She was the top ranker female student in her matriculation exam of NEFA (North East Fronter Association - westbengal plus seven northeast states) way back before independence. Her father was topper, rank 1 in the same examination. She went on to study physics, chemistry and mathemetics in presidency college, Calcutta. Mathematics honours. She fell in love with a tall, fair, handsome senior who owned a car before independence. He was the son of a Jamindar from Dakha. Prince - they used to call him. It was a Uttam kumar - Suchitra Sen black and white classic.
Today she was strugling to open the selotape from the gift cover that i had given her. She was wearing glasses , tring to find out the corners of transperent selotape. She has glaucoma and had her cateract operated 2 months ago. She was wearing a white sari with golden par (borders of sari) that my sister had gifted her. She had 2-3 more gifts to be unwraped yet. The cake was half eaten...... She was still strugling to find the corners of the celotape. I watched her face, still glowing like a small girl waiting to know what has she got.
The Jamindar came to know about her love affair and immediately wrote her a letted to leave his son alone. She passed on the message to the jamindar's son who was then in Hyderabad as an officer in Air Force. He resigned the next day and came to stand by her side during her MSc finals.
He wrote me a letter once which i read when he was nolonger there. He wrore " Dear Arindam ( he named me Arindam but my name was later changed to Anupam after my paternal grandmother Anupama) you will read this letter when you grow up, i may or may not be there to see you read it....." i was in class 6 and my eyes became moist.
She eloped with him. She sold her gold medels to go to Nainital for honeymoon. Jamindar refused to give a singe penny to his son and her father refused to see her face again....
They strugled to survive. Had 7 children. He loved my mother as she was the eldest daughter. "Buri" they call my mother by this name.
My mother made ' ilish mach, rui mach, fried rice, payesh...' She was very happy today for my grandma. Today was my grandmas's birthday.
She could sucessfully open the celotape nd unwrap the gift cover. A parker pen set and a Diary emerged out of the crunchy noise of the gift wraper. She looked at me and smiled. She said "This time i will.... i promise"
I had told her 5 years ago that if she writes her autobiography i will publish it.
Happy birthday Grandma ( Dida)..... I know you will......
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