On 20^th, July, 1969. two US Astronauts, Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin, had become the first humans ever to land on another galactic body, the moon. A phenomenally historic achievement for the entire world and what Armstrong had then reportedly said, became a most famous quote ‘One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind’ !

Based on this huge event, American singer ‘Lobo’, sang a profound song written by John Stewart from the album ‘Just a Singer’ which was released in 1974. Composed fifty years ago, the words of the song has as much relevance to the prevailing hostilities in today’s world, fraught with pockets of poverty, distress and deprivation and on-going threats to the global environment and it’s balance and to peace and harmony across all  the people.

The song is still a huge hit with those who love the gentle melodies of the golden 70-80s. Here are the lyrics of one of Lobo’s most soulful songs, that has an ageless quality to it. When we try to sing it, we’re magically transported back to our good old College days :

‘Black boy in Chicago, Playin’ in the street

Not enough to wear, Not near enough to eat

But don’t you know he saw it, On that July afternoon

Saw a man named Armstrong, Walk upon the moon

Young girl in Calcutta, Barely eight years old

The flies that swarm the marketplace, Will see she don’t grow old

But don’t you know she heard it, On a July afternoon

Heard a man named Armstrong, Walk upon the moon

Rivers getting dirty, The wind is getting bad

War and hate are killing off, The only earth we have

But the whole world stopped to watch it, On that July afternoon

Watched a man named Armstrong, Walk upon the moon

And I wonder if a long time ago, Somewhere in the Universe

They watched a man named Adam, Walk upon the earth’

It’s unfortunate that the diligent, hard working ‘washing machine’ has today acquired a negative ‘political’ connotation with aspersions on the yeoman services it’s rendering. While other utilities have been spared the heat of the conundrums in TV prime time debates, the ‘washing machine’ has been subject to ridicule by the political parties against the opponents, rightly or otherwise. In ‘Macbeth’, the Bard had also said ‘All the perfumes of Arabia, won’t sweeten..’. But back then washing machines didn’t exist !  

However, let’s get to basics and the difference this wonderful item makes to our lives, since so far it’s greatness has been ignored except when it stops working (like you know who !). In fact, I’m surprised that in school we knew about great inventors, Bell, Edison, Franklin etc. but we weren’t aware that James King in 1851 created the first washing machine to use a drum, Hamilton Smith in 1858 patented a rotary version, and in 1868 Thomas Bradford, a British inventor, created a commercially successful machine that resembles the modern device.

Being born in the era of 50-60s and long before ‘W-M’ came into our lives in India, I recall what cleaning the large joint family’s laundry was like then. It demanded hot water, strong soap and washboards, paddles or plungers. It was backbreaking labor, mostly performed by our women. There was an old family ‘dhobi’ who’d take ‘chaddars’ for washing & ironing, and there were few ‘dry cleaning’ shops for the affluent. When our two Sons started going to school, there was the added pressure of keeping their uniforms spotless & devoid of stains, never mind ‘daag dhabbas’ from school fights.

In the 70s also came the competitive edge in middle class families, with ad campaigns of washing powders asking ‘Uski Kameez Zyada Safed Kyon’. White sari clad ‘Lalitaji’ became a household name selling ‘Surf Excel’ and another big success story was of ‘Nirma’ soap ! Finally, we got our first W-M sometime in the 1990s but over the years, the brands have changed for us. Basic to automatic to higher end ones with dryers, all available now !   

Well-trained, domesticated men know that washing ‘kapdas’ isn’t simply dumping clothes in the W-M tub. For one, they first have to learn how to operate the machine – putting timer, mixing water, adding right amount of soap, running dryer are processes to be followed. Not all our apparels can be machine wasted, some need gentle hand wash with good soap ! The job is over only after clothes are put up for drying & later folded & pressed … 

In 1980s, I’d heard a line (from a Prestige Cooker ad) ‘Joh karte hain Patni se pyaar, woh kaise kare inkaar’. The intent should be to liberate the home-makers from the daily back-breaking, time-consuming drudgery of multi-farious house-keeping jobs by offering to humbly assist in some ways. Like the tireless ‘W-M’ does, let’s try to be useful at home, noiselessly !

For those whom we love we pray for their long life, sound health and well-being that’s filled with happiness, contentment and tranquility. Conventionally we wish our seniors and peers that they live to be a centenarian. The standard blessing from our elders has been ‘Jeete Raho and Sau Saal Jiyo !’ As Sunnyji said ‘a century is a century, whatever the conditions were’ and such an innings is worthy of applause ! While it’s creditable on a cricket field if one reaches that coveted score but it is indeed a major milestone in anyone’s life when one turns 75 !

There was a time about five decades ago when septuagenarians (those between ages 70 to 79) were thought of as quite elderly, frail and needing looking after due to failing health conditions. Today, there’s a sea-change in societal attitudes towards them (thanks to transformed life-styles, huge progress in medical sciences & facilities and better living conditions), ‘Age is just a number’, ’70 is the new 50’, ‘You’re as old as you feel’- are the new-age ideologies. It’s now not uncommon to find folks sprightly, suavely clad, with just a few streaks of grey, well into their 70s, who’d leave gen-next overawed with their joie-de-vivre, energy, versatility and zest for life.

Let’s look to Bollywood for instant motivation – from ‘Big B’ phenomenon and evergreen actors Dharam Paaji and Sharmilaji ( breaking news is Rakhee at 76, returns to acting !), prolific poets Gulzar and Javed to great business barons Ratan Tata and Narayana Murthy & many in other fields who’ve defied age barriers & continued to explore newer avenues given half a chance !  Names of ‘octogenarian’ Hollywood actors & film-makers is an amazing bevy of past ‘A’ listers, who still work like Clint Eastwood, Al Pacino, Julie Andrews, Jane Fonda and Steven Spielberg.   

But why go far away when you have age-less ‘achievers’ in your own family… We siblings take much pride when our brood is led by a veritable leader like ‘Baksi Maam’ as she’s called in the hallowed portals of the famed Navarachna School, Baroda where she’d served as a Principal (later Director) for two decades and won many accolades and awards over the years. In keeping with her ‘larger than life’ persona and popularity, we her ‘chota’ siblings call her ‘Big B’ ! She turns 75 on January,22^nd but her self-belief, poise and exuberance are simply unstoppable !  

Not one to rest on her past laurels achieved in the realm of education, post retirement she has taken up literary writing and worked on innate talents as a singer and painter. She participates in creative sessions in singing and painting groups with her versatile friends from yester-years.  When not on sojourns to exotic destinations chosen by her loving daughters and grandchildren and with family and friends, her outpourings come in form of poetry and she has over time composed beautiful thoughts into lovely verses ! She also savours good films she sees on OTT.

Have a Marvelous Milestone Birthday, Didibhai ! For the indomitable spirit you show and  your amazing ability to stay connected to people and their lives, you are always an inspiration to us !

Switch to the old melodies from the golden 1970s and you’re almost living the quintessential lines from that soulful song ‘It’s Yesterday Once More’ for it transports us back to the days when we were (or blissfully felt we were ! ) in love with a dream that took the form of a person, an idea, a voice or a song in the most pristine garb of an idyllic, romantic adventure !

Of the many old memories that never seem to fade was a song released in US in 1972 by the group ‘Carpenters’ that had become a rage, but we first heard it on the tape that my NRI sister & B-in-law (now Singapore based) brought during their visit to India in the mid-70s. Those were days of audio tapes, recorders – you’d magically rewind & hear favourites again & again. One particular song (among many wonderful ones) just won hearts and captured our imagination for its lyrics, melody and a sublimely, clear voice quality was ‘Top of the World’ by group’s lead singer ‘Karen Carpenter’ !

Here was a lilting number that made one feel-good (with what we today call ‘Wow’ effect) for it had in it lines that spoke of youthful splendor of a discovery ‘There’s wonder in most everything I see’ and romanticism of ‘Not a cloud in the sky, got the sun in my eye’! Truly it resonated the idea of being in love with such supreme joy that had us spellbound as youth, and more so for those who were ‘carrying the torch’ for someone special.     

What makes this song eternally elevate spirits even now, when we and our peers are in our autumn years ? For one, the song’s title ‘top of the world’ conveys thoughts of contentment, happiness, gratitude in the relationship, all quite old world, devoid of brashness and aggressiveness seen today. For music lovers, it’s lilt has ageless charm of the 70s and yet sounds so fresh.

But what about that singer, Karen Carpenter with amazing vocal skills. She had formed the highly successful, famed musical group ‘Carpenters’ with her elder brother, Richard. Tragically and like so many other greats from the world of music, she died at the very young age of 32 ! As she herself sang beautifully ‘I’m on the top of the world, lookin’ down on creation’ !      

Cricket crazy aficionados are famously known to be crazy about their idols and cricket legends and I am no exception. Being from the time of black & white TV and ‘Test’ cricket in whites, my all time favourites have been the classy Vishy and Dada Ganguly for offside elegance and the swashbuckling Farokh Engineer for a cavalier style (that’s now English team’s bazball brand and which Hitman and his boys also follow in the post Sehwag era ! ).

It was in the fitness of cricketing sense that a ‘Lifetime Achievement’ award was overdue for Engineer and this was duly conferred by the BCCI in the Naman Cricket Awards on 23^rd Jan. telecast on ‘Jio Cinema’. True to form, the former wicket-keeper dasher regaled the audience with funny anecdotes and was grace personified in showing his gratitude for the recognition.

However there was another ‘Life Achievement’ winner that evening, none other than the 1985 ‘Champion of Champions’ Ravi Shastri, the doughty all rounder who played for India in the 1980-90’s and later wore many hats as Head Coach of India Team & commentator extraordinaire with inimitable and ‘spirited’ articulation (pun intended) and his trademark exclamations.

For those who saw him play, if Shastri’s batting was built on anything it was solid defense that had him booed by crowds at times for it’s dourness yet he was a tough all rounder, a fighter and a man who could remain motivated. His bold attitude rubbed off on the Indian team buoyed by brilliance of Virat the batter, till his form dipped and the Indian team remained winless as far as World Cups went- last win famously came under Dhoni in 2011 !

Often in controversies for his candid remarks and a colourful life-style, Ravi Shastri has been a tall, imposing figure in Indian Cricket who stands out for sheer attitude and flamboyance. His speech after receiving the ‘Lifetime’ was a typical Shastri rhetoric that had the entire team applauding – he was motivating them to be spirited on the field and with ‘spirits’ in the evening ! For his eloquent nonchalance on stage, he was my ‘Man of the Evening’ !

Possibly for the season’s last time, Seizing on pleasant nip in the air,

Woefully every year winter was, A bit short, yet a wonderful affair,

Recalling our preps for cool climes, With childlike glee so exhilarating,

Coats, jackets, caps, hoodies kept, In trunks would start unfolding,

Soaking soft rays of a gentle Sun, That often played hide and seek,

With clouds that listlessly swam, Drifting off on a mountain peak,

Days short, hazy, windy & nippy, Long evenings curled in reading,

Afternoons were shopping time, Nights for solitude & star gazing,    

That kind of winter we all loved, Poets of old called it ‘celebration’

T’was time for wine, food, warmth, Of nature’s wonder & rejuvenation,   

Then there‘s scary version of winter, Morning fog gets everything nixed,

You don’t want life that’s so chilling, Delays, cancellations, things unfixed,

Yet let’s think if we had no winter, Would spring then be so wholesome

If there was no taste of adversity, Would the change be so welcome ?  

Somnath Sinha

We are all guilty of verbosity and of hyperboles stretched to extents that some words  ( Amazing, Awesome & so on !) have lost original shape (meaning), just like a cricket ball does after it’s been hit for many sixes ! Even in our early days elderly Bengali aunts said ‘daroon hoiche’ (it’s excellent) to a new dish, song, dance presented out by a youngster to make them happy ! Respect for our parents, elders, filial, family ties would make us sing their praises on celebratory occasions, all knew these were emotionally overstated.

One thing that our teachers taught us in school was to be clear, lucid and simple in our narration and avoid circumlocution (use of many words where fewer would do) and précis writing was part of that. If one used a structure of complex sounding words and terms but their essay delivered little to no sense, the English master would get irked &  cut marks. In those days grammar & structure mattered, now each can coin his own …

During our graduation days in the 1970s, ‘Fantastic’ was an all pervasive word used in conveying thoughts aptly. After an exam, my Dad asked my friend how it went and he said ‘Bahut Fantastic’ ! Following the next exam, Dad again accosted him with same query. My friend replied less confidently ‘Fantastic, but not that fantastic’ ! Dad had a hearty laugh, being old school and weaned on Queen’s vocabulary. But that was then. Now, ‘Legendary’ is being used for all artists that’s denigrating the really true greats !  

Communication forms a vital part specially in the service industry like banking where I got my career. I recall one letter by an officer to the concerned Authority for his transfer in which he began with ‘Respected Sri (Boss Surname) ji, Namaskar’ to convey his deep reverence. Even he’d requested to ‘Dear Sir’, HR Dept’s answer would still be the same. We learnt in service, being polite to seniors was Ok, but showing ‘bhakti’ was a fine art !   

Talking big was always part of promotional sales pitch but the print and social media as well as eloquent TV anchors and sports commentators have perfected the art of making everything sound grandiose and spectacular. Recently an English channels conferred on SRK the ‘Indian of the Year’ award with huge fanfare. The King said ‘I’m not that, I’m Indian for all Ages’ in Bollywood Badshah-like, over-the-top bravado to instant ‘taalis’ !

In all this, Cricket cannot be left behind – after singing paeans on the ‘God of Cricket’ Sachin till he retired, commentators cannot stop eulogizing King Kohli, so much so that he lost his form for almost 2 years. A refreshing change was Geoff Boycott calling Dada Ganguly ‘Prince of Kolkata’ in his heydays. Ravi Shastri leads the off-field drama with his ‘tracer bullet’ comments. Ballistic Sidhu had once said ‘Ball is hit high, it’s might kiss the air hostess in flight in the skies’. Truly, we are the greatest, as far as verbiage goes.              

One icon’s name that constantly came up during our growing up years from our Dad’s repertoire of music, films and literary pursuits, was that of late Kundan Lal Saigal, who had passed away on 18^th January in 1947 at the astonishingly young age of 43. Today, after many decades we would have loved to spend this day chatting with our Dad of many splendored facets of legendary singer he always reverentially called ‘Saigal Sahab’!

As young children, we found it difficult to fathom his fascination for such a strong nasal voice and style which we felt was on a slow side ! Later we learnt that Saigal’s distinctive singing was revered and idolised by the legends of our generation of post-independence era of playback-singing such as Lata, Kishore, Rafi and Mukesh. They have like devout followers, also sung their own versions of the famous Saigal songs from the 1930-40’s.

In the 1970s, like our whole generation of youth, I’d become an ardent fan of Kishore da’s awesome singing prowess and I’ve read that surprisingly Kishore had initially come to Mumbai not to become a singer/actor but to meet his idol K L Saigal ! While slowly Dad had converted us to becoming avid followers of Saigal’s incomparable timbre and heart-wrenching songs (‘Dukh Ke Ab Din..’ from his classic 1935 film ‘Devdas’, ‘So Ja Rajkumari..’, ‘Preet Mein Hai..’ and so many immortal songs), Dad too became a loyal  Kishore fan, yet his refrain was ‘Kishore’s best songs have that soulful Saigal quality..’.

With years behind me, I find myself unable to croon any of the musical hits of today, for genre of that old-world melody has changed. We can now well understand Dad’s passion for the effortless grace, feel and poignancy that Saigal Sahab’s singing evoked in an era where stories were woven around romance & serenity of literary classics and technology and speed hadn’t completely possessed lives of people all around, old and young alike !

An aspect we also identify with was the appreciation for all things beautifully sublime – romance was once all about poetry, words & music. It’s said Saigal with his demeanour & mellifluous voice was a gallant ‘ladies man’ too. Dad was convinced that the man and his voice were both surreal.  As Saigal himself sang ‘Main Kya Janoo Kya Jadoo Hain…’

Friends say there’s a surfeit of cricket being played all across and attracts undue attention to the detriment of other sports. Some would say it ranks third after political news and films in terms of our preoccupation and cricket anchors who are aplenty, remind us that it’s a religion in India. Cricket lovers of the vintage variety will argue that there’s never too much of a good thing and some can watch classics again and again like First Tied Test of 1960 between West Indies and Aussies or the 1983 Lord’s WC Win and Dhoni’s six to nail the 2011 WC in Wankhede Mumbai !

In the latest of brilliant sports films that have been made on the game of cricket, I was pleasantly surprised to find on ‘Jio Cinema’, a less talked about but nevertheless utterly engrossing true cricket story. Titled ‘Bandon Mein Tha Dum’, it is a documentary series which follows the Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test series of 2020-21 which resulted in India stunningly defeating Australia at their home turf of Gabba, where they hadn’t lost a test match in 32 years !

Interested you would quickly ask what’s the cast like.Well it has our very vintage cricket heroes, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravichandran Ashwin, Cheteshwar Pujara, Rishabh Pant, Hanuma Vihari, Mohammed Siraj of  India, Coach Paddy Upton and the Aussies Tim Paine and Pat Cummins. Directed by the superb Neeraj Pandey (of the Special Ops 1 & 1.5 Series) and with the entire narrative told with telling effect by actor Jimmy Shergill, this is a real thriller in its own genre !

For the uninitiated , on the 2020-21, four-Tests tour ‘Down Under’, led by Virat Kohli, India badly lost the First Test after a batting collapse where the entire side was bundled out for a paltry 36 and all round humiliation followed thereafter. Virat returned to India for the birth of his child, Rahane took over reins of a battered side. What transpired thereafter makes the story of India’s  ‘Men in White’ who led India’s biggest triumph in Test history..an impossible 3-2 series win facing all odds including lockdowns, innumerable injuries and a hostile Aussie attack.

What’s most fascinating are the insights in to what was on their minds and psyche battling the toughest challenges as shared in interviews with amazing clarity and sincerity by champions like Ajinkya Rahane courageously leading fight back with a century, his Vice-Capt the indomitable Pujara, astute planner Ashwin, master-blaster Pant and rookie pacer Md.Siraj and even Aussies shared grudging admiration for the way the Indians responded with sheer grit and courage.

One will be hooked with this four-part series that encapsulates the tension, the excitement of the four thrilling Test matches, the mind games, behind-the-scenes footage and candid narratives from the cricketers, coaches, and journalists involved. But for die-hard romantics, what lingers are memories of two great Test players, Rahane & Pujara, now not in reckoning and forgotten !

Apart from powerful, thought provoking films that appear on the OTT platforms off and on, we lately saw two talk shows that were not only sweet & heart-warming but made of ’sterner stuff’ !

The first  one that completely bowled us over was ‘India Today’s’ prime time one hour interview cum heart to heart chat with India’s exemplary, iconic power couple Narayan & Sudha Murthy, occasioned by the fascinating book ‘An Uncommon Love’ by Chitra Banerji Divakaruni  on their early life and times. The first thing that strikes one is that there’s no attempt to exude power and hubris considering their phenomenal personal successes and standing (including being in-laws to PM of UK) and stress on values like humility, gratitude, integrity, complete devotion to work !

In what should be a lesson for couples of all ages, they insist that their union is a partnership, both have equally important roles to play in their lives together. Two brilliant individuals with their own ethos, one an idealist, the other a pragmatist, so there’s complementarity rather than conflict. The humorist, writer in Sudha Murthy comes up with many gems in the conversation. On the point as to the very qualified Sudha, making the huge sacrifice for the family by not entering Infosys professionally, Murthy shared that he had once suggested that Sudha could even run the company while he’d manage the kids/household. To this Sudha’s rejoinder was ‘I know I could run his company, but could he manage the home and children ?’

The other show was another episode of the current season of famed ‘Koffee with Karan’ where the Karan the fluent anchor is in conversation with two adored actresses of their era, Neetu Kapoor and Zeenat Aman, retired veterans now away from the arc lights but very much a part of the filmy nostalgia of  70-80’s generation. So what was special here apart from the usual lively banter, rapid fire rounds and hamper in the end ? It had to do with revelation that was Zeenat.

For her fans, ‘Zeenie Baby’ as the tabloids then named her, was bold, westernized, glam avatar of the quintessential Bollywood ‘Pavitra like Ganga’ heroines, bringing radical shift as ‘Jassie’ in her first ‘Hare Rama Hare Krishna’ and wowing the masses with ‘Aap Jaise Koi..’ in ‘Qurbani & doing a peppy Shirley Mclaine act in ‘Manoranjan’ backing these with high octave histrionics in serious films like ‘Insaaf Ka Tarazu’ and ‘Satyam Shivam Sunderam’ and giving numerous hits. With this was her media-hyped high-end life-style, the controversies, alliances & relationships !

In K-with-K show, Zeenat now 72, counters that image created of her, with candid articulation and quiet dignity, asserting her individual choices and not regretful of the knocks life gave her. There is warmth and humour in her recalling funny anecdotes from her illustrious career, fondly reminiscing co-stars but no trace of rancor against a system constantly seeking moral validation. We felt  Zeenat was grace personified and deserved the ‘Koffee hamper’ for just being so real !