A quote I read says ‘Grandfather is a man who has no clock, no plans and lots of time for his grandkids’. Some fondest recollections are my childhood years spent with my Grand-Dad, Sri Narendra Nath Sinha. ‘Dadu’- as we siblings called him- was my Dad’s Dad and was originally a Barrister who’d also been sent to London to study Law by his illustrious Father, Kali Prasonna Singho, a Dist. Judge in the British colonial era. Dadu had been a widower for long, having lost his wife early, due to illness. His two children were Dad & our Aunt, whom he dearly loved. Dad was a devoted son & Dadu stayed with our family.

Dadu’s world centered around his grandchildren till he passed away in 1970 at age of 85.   Naturally, as a very young boy I spent a lot of time with my Dadu, to me, one of the  best story tellers I’ve ever known. From the Shakespearean tragedies like ‘Othello’ & ‘Julius Caesar’ to the ‘French Revolution’ and classic ‘Tale of Two Cities’, from escapades of that ‘damned elusive Scarlet Pimpernal’ to the revenge of the ‘Count of Monte Cristo’, he had us spellbound with his dramatic narrations which made the stories come alive.

One of his preferred tales was the fascinating battle for the ‘Ashes’ and an amazing man, Don Bradman, whose prowess became cricketing folklore for all times. Why ‘Ashes’ and more importantly whose ashes I had then asked. As we now know ‘The Ashes’ Cricket Series is traditionally of five Tests, hosted in turn by England and Australia at least once every four years. But term originated in a satirical obituary published in British paper, which stated that English cricket had died, and the body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia. The mythical ashes immediately became associated with the 1882–83 series played in Australia, before which the English captain Ivo Bligh had vowed to “regain those ashes”. English media then took over, calling it ‘The Ashes’ !

Dadu’s recounting would start from the 1930s when a small built batsman called Donald Bradman made an unimpressive debut and the inexperienced Australians were heavily defeated by a very strong English batting side with the likes of Wally Hammond, Jack Hobbs & Billy Sutcliffe. But the legendary ‘Bradman’ show was to follow to make history forever. I vaguely remember seeing a Scrapbook that had pictures of  Bradman. As Dadu would unfold to us the dramatic story, it was the awe of Bradman’s invincible bat that caused England’s Captain Douglas Jardine (1932-33) to adopt the nasty tactic of fast leg theory, known as the infamous Bodyline. Although England decisively won the Ashes 4–1, Bodyline caused such a furore in Australia that it was banished from laws of Cricket.

Apart from Cricket, Dadu was a lover of English cinema & often mentioned the name of  ‘Ellen Terry’, the actress of late 19^th & early 20^th centuries and would sing her songs, that were reasonably tuneful. That didn’t mean he didn’t have Indian favourites like ‘Wahidu Rehman’ & ‘Meena (Kumari)’ and he’d take us to Hindi films and ice cream thereafter ! He’d recite ‘Ramayana’ and ‘Mahabharata’ as they were known to him by heart. We like to call knowledgeable old folks as well-read. Dadu was truly learned – of another league !

Someone (read Shakespeare) had famously said ‘The course of true love never did run smooth’. However, for venerable Mumbaikars, simple act of road travel from home to workplace & vice-versa is generally so long that no one minds a few potholes, roadblocks and traffic blues in the journey, as long as they eventually reach their destinations. Since Mumbai’s annual ‘Paoos’ (rains) arrive around June second week (at least, they used to 10 years ago !) there is always frenetic digging activity which include road repairs, laying new pipelines, widening and the endless ‘Metro’ work, some three to six months prior !

Well-seasoned Mumbaikars always understand all complex municipal issues involved in maintaining this burgeoning metropolis but even the most resilient have suddenly found that navigating the traffic has become more challenging in the recent times with spurt of digging, making half of the road inaccessible & roadblocks across most lanes & by-lanes.  Auto-walas are generally unfazed by minor disruptions (Yahan aisa hi chalta hai !) but of late they too are a confused lot ! When I got onto one yesterday, he asked me ‘Kidhar se jaye, sabhi road toh khod ke rakha, baad mein mat kehna – that I took a longer route’…

While this may be a universal problem for the daily road commuters, we retired senior citizens have made our own strategies as we always do. I’ve now stopped driving and my Car’s unscathed, doesn’t face parking problems, stationed as it is in my own paid Society space nor does hurly burly of reckless two wheelers, speeding autos & errant bus drivers pose a threat to my declining motor driving skills ! More importantly, I’m saving on gas (petrol) that last checked was about Rs.104 per litre and doesn’t look like coming down. But ‘look before you leap’ into an auto for base price has quietly risen to 26/- from 23/- !

Also shouldn’t there’ve been a net positive impact on the middle class household budget, now that the trips to the petrol pump are over ! Not really, for staying at home one tends to consume for power and with return of Mumbai’s sweltering afternoons, the ACs come into play in a big way. Equipped digitally than ever before, why go out when on-line you can get ‘dal, sabji, fruits ‘ delivered home. Who can resist those ‘Swiggy’ & ‘Zomato’ good samaritan like offers for Pizzas, Burgers, Chole Bature & Biryani .. just check the menus. And at any cost, don’t forget the monthly payouts or else Tata Play, Netflix, Prime, Jio, Hotstar will stop your TV binge-watching and Mobiles will lose their signals promptly ! 

All one has to do is be ready to spend (with GST thereon) and not worry about expenses. There is this recurring problem of small change and being equipped with small notes is being wise. But digitalization has solved that issue also – just scan with G-Pay and pay ! 

As cinema buffs there was no way we’d miss out on a well constructed documentary film on one of the great legends of parallel cinema, late Shyam Benegal. Written and directed by the renowned critic & writer Khaled Mohammed, it has narration by none other than his most famed protege, Naseeruddin Shah.

Screened on 26th March at the Experimental Theatre, NCPA, this was an enthralling   experience for cinema lovers beyond expectations ! From initial forays into advertising industry and more importantly his early struggles from which emerged and bloomed an amazing body of work – gets told to us with fine detailing mainly through the maestro’s own words. It begins with humorous side to his original name that had ‘Sunder’ in the middle. In self-deprecatory terms he says that since he wasn’t good looking (sunder), it was completely dropped and it became Shyam Benegal, as the world came to know him !

There are sharing of experiences with funny anecdotes and untold  narratives & snippets from immensely talented actors & artists, most of whom got their biggest breaks in his meaningful films made with social purpose that were a far cry from the staple Bollywood masala! Of them, the candid interviews with Shabana Azmi, Late Girish Karnad, Writer  Javed Akhtar, Music Composer Vanraj Bhatia, all of whom were closely associated with his works, provide special insights into the persona and the working style of Benegal but one missed Govind Nihalani and of course Naseeruddin, who does the film’s narration. 

As a viewer with some basic understanding of cinema, one feels that Benegal had a niche audience though he denied that his films catered to the intellectual taste but argued that they were simply told and everyone could relate to them. We have preferences and my favourites would be ‘Ankur’, ‘Manthan’ and ‘Kalyug’ possibly because they had intense drama in their story telling but one must confess not having seen many of the later ones. To us it came as real revelation that Benegal had the distinction of being specially sought out for making a documentary on the iconic Satyajit Ray by the Master (Ray) himself  !

At the end of a most engrossing 90 Mts film, there were glowing tributes from one of his celebrated actors, Rajat Kapoor (of big theatre fame) and the man who played ‘Mahatma Gandhi’ in his remarkable film ‘The Making of the Mahatma’ & acted in many of his other movies. Rajat shared with much depth of personal feeling his fulfilling & cherished experiences of the life and times with the creative genius that was Shyam Benegal. It was a moving finale to a beautiful film on a legend, the likes of whom may not be seen again.

Staying fairly far away in the North side suburbs, a visit to the bustling Nariman Point and the ride along Marine Drive brings the ‘de ja vu’ feel like a drive down memory lane, having worked for over a decade in the South Mumbai area during 2003 to 2014. From time to time we visit the NCPA, where we’ve caught up with wonderful films and plays.

Yesterday on the sidelines of the remarkable documentary film at NCPA that we saw, to our utter delight we bumped into one of our favourite TOI columnists and writers, the renowned, witty & ageless Bachi Karkaria ! Sweet, elegant and unassuming she actually held aside an old friend to chat with us saying ‘Wait, I’m chatting with two of my avid fans who think I write better than my old friend, Jug Suraiya, ha ha !’

During our lively tete’-a-tete’ she shared she and Jug Suraiya had a ‘writers’ connection from their ‘Kolkata’ stints and that her favourite authors initially were P G Wodehouse & Oscar Wilde and of course many others came later. That’s relatable given the witticisms, puns and play on words in the sharp socio-political messages in all her writings that we so enjoy reading in her satirical ‘Erratica’ pieces in TOI middle pages and other papers. Upon our introducing ourselves, she seemed fascinated with my wife’s typically Bengali name ‘Tandra’ and I suggested she use it for a character in one of her stories !

In Class IX, I recall that our erudite English Teacher was displeased since the brightest student with a great command over the language, acted superior to the other classmates. One morning our Teacher decided to admonish him in front of the class with wise words ‘Having vocabulary is good but not being humble isn’t. It’ll prevent any more learning !’

‘Humble’ (the adjective, not the noun or the verb !) is often confused with being ‘Meek’ which none of us want to look. Closely like modest & unassuming, what being ‘humble’ simply means is not to consider one-self better or more important than the others. But, humility is not always acknowledged as a solid trait to possess and in a razzmatazz world of cut-throat competition & hype, coaches will urge trainees to show bold assertiveness. 

Why is humility such a remarkable character strength as our parents and teachers had made it out to be ? Humility is the ability to accurately view your strengths, talents and also flaws while being void of any arrogance. Some believe that being humble means having low self-esteem and a lack of confidence, but it’s the opposite. Humility is having the self-esteem to understand that even if you or your family & children are doing very well, you don’t shout about it from the rooftops or in tweets. Class speaks loudly itself !  

While it may sound an old-world attribute but there’s something inherently low-key and gentle about humility. Different phrases ‘humble means’ and ‘modest income’ convey that the less affluent may have little to crow about but a lot to dream of. Yet if and when they attain the ‘high places’, that’s the time to be humble. It helps one stay grounded and develop a humane approach in dealing with others, influences how one perceives oneself  and the world around. When setbacks revisit, as they can, it equips one to cope better !

The humblest person I’ve ever closely known was my Dad, ever ready to remain modest about achievements and his virtues of kindness and charity. In the 1960-80’s decades, importance was attached to ethics & fair play and one-upmanship, self- promotion and a patronizing attitude frowned upon. Humble, ego-less folks had compassion for fellow beings, respect for others’ beliefs and opinions. This happened because humility offered the opportunity to become less self-involved and more attuned to the feelings of others. While in service, I’d once said to Boss ‘We should highlight all our achievements in the presentations..’ He said ‘We’ll provide all the data, let the praise come from the others’ !

The world of business & culture has had biggest names like Late Ratan Tata and Ustad Zakir Husain as the role models in humility & grace. In sporting arenas, legends such as Roger Federer, Kane Williamson & Rahul Dravid have exemplified true sportsmanship, but that’s just naming a few. All this despite intense media pressure to hype their feats ! Experts feel humility can produce happiness, positive emotions and well-being because a person has a clearer understanding of the Self & being comfortable with who they are and who they are not.  That is – if one’s willing to be true & transparent in today’s world.

Once upon a time, around the early 60s, I recall that there was literal home-service as far as hair-cutting was concerned. Like it was in the vaccination procedure, my Grand Dad and Dad would take turns as our regular ‘Nai’ would use all the tools in his steel box : scissors, razor and a ‘machine’ with a whirring when applied around the corners that signified the job was half-done! For the full family charges would’ve been appr 50 paise ! Preferred style was with side parting, though Dad had a middle one, possibly inspired by actors he admired. Growing up we saw industrial progress & rise of hair cutting saloons.   

In the 70-80’s, for the college going youth, a hair cut was a monthly ritual at the friendly neighborhood barbar shop and Sundays were specially chosen for the job. I was initiated very young to this outing by my Dad and at first the exercise looked scary but soon I got fearless enough to venture alone. Dad would check that that the cut was proper and hair was short if not military crew cut. However, let’s give credit to the idols, film-stars & the fashion industry for transformation of ‘hair-dressing’ as special services & big business. Aside from the burgeoning ‘beauty care’ industry for modern women of today, ‘Unisex Parlours’, Hair-Dressers also help men look savvier & cooler adorning the latest trends.    

Where should we as ‘Senior Citizens’ go for the normal hair-cut ? All the swanky saloons have young staff (some in pony-tails !) and most educated customers seem to be aware of the style they want. Recently, I visited a nearby joint as Mumbai’s becoming hotter by the day. A busy looking guy peremptorily replied when I told him that I wanted a regular cut ‘ What cut is that ?’ Unable to explain all the style detailing, I said I didn’t want ‘Virat Kohli’s latest hairdo’ that I’d seen on FB. The hair dresser chastised me for my remark. He said ‘Uncle we know our job, how will you at your old age, look with Virat’s style ?’

Suitably rebuffed I sat quietly as he went about snipping and sniping at my head from all sides. At the end of it, I found that unstated aggression applied on me was pretty close to a ‘buzz cut’. I now looked bit like my Son in Class X and felt happy. Sons look sweet and lovable when they are in school. My wife also generously said – ‘It’s not so bad after all’ !

It’s an auspicious day for Real Virat jubilation, 

Fill hearts with love & Hit (Man) celebrations, 

May your Shubh(man) Times never have end, 

Together they’re winners Joyous message they send, 

Let there be Shrey (as) In our every good shout,

For sitting out are Champs Like Rishabh in Dug-out, 

With Rahul there’s calmness And Kuldeep there’s churn, 

Shami is like the quiet storm Varun can make things turn,

With the India Blues,Shades come ‘Nazdikiyaan’

Bring brotherhood and Bon Homie for all.. 

With Jaddu’s warm wishes, And Hardik Shubhkamnaayein ! 

By Somnath Sinha (Fan)

India lifted the Champions Trophy in Dubai, amidst tumultuous jubilation & celebratory outpourings not only here but with Indian diaspora across continents starting in Dubai. For our ‘Men in Blue’ heroes, who won hearts by the billions, notably a subtle shift has taken place in the minds of fans & followers as to what attributes they should possess to remain World Champions. The aggressive intent of English ‘Baz ball’ is still relevant but what worked was calm composure in the middle and playing to the ‘match situation’ as was exemplified by ‘Rohit’s leadership’ and steely steadiness in Iyer, KL Rahul & others !

There’s huge applause coming the way of players who are dashers, flashy and cavalier in their slam-bang approach (which is order of the day(& night) in T20 Cricket !). But in longer versions of the game and in Tests, batters have to put their heads down and apply themselves when dire situations arise and the middle order has to manage the crises of a top order collapse. Rahul Dravid ‘The Wall’ was a perfect example of this in the 1990s as were doughty Cheteshwar Pujara and resilient Ajinkya Rahane not so long ago. Can one forget that Rahane led the Indian team from the front (along with Pujara & others) to an iconic series win against the Aussies in famous Down Under tour of  Dec.’20-Jan21 !

To cricket buffs, their exclusion from Indian teams in all formats, has been surprising since many seniors have continued despite their advancing years. As an old saying goes ‘If you can’t beat them, then join them!’- for Rahane, a change from classical batting style to achieve six-hitting prowess in IPL. Thanks to MSD’s role, CSK franchise bid for Rahane in 2024. He then smashed his way as an opener in many of the matches. In the recent past, Ajinkya has led his Alma mater Mumbai team to a well fought Ranji Trophy victory ! Last year’s IPL Champions KKR have decided to go with the 36 year old Rahane as their Captain for his maturity & experience in 2025  Edition starting on 22^nd March.

‘Good guys don’t always finish last’ and Rahane, despite being soft-spoken and gentle is a Black Belt in Judo & knows how to fight. It’s reported he’s learning a bit of Bengali too. He has the likes of Andre Russel, Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer & Rinku Singh all match winners and some talented youngsters for company. The Bengali fans would now chant for the new KKR Captain in the popular vein of a favorite Ray film “Joy Baba Ajinko’ !

A billion hearts here (and more across continents) were beating fast as the last ten overs remained – it was all suddenly looking tight with both sides not ceding anything and the elusive Champions Trophy was on the line !  The big match was going down to the wire.. once a cakewalk with openers Rohit & Gill notching up a superb century partnership. In a‘cat and mouse’ game, Santner & Bracewell, dangerous looking Kiwi bowlers completed their quota that Rahul & Hardik coolly played out, the scales again tilted & with Jadeja’s four, it had Dubai stadium erupting with fireworks & witnessing delirious scenes of  joy !

But how was the platform set for such a win on a slow track that wasn’t conducive to any extravagant stroke-making. With India again opting for four spinners (that included two all rounders), the strategy of choking the Kiwi batters in the middle overs was working as per plan. Veteran Jadeja & versatile Axar did the holding job at one end but the real impact was from ‘mystery’ spin of Varun Chakravarty, rookie on big stage & inscrutable left-arm wrist-spin of  Kuldeep, out-guessing Kiwi batters and forcing mistakes.

As cricket lovers are we witnessing a return to golden era of the fab ‘spin quartet’ of the 60’s & 70s of Chandra, Bedi, Prasanna & Venkat ? Like our famed local cuisine with all its exotic herbs & spices, the art of spin bowling was given new dimensions by these legends who won for us matches against top playing nations. Our pitches don’t have the bouncy tracks with foreign conditions, ‘spin’ is our natural ally to bowling armory. Our  two highest wicket takers (Kumble & Ashwin) were both spinners who set world records.

With game of cricket devolving more and more towards commercial aspects of playing the shorter format, tight bowling to contain hitters in limited overs is the norm and spin bowling has to be accurate as against use of guile of tossing the ball up to the batter. In that context the many successes of our spin duos of Ashwin-Jadeja and later on Kul-Cha (Chahal- Kuldeep) have brilliantly put their skills and adapted to the needs of the team.  Dubai pitches may have suited spin more than pace but it’d encourage our think-tank to nurture the wealth of spin bowlers who excel in IPL but often don’t find place in scheme of  things. Bowler of caliber of Yuvi Chahal has not found favour despite his track record. Limited overs needs all-rounders, so specialist bowlers must become good batters too ! 

In the lighter vein, the word ‘spin’ had became part of our DNA as we grew up. From taking a ‘fair maiden’ for a spin on the mo-bike and ‘spinning a yarn’ to parents at home and teachers in school, was all in a day’s work. Hard working ‘Washing Machine’ has to spin to get apparels clean but has now become known in political sphere for other uses ! People are giving new ‘spin’ to old narratives & throwing a ‘Googly’ is not just in Cricket.

I Cried when I first went to school, Holding on to my Mom’s hand, 

It was fear of the unknown and Stepping into an alien land, 

I Cried when school friends and Alma mater had to be left behind, 

Classrooms and the playgrounds, All my teachers, tough & kind, 

I Cried when Kid Sister grew up, And was ready to be married, 

Sibling bonding, fights, nostalgia, Old memories that it has carried,

I Cried in disbelief when suddenly, A school friend was forever gone,

He left behind young wife & girl, A Spark that briefly shone,  

I Cried with utter delight. When lady luck decided to smile,

Suitably employed like others, I could afford to have my style,

I Cried when there was a call, And my Dad had tears of joy, 

He’d got the news, I, his Son, Had been blessed with a Boy,

I Cried in 1983, India became, World Champs beating Windies,

That inspired all to fight & later, We had so many more victories,  

I Cried with pride when chosen, To serve my Bank abroad,

But life also takes as it gives, Dad left for his heavenly abode, 

Now in autumn years, I reflect And find I don’t Cry that often,

Years in life’s journey teaches, Our tears are truly golden,

The eyes start brimming at a Beautiful film or a good deed,

As good Samaritans we’re moved, By the plight of those in need,   

I Cry battling my value systems, Than just expressing my sadness,

Tears start welling up when I see, Charity, humanity and kindness !  

Somnath Sinha