture is of our Dad (left) and Boromama (Right) in their prime !

There are some famous lines from Tennyson’s poem ‘Brook’ which as is the wont of eloquent writers on cricket, could be rephrased to something like ‘batsmen may come & batsmen may go but his batting style lives on forever..’ As  GR Vishwanath, reticent and unassuming master batter of the 1970s turns 75 today, many seniors would stand up from drawing room seats to applaud his genius & give an arm to see one of his innings.

In India and over the ages, everyone aspires to be a good (if not great) cricketer in his growing up years and most of our time (outside of evenings doing homework) was spent in perfecting our cricketing shots in the parks/fields, albeit with tennis balls. I was just about 15 and a cricket addict by then, when in Nov, 1969, Vishy made his Test debut in Kanpur against the strong Aussies, which I witnessed with my cricket loving Dad (who’s first name was also Vishwanath but spelt with a ‘B’ !). Vishy got nervous and failed to disturb the scorers in the first innings but came up with such a scintillating 137 in the second innings, that we were all agog, hailing the arrival of a new batting sensation. It gave short guys huge reassurance to see the diminutive Vishy square cut the fiercest pace bowlers to the fence.

Though Indian cricket has seen batting iconic batting legends who rewrote the records ( Gavaskar, Tendulkar, Dravid and Virat Kohli immediately come to mind), what made ‘Vishy’ so special was his sheer class which made him stand out that even the legendary Kapil called him his ‘First Hero’ and bro-in-law, Sunny ji rates him as one of the all time greats to have played the game. His trademark square cuts, late cuts, drives and wristy strokes became a text-book rendition by a classical batting maestro and emulated by all those who followed him. It was said that when Vishy was at the crease and in full flow, India stood a chance of winning the match.

While Vishy’s batting attracted a legion of fans, there was a humane and gentle side to the man who’s modesty was as legendary as his batting prowess. While captaining the Indian side,  he once called a batsman back since he felt he wasn’t out ! Not known for his oratory skills, with bat in hand he made it all look like poetry in motion. As purists will say, there will be batters of all kinds but may never be as classy as ‘Vishy’ ! Written much later his autobiography aptly titled ‘Wrist Assured’ is treasured by cricket lovers.

Nothing surprises one today in a scenario that’s charged with allegations and rebuttals that come, even in most personal relationships that have gone sour ! If the fracas involves celebrities, unconfirmed reports get splashed in the social media and there’s a lot in stake in terms of tarnished reputations and emotive claims made. At times it’s the price of having fame and wealth.

It can be convincingly argued that famous stars (cricketers are in the firing line what with the domestic problems being faced by Shami and Shikar) are soft targets and find it tough to publicly retaliate given their status and also political or business affiliations they have, that may affect their image !   

As per reports, Team India’s sought after all-rounder refuted the allegations leveled by his father, who reportedly accused the cricketer’s wife of creating differences in the family. He called his father’s interview with a daily “scripted” and has said it was an attempt to “tarnish” his wife image !

Again reportedly, the father had been interviewed by a local paper in which he said he has ‘no relation whatsoever with his son or his wife’. While the saga unfolding with a celebrated and popular star-cricketer is unfortunate, the fact remains that he has risen from humble beginnings and family does play a role in successful careers of achievers. Moving on and forgetting the past may be sad and not reflect well on him.

Today, this story would look quite commonplace if he was just an ordinary working person without any big credentials. The joint family structure has been slowly falling apart with the nuclear set-up and unfettered freedom in life that young folks aim for & has now become standard practice, with the seniors mostly adjusting to it all ! When it’s in the public domain, there are strings and emotive elements involved. The star player must face it well ! 

One of the traits of the Millennial and the Gen Z ( include X and Y too ) is their gradual breakaway from the literary activities like ‘writing’ and ‘reading’, which are now mainly confined to academic exercises prescribed in school curriculum. From there being no technology in realm of ‘chalk and talk’ teaching methods in days of yore, predominance of app-based studies has brought a sea-change in the way young students think and act.

Most friends, associates and peers from our time of 1970s, would recall our penchant for visiting libraries & of borrowing books and notes from friends and even gifting a perfect ‘classic’ novel to someone who was precious ! How could then films be left behind ? In a famous old Lucknow based movie ‘Mere Mehboob’ (1963), the young lead pair collide, their books lie scattered on the college hallway – it’s quintessentially ‘love at first sight’ !

Having said that, paradoxically the book-stores with dwindling business and few buyers of books and literature lovers left till just few years back, have suddenly got a new lease of life with the emergence of writers of all genres. Today anyone can think of becoming a popular pulp fiction writer or ace biographer, an author or a poet with a little talent for wordplay and lucid expression, unlimited access to information on the public domain for drawing on ideas & publishers, not fussy about quality of writing or of plagiarism !

The urge that our famed celebrities (including politicians, statesmen, leaders, business honchos, sportsmen and yes, superstars !) have to let their life (success) stories be told through their memoirs and autobiographies (mostly ghost written) has flavours to it – they draw on people’s fascination to know about their private lives, struggles, setbacks & victories but many are written to set the record straight and give a new twist to accepted facts. A  few like the iconic Big ‘B’ have yet not relented to being chronicled into a book !    

Also, it seems we don’t really know our gen-next and their proclivities that well. My Son and Daughter in law are always very particular about birthday gifts they must shower us with. Initially their choices came as surprises to us ! In the last few years they’ve gifted me beautiful books starting with a bound copy of ‘Gone With the Wind’ and compilation of  ‘World’s Greatest Speeches’! A way of expressing appreciation for our love for books !         

This piece is meant for cricket aficionados who follow the nuances of great stroke-play by the legends that eloquent commentators of yore described as ‘poetry in motion’ ! One of the most elegant shots in the book is the classic ’cover drive’. It’s the stroke on the cricket ball through the covers (field position) with well-timed wristwork and conventional movement of the front foot toward the pitch of a delivery aimed at or outside the off stump.

As a veteran cricket buff, I often wondered what’s it with left handers and glorious cover drives they could caress through the off side so effortlessly ! Purists will recall left hand batting legends Neil Harvey (Australia), David Gower (England), Brian Lara (West Indies) and Kumar Sangakkara (Sri Lanka) as finest exponents to demonstrate the elegance of the cover drive. There may be others but here it’s all about classiness and not brute power.

From the coaching point of view, batsmen able to master the cover drive are usually given high praise because of the shot’s difficulty in execution and requirement of exquisite timing of the ball. When played to perfection, the cover drive comprises a batsman’s seemingly effortless wielding of the blade in a downward trajectory through the off side, the cricket ball gliding through infielders in the covers at pace toward the boundary at deep cover.

Most left handers seem to have a penchant for this particular shot. Some of my finest cricketing memories of mid 1990s was ‘Dada’ Sourav Ganguly’s  perfection of the shot that earned him the iconic sobriquet ‘God of Offside’ from none other than Rahul Dravid, his great team-mate. An illustrious  lefty from the same era was Yuvraj Singh and a magnificent off-side player. In contemporary cricket, dominated by white-balls, young Yash Jaiswal’s & Axar Patel’s cover driving are delectably special and in text book style. King Kohli is still regarded as the best in business but he bats right-handed.

Times change and so do our perceptions as we watch some huge talent emerging from different quarters. My current favorite is none other than the poster girl of women’s cricket in India, Smriti Mandhana, so elegant as she steps out to hit a six on the off side, reminiscent of Dada’s panache ! 

We are always ready for a long weekend getaway from Amchi Mumbai but have now outgrown the allure of regular trips to popular close destinations Pune, Lonavala, Alibagh etc. Rather, whenever there’s a chance we love to visit the  charming, culturally vibrant city of Vadodara for it has amazing rail connectivity with Mumbai 24×7, that’s just a six hour train journey ! 

More importantly, it has been home-city for many decades to my eldest sister Bijoya Di and our late Jamai Babu, Col. Baksi, as their family of five had decided to settle there. We often say in jest to our Didi that she is now a bonafide ‘Gujju’ who pursued an illustrious career there, receiving fame and recognition. Over the years we’ve been privy to famed hospitality of the Baksi family comprising of wonderful nephew, nieces, grandchildren.

This time our visit was for the milestone 75th birthday of Bijoya Di, which was celebrated by her children in a glittering luncheon meet with grand bon-homie with close friends and colleagues. It was sheer delight meeting & reconnecting with genteel Baroda ‘vasis’, always so warm & welcoming. This visit also included a day’s getaway to a unique  home-stay/resort about one hour’s drive from my sister’s house in New Sama Road.

Known as ‘Misriote Farms’ on sprawling open space, it is a place where one can meet nature in pristine serenity away from the city’s hustle bustle. Located on banks of the Mahi River, 20 kms from Vadodara city, ‘Misriote’ has very idyllic surroundings, lush greenery, excellent facilities and fun activities for a comfortable overnight stay (or more) and to have repose & to rejuvenate. It was a unique experience, which we will always cherish. 

Needless to say, every visit of ours to Vadodara and our Didi’s home is memorable and itself a treat, that makes us do ‘Wapsis’ again and again.