My sister called up and told me that, our 1st Landlord at Jaipur, Shri Khajan Singh Sharma , breathed his last, 3 days back, my day was ruined. Between 9th June 1969 & 1st October 1984 with a gap of around 2 years in between 1971 and 1972 when we were in Kerala , we My Parents, My sister and myself, and my cousin Vijayraghavan, lived in this house C-12, Moti Marg, Bapu Nagar, Jaipur 302004(later 302015) Rajasthan. The address, which I can never forget.
A tsunami of memories, Oh! Tears, Oh! Pain, Oh! Angst. The Feeling , which floods your mind, whenever, you remember the house, where you spent, your childhood, adolescence days, youth, school days, college days, university days, where you fell in Love. Ah Moti Marg.:((( I miss that place terribly even now. The pang to return to your nest, your roots, where you became , what you are today.
It was 9th June 1969, we landed in Jaipur, our truck unloading our household effects, there was a sense of pain, of losing your childhood friends, I was 9 then, I had 1 real friend, Atul Vyas, in Mahesh School Jodhpur, my classmate, my soul-mate, the one who used to hit birds with " Gulel " ( catapult / sling ) at Kabutar (pigeons) and Kamedi ( Dove), the one who gave me Keri Achar ( Raw mango pickle), who used to go with me to Rawat Mishthan Bhandar, Sardarpura, where we used to eat Mirchi Bada/ Makkhan Bada & Pyaz (Onion/Garlic) & Mawa ( Thickened Milk) Kachoris ( a fried Marwari dish) .
Here I was all of 9 , silent, shy, innocent kid, dreamy eyed, I still remember the time, it was 07:00 IST. I was wearing a grey knicker, and a blue check bush shirt, sitting in the veranda, and there , in the opposite veranda was a 5 year something, holding the pillar, singing
a b c d e f g, h i j k lmnop, lmnopqrst, u v w.. x y z :-) my childhood buddy, then my only girlfriend ever, now my wife of 25 years, My Shree..
The 1st day was spent, at the terrace, a huge house, had 8 tenants, behind the house was a huge Jamun Tree, it was June, and I still remember, Koel was singing, koo oo koo oo , peacocks were on the opposite house, Moti doongri was visible from House, I ate Jamuns, how many I dunno, maybe a kilo, the toungue was deep purple, 1st day food was from outside, Janta Store (Janta Store is still there, in Bapu Nagar, shop, now a Bakery shop, selling bread, biscuits and namkin, ice-creams, and the Central Market Bapu Nagar, is by practice, by us oldies of Jaipur, still called Janta Store and not Central Market. ) ke samosey, Paliwal ji ki dukan ke, God, may his soul REST IN PEACE, Mr Paliwal, was a retired army Jawan, and he ran a shop, out of his retirement funds, not much to write about, but samosey, waah, kya samsey the woh. Hot, fresh and hygienic. Mr Paliwal, later became, my childhood frrined Vakul, and now my brother-in-law Vakul's mentor, he was a great human being, used to guide young boys, well, in positive thinking.
The colony was posh, neighbors were big shots, later my HOD Dr Late K S Mathur, his son , Rajat, later became my school chum, from Nirmala School. Rent a ROYAL Rupees 110(my Late Dad,earned Rs 300 then, this was 1969, the year Aradhana released. Summer of 69.
Jaipur, I love you so...
Day 2 05:00 AM IST Sharp, I HEAR SOMEONE SINGING K L Saigal, Babul Mora, Naihar peechey chuto jai, I casually ask my Dad, I used to sleep in the same Bed room then. I was 9 you see..
Me: Achchaa ? 8 baj gaye kya? ( Dad ?, is it 8 AM ?)
Dad: So ja, abhi paanch bajein hain, buddhoo ( Go back to sleep, you dumbo, it is only 5 AM )
mE: To phir, yeh 5 baje, K.L.SAIGAL, kaun ga raha hai? (Then who is singing K.L.SAIGAL,
at 5 AM ? )
