Our Father was well educated,an intelligent and simple man.I still remember his beautiful writing in English,very clear very legible and beautiful too.It would be 14 year this July since he left us and I still remember his wise words in my daily life,and they guide me still.
He was almost six feet,fair when born since his chest was quite fair but his face has turned darker over the year because of exposure to Sun.He was a Farmer's son and through his hard work and endeavour he educated himself.His Math was as brilliant as his English and he would sit with us in the evening throughout our School years teaching us guiding us and solving our problem that we had in our Homework or in understanding any concept.He used to say "Never be afraid of a problem or a challenge,it would scare you until you are afraid of it,but once you decide to solve it or get into it you would soon overcome it".
He inculcated in us a habit of reading.As far back as I can remember from my childhood he used to bring fresh editions of Books like Chandamama,Champak etc. for us to read.Later on we read Teenager's English Magazine "Target" too which was entertaining and educational too,plus he would ask us to regularly read News Paper,we had "Times of India then which was mighty good.He would ask us to mark difficult or new word and later on look up their meaning and use them in our own sentences.To improve our hand writing he would give us a passage from the news-paper to write.To make our word power better he later on gifted us "Scrabble" the word making game.We three brothers had a wonderful time playing it and it encouraged us to know more words.
My earliest memory of my Father is when I was just three years old.Me and my elder brother were preparing to go with our father to visit mom in the hospital where she had just given birth to my younger brother who was as fair as a moon-light.He had just cooked a tomato on the fry pan and it was delicious.We went to the hospital and there were many beds on both side with patients on them,and there in the midst was our mother smiling at us with the new born baby beside her.
Then came the day when my Father went to bring our mother and baby brother home.I and Pankaj my friend waited eagerly on the verandah for them to arrive,Pankaj was getting impatient to see my baby brother and kept asking me how he looked.Soon our patience was rewarded and my mom and pop came in sight on a Rickshaw with my brother in my mother's lap.We were quite ecstatic and happy to see them arrive.
In winter we would go for Picnic to the Lucknow Zoo or to those lush green Parks on bank of Gomti river.We would take a bed-sheet to spread on the green grass and mother would pack nice delicious lunch.He first took us on the Train that goes around the Zoo and is a major attraction.Its a small three open compartment train and on it you can see what Zoo has to offer as it traverses inside different sorts of animals and vistas come in view,children just adore it and it still is there.Even foreigners who visit board it and love the experience.After alighting from the train we would travel on foot seeing all kinds of exotic animals like Deer,antelopes,Lions,Tigers,Langurs,Chimps,Bears,enchanting birds with lovely Plumes,rhinoceros,Emu,Giraffe and big Tusked Elephant.He would inform us and tell us about each being and ask us to read what information was displayed outside about it.When we got tired we go inside the Swing Park made for children.We would enjoy our Lunch.Then mom and pop would go sit on a bench and chat away,while we children would go and enjoy swings and other joy rides.Once when we went to Zoo on Christmas our maternal Uncle too was visiting there with family.
Hathi (Elephant) Park,Nimbu (Lemon) Park,Budha Park and Residency are all beside the road that run parallel to River Gomti.Hathi Park has a big Elephant structure built inside,from inside you go up and on reacing at the top you can see River Gomti flowing majestically and view old Lucknow City and nearby "Bhool-Bhulaiya".Its surrounded by a lush green park dotted by colourful flower beds.Nimbu Parks then had lovely fountain and it was the loveliest and greenest of all Parks.Budha Park was dedicated to Saint Budha.Residency was the place of bloody battle between English and Indian Soldiers and freedom fighters.Many Englishmen died inside in fight which continued for weeks and many died of starvation.Now only ruins remain,there's a small museum inside which goes underground too and there's a small mosque inside,plus they have turned left out areas into lush green patches of lawns.
Our father took us to Bara Imambara and Chota Imambara too.Bara Imambara is also known as "Bhool-Bhulaiya",as its structure its rooms are built like a maze,you can easily forget your way inside and go around in circles.So you have to have a guide who shows you around,many people earlier lost their way and died of starvation so they closed off a portion.Lots of tunnels leading from inside to all parts of state and even Delhi were sealed off to dissuade people from exploring them and getting themselves killed in the process.Asifi Masjid build inside is located at a strangest angle possible and as you come out of Imambara your eyes widen up with surprise at the sudden specter of the marvellous mosque.Also there's a big entrance and a lovely park en-route."Chota Imambara" is exquisitely beautifully filled with shimmering glass artifacts.
In summer he took us to Hazratganj in the evening,the center of Lucknow city.Then those double-Decker buses too ran in the city and it was a joy,a thrill to ride on them.We would go around sight-seeing walking under those illuminating ,visiting shops,eating snacks,visiting the book-store where he would ask us to purchase books of our choice to read in the long Two month summer holidays.We would also buy some games and visit Cinema-Halls like Mayfare to look at the Film-posters.
My younger brother had chickenpox in 3 rd,I had it later on in Summer.Once I went off to buy vegetables and drank crushed icy cane juice next day I had this chickenpox.Our father took great care of us during that period.I remember getting too weak as I had a fever too,it seemed I would faint while walking.
Earlier and till early nineties Schools had three month long Summer Holidays from April to June.In June before School opened we would get new books,copies and sometimes new bags and dresses too.Our Father would bring brown-paper,name slips etc.,so we can cover our books and write or names on it.The smell of new books is something else.And we would be prepared for the start of our new term.Father woke up first in the morning and awoke us from our slumber,in summer it was easy to wake up in the morning but in winter you still want to be in bed under the warm quilt.He would prepare our breakfast which generally included Milk and some light snacks,mother would prepare our tiffin later on.When in time we would walk up to the Bus Stop which was beside the point where our Lane opened into the main thoroughfare.There was a Parag Milk Booth beside it and we would sometime chat with them.Several students went on School Bus from that stop and our fathers would come to know each other and converse in friendly way.When we got a little late Father would Bicycle us to now vanished Parikalp Nagar,a nice residential sub-urban Colony,for our Bus traversed through the wide length of it picking up students in route and then returning to the main Kanpur road where we would wait for it.Our conductor Mangal always giving a wide cheerful smile.
In mid 1980s our Uncle Pradeep too lived with us,and he and our father grew a good crop of seasonal vegetables like Cauliflower and they were really generous and distributed surplus in our locality,asking us to take some vegetables in a cloth bag and give it to our neighbours.We also had great Papaya trees and a thick grove of Guava tree,and our house would be filled with fruits,them sometimes immersed in buckets of water.We would also distribute these.
When I was a little five year old my parents had to take me to the cinema-hall as they could not leave me back home.I remember seeing haunting,mesmerizing "Neel Kamal" *ing Waheeda Rehman and Mehmood,"Betaab" *ing Sunny Deol,Shammi Kapoor,Amrita Singh,"Coolie" *ing Amitabh Bachchan,Rishi Kapoor,"Sohni Mahiwal" *ing Poonam Dhillon,Sunny Deol,Gulshan Grover.Later on once on my B'day in 1990 we went to see Amiri Garibi (1990) at Krishna Theater which is no more,an entertaining fare where Rohini Hattangadi who dresses like a young chic is made fun of in song "Boodhi Ghodi Lal Lagaam".We also went to see sad family drama "Sansaar" at Krishna "Theater *ing Rekha and Anupam Kher.
Before the advent of Cable TV in India and before CD,DVD came in the market their was the time of Video Cassettes.People would take a VCR on rent for a day and order Video Cassette of their choice and see movies at home.Even film News came on Lehren and then their Video Song Cassettes.Cassette quality definitely more vibrant than DVD. Before Babri Masjid fell,Kar Sewa video influx the market,people would curiously watch antics of Uma Bharti and Sadhvi Ritambhra.Our mom ordered "Jeene Ki Raah" a nice emotional musical and "Love and God" last movie of Sanjeev Kumar.We also saw first movie of Ajay Devgan "Phool Aur Kaante" at home,and "Saudagar" debut movie of Manisha Koirala and Vivek Mushran,"Dil" * Aamir Khan and Madhuri Dixit which was again played by our Paying Guest Shukra Mani Nautiyaal."Naseeb" was played on video by our Paying guest Mr.Poonam and we also saw "Aaj Ka Arjun" *ing Amitabh and Jaya Prada.
In mid 1980s our Father would play Volleyball in the evening with some youths of our locality like Manoj and their friends who came.At home the game we most enjoyed playing with our father was Carom-Board.We loved playing Scrabble and also played Chess,Chinese Checkers,Magnetic Ludo sort of game,"Vyapar" where you got paper money and you had to buy stuffs,of course Ludo and "Ladder and Snake",games of Building Blocks.We loved to play Badminton and in winter all day was spent playing cricket with neighbours and nearby kids."Sikdi" generally played by girls but sometimes we boys too indulged in it.In school we played Football,dodgeball and a game where we have to aim rubber rings on an object.Other boys would go and play Cricket in Sarojini Nagar Colony Grounds.
People were quite religious in our locality,they would organize "Katha"."Kirtan","Ramayan Path" and "Uttar Ramayan Path" or "Sundar-Kand Path" at their homes.Our Father too had Katha and Uttar Ramayan Path at home.When our Grand-Father died we had a Katha at home,our paying guest's little kid Mickey too was there listening intently to the Pandit.Bengali Didi living adjacent to our house would organize Kirtan on regular basis.A group of women called "Kirtan Madali" would come with all kinds of musical sonorous instruments and we would have enchanting musical Kirtan where women folks worship God by singing hymns and songs."Didi" would many times go in a trance people saying "Durga Maa" has come inside her she would rise up from her place and start dancing going round and round and after a while she would faint and water would be sprinkled on her face to revive her.She died tragically of Cancer in late 1980's.When on her death bed we had a Katha at home and I went to give her "Prasad",she was lying in bed looking really sick and just faintly conscious.Women sat around her surrounding her all very sad,since she was quite friendly and popular,people were dismayed that they would soon loose her.I gave her the "Prasad" and walked back home with apprehension,few days after she died.
Earlier when packed milk was not that popular,and dairies have not been ordered out of the city,we used to go to our local milk-man's house to get milk.Rajesh who was one class ahead of me in Lalita Montessori School was their youngest son.He had beautiful hand-writing,his two elder brothers were Vachan and Budhesh.Later on Budhesh became a truck-driver.Vachan went on milking Buffaloes and Cows.He used to sing songs while working many times in strange comical tones.He was quite handsome and deft in his work.His mother was not much financially wise and first they had a little house beyond the Pond that was beside the Prem Nagar Lane.Then they got a Big chunk of Land adjacent.But they lost it all because of their foolish decisions.Now they live in a rented room,Rajesh's father was a wise person who came from a far off village.He kept a little dignified distance from his family and was quite measured and grave in his conversations.He had seen a lot in life and had wide ranging experience which he would retell in his conversations which were always interesting and full of engrossing anecdotes.He and my father were on friendly terms.Our father would many time loan him money to buy a new Cow or a Buffalo.Which he would return in cash or in form of milk.When our father got sick with Jaundice he used to visit him in the evening asking for his health and bringing fresh green vegetables for him.In mid-nineties he got sick and died few years before our father left.My most enchanting half-hour were spent at our milk-man's house.You can meet all kinds of people from all walks of life their.Women folks who came there from all corners of our locality have the most interesting gossip to share,they also shared their sorrows and happy moments.Discussions also took place on current political situations or any remarkable incident.They shared their recipes and way to celebrate festivals both small and big.It still seem to me like a cultural hub.Lots of people I met their took a liking to me some were a little mischievous too,but in a nice way.
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