As I turn 76 I am beset with some cherished memories dating back to over 71 years ago and thought I should put them down lest they become obscure again !
I made my entry in April 1949 at the Ranade Nursing Home in Jabalpur as a son of Usha Nafde nee Sushila Tamhankar.
The family then lived in a large house in Gol Bazar (?) and my active memories ( of the house and members )begin from the age of 4 - 5 years . They are from the, almost annual, summer holiday visits or the years I studied in Jabalpur first once in 1955 in KG at Christ Church School where my elder sister Meena Tai was already studying . Later , I was there in St. Aloysius College by when the family had moved to the above address .
At Gol Bazar there was Ajoba ( Late Prof. G R Tamhankar )who retired as Head of the Chemistry Department at Robertson College as it was then known ( referred to by his children as ' Bhau ' ) and Aaji (Varutai ) . Also resident. were Vasu Mama and Heera Mami , their son Sudhir ( a year or so my junior ) , Anna Mama ( Prof of Pol Science and much sought orator ) and Suresh Mama ( student of Engineering and acclaimed classical music vocalist ).
Tai Mawshi was already married to Dr Khare in Washim and her three children Dhanajay Dada , Nitu Tai and youngest Vasudha . Bhaiyya Mama and Leela Mami along with their daughter Vasanti were staying in various other cities where Bhaiyya Mama's army postings took him . Suhas Mawshi was married to Mr. Chandu Kher and they were staying in Jabalpur at the Khers Estate in Cherital . Arvind ( nicknamed Babbad ) was born around that time as I remember him coming with Suhas Mawshi as an infant to the Gol Bazar house .
The Gol Bazar house was one of the many others placed in a circle around a Maidan where the Gandhi Smarak was built. This was a huge auditorium where big musical functions , plays and political rallies were held . The other houses in the circle were residences of Judges , Doctors and businessmen . In one of them resided Dr. Harshe our Family Doctor. Not far away was the Maharashtra High School where many of the family members had taught or studied . The school had an Auditorium where Marathi plays were performed and a Badminton Court where once in my memory a National or State Tournament was held. I particularly remember this because at that time Mukund Mama's brothers Pravin and Arun Nivsarkar (a well known Doubles Team ) had stayed with us for a couple of days . The Headmaster Mr.Bhaskar Rao Tole would come in sometimes to sit and chat with Ajoba as did another gentleman called Oak Master.
From what I heard, the Tamhankars had come from Burhanpur where the adoptive family of Ajoba ( surname Deo ) was located and their 5-6 daughters and a son ( Judge Bal Deo ) were/are a part of our extended family . My mother and others retained a close and cordial relationship with the many Atyas and their subsequent generations of Seth's, Dabirs,Kuntes etc . In fact , Dr and Mrs Kunte were my local guardians when I was at St. John's Agra .
The Gol Bazar house was a spacious residence with a twin residence separated by a fence from the front to the back and even over the roof . The neighboring house was occupied by the Shukla's whom I don't know much about except that we were told they had a son who was a " little different " and was confined to their room on the roof . Sudhir and I came face-to-face with him one day , across the wire netting separating the roof tops , when we were banished to the roof to be out of the way of the preparations for Sudha Mawshi and Mukund Mama wedding . In the front was a big courtyard which on one side had Ajoba's passion - his garden . From there was an external staircase leading to a large room on the roof. This room was used by Suresh Mama for his ' riaz ' and his soirees along with his friends one of whom was a Tabla Maestro known as Tade Master .In the front was an enclosed verandah with doors leading on to a room and a spacious Hall . There was a back verandah with a Jhoola where Aaji used to sit and relax in the late afternoon sometimes joined by her sister Kashi Aaji who visited her. There were large steel / aluminium containers to store grains . This Verandah opened out on the back yard in which grew some fruit trees and had a well for drawing water. The back yard ended in the out houses ( latrines ) and a stall in which a buffalo was tied and that opened out on a back lane from where the buffalo could be accessed and milked ,fed and taken for walks . The lane also provided for cleaning out of the latrines.
Ajoba's room ( where Meena Tai and I slept) had a veritable library of volumes mainly related to Politics and History which I loved to pore over for the pictures as I could hardly understand the content. (I later rediscovered them in the Hall of the house at Madan Mahal while I was at St. Aloysius .)
Aaji was a pious lady who had a small puja room which was attached in some manner to the kitchen and to a room where the family would have its meals . The enclosed verandah in front was approached by a flight of steps and served as a parking space for bicycles . It had a door leading to the Hall and another leading to Ajoba's room. It was here that Meena Tai and I received tuitions at a small table from a young Parsee lady, Frenie ( a student of Anna Mama ).Those were fun times and Sudhir and I and Vasanti ( when they visited ) used to form a gang for mischief . Once a month Sudhir and I were bundled off on Dada Mama's cycle to the cutting saloon to have a haircut .
Some of the endearing memories for me , amongst many were ..
.The early morning ritual of having a cup of tea with Aaji after which she would be unapproachable till after she had bathed and finished her morning pooja
. The dinner time routine . Meals were taken sitting cross-legged on wooden paats lined along the walls starting from next to the kitchen exit in a U formation. The men and young girls ate first and the ladies after they got up. Ajoba used to first listen to the 9 pm AIR News on a radio in the hall , then visit the outhouse and come and be seated on the first paat ( nearest the kitchen exit ) and be served first . He would then offer some rice and water next to his thali (for the ancestors ) say a form of Grace and then we started tucking in. On special days when we had guests there would be Agarbattis lit and Rangoli designs around the paats etc. The guests would have rose water sprinkled on them with delicately made steel attar-danis !
Going to school . We went to and fro in the only form of group transport - a cycle rickshaw .
My Firsts
. Stage appearance to recite a poem in school.
. Visit to a big - top circus to see the animals , jugglers , jokers and trapeze artists !
. Participating in the making and eating of home made ice cream . Big slabs of ice would be brought wrapped in gunny bags and kept in hay from the cattle stall . One or two wooden drums with a revolving drum inside would be hired. The flavoured milk would be manually churned surrounded by broken ice to produce the yummy ice cream !
.The railway journies of the time , the ladus and chiwda and Jabalpurs imarti etc etc .I could go on but at the risk of digressing !
At the age of 7 or 8 ( 1956-57) I went back as we got posted to Jhansi so the trips were few and far between by when the family had shifted and grown as well .
Sudhir , Vasanti , Shyamla , Arvind , Milind , Jyotsna , Anju , Rasika , Nitin and Uttara were all growing up - some at the above address or in various cities where their parents were located .
The Madan Mahal house was then single storied with a small front yard , a verandah for the bicycles opening into a Hall which had a wing of rooms on either side and one side extended for the puja room cum dining area and the kitchen and bathroom . The back yard was enclosed by a high wall . In the centre was a well . In one corner were a flight of stairs leading to the roof under which there was a bathroom . In another corner were the outhouses and a door opening out on what was then an empty expanse of land leading to a railway track.
Most of our generation would be familiar with this as they all grew up here.
In 1965 - 1966 I stayed there for a year at St Aloysius . At the time , staying there , were Anna Mama , Kusum Mami , Anju .Rasika , Dada Mama , Heera Mami , Sudhir , Chaya, Dhananjay Dada , Neetu Tai and Sumi Tai .
The routines of the household were almost similar . We used to cycle to college or work .
In the neighbouring house were the Deshpandes whose son Kiran was a Tabla Maestro and we could hear him rehearsing .
Nearby lived Dr. Deo our Family Doctor .
Going anywhere in the main town meant cycling there after crossing the Madan Mahal overhead bridge by wheeling the cycles up and down the ramps .
The very vibrant memory is that of going on brisk early morning walks with Anna Mama on an unpaved road from the back of the house weaving it's way through the rocks of Madan Mahal to the railway crossing and beyond .
Well I could go on and on but it's already a long read .
In my next encounter with the house was when I went there after the passing away of Suresh Mama . By then the house had changed into a block of 6 flats . The hitherto sparsely populated surroundings had changed by filling up by houses and people .
It was then that I met Nitin and Uttara for the first time and it was a short one as also was that with Chhaya ( who has now become Shubhada Paranjpe ) and whom I had last seen as a school girl. Anju , Rasika , Kusum Mami were then in the USA .
What I know is :
Vasanti and her husband Jagadish Damle are renowned and respected Medical Consultants in the USA since many years .
Arvind and Manjusha are very successful IT entrepreneurs in Pune with a son married in the US and they are now proud grand parents . They were extremely helpful and supportive to me and Meena Tai . I admire Arvind ( a music enthusiast ) who had an immense collection of well preserved collection of Vinyl Records which I think he recently started giving away .
Shyamla made a name for herself in Banking and Finance while Rohit Khera her husband , an Air Force officer , was at one time depended upon for the safety and security of the Prime Minister and other dignitaries . They have two daughters one of whom lives abroad .
Jyotsna had a long career in garment exports and her husband Harsh Singhal is a successful Consultant and Insurance Broker . Their son I believe has also become a consultant and their daughter is studying abroad.
Milind and Gauri run a very successful consulting and training establishment called HQ ( I think ) and their son is abroad ( I think ) . Milind had some interesting and admirable hobbies as a child like knowing the Indian Bradshaw inside out as well as learning to read and write Urdu !
Chaya has a very talented family but I know very little except for the few posts and videos I have seen .
Nitin grew up as a Child Prodigy on the Sitar and now stays in Mumbai but I am not sure if he has continued in music as a performing star . Nalu Mami was the first and only published poetess in the family . I think his wife's name is Bhagyashree but about his family I would like to know more just as I would about Anju , Rasika and Uttara. About Uttara I know from FB of her love for Cafes , Coffee and travel but little else. I need to wind up now.
Inquisitive questions are sometimes asked to catch up on lost time and to seek to make good on an image of overlooking a sense of belonging !
Please do endure the long read and update me if possible on the trajectories followed by your lives and those of your extended families .
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I really enjoyed reading this blog. I have always been curious to know about my ancestors. Although I never witnessed that era ,I have heard almost all the names mentioned here from Baba(Sudhir).Once he took me to the Balancing rock where he told me about his fond childhood memories😊
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