“Mumtaaz aur waheeda Rehman bhi the wahan pe, Unhon ne puchaa ke Daddu, Aap ke haath main glass kyun nahin hai.”. Daddu was in one of his buoyant moods and he was remembering his colourful past. It was August of 2000 and five of us were seated around him at the reception of the lodge, listening to his tales. Armit, Bose, Pranav, Rahul and I.
Daddu’s stories always termed him as a hero. He had shared his moments with Mumtaaz, Waheeda Rehman and Amitabh Bachhan. He didn’t share screen space with them as Daddu thought that it was not a noble job.
He also had a large coal mine and because of which we could see Shahrukh and Madhuri romance each other in the movie Koylaa. Rakesh Rosan would have committed suicide if he was an audience to that conversation.
He had also gone to Japan to play hockey against the Japanese and bagged many awards over there. I would not have shed a tear if he would have said that Dhyaanchand was his student.
Yet, he was working as a warden without any salary in Shiv Shakti Lodge.
There were numerous tales that he had spun in Shiv Shakti Lodge. These tales were the centre of our conversation in parties and chit-chats .
Daddu as he was popularly known as was the so called warden of Shiv Shakti Lodge in Indore. This Lodge was situated just a stone’s throw away from the railway station and was inhabited mostly by students. This lodge was owned by a very shrewd and cunning man, Shibu. Shibu looked like a devil and would have made a turnip, weep.
Daddu worked without any salary or perks. Shibu had made a secret pact with him which was not known to anyone till the end. Shibu bear his food and clothing expenses and had allowed him to stay in the lodge. The notion of Roti, Kapda aur Makaan was quite justifiable by Shibu. Bose and Armit liked Daddu a lot as he was old and he was funny too.
Rahul was more of an observant and always lend his ears to Daddu’s tales. Rahul had lot of patience in listening to other people’s stories. I still remember him learning from even the most trivial of situations. That made him the severest of critics in the lodge. If you be with him for a while, you do not have to carry a mirror as he will know you inside out. This uncanny sense of observing people carried extra baggage with it as well, but he knew how to deal with such situations.
Armit and Bose were more in a resigned state when listening to Daddu and they looked intently at Daddu which made Daddu even more excited. Armit was a straight guy devoid of any complications in life. He had a simple mantra “Jeeyo or Jeene do”. He was the cynosure of all eyes as he also looked very cute.
Bose was like a father figure to everyone in the lodge. He was more called as Bose sir than just Bose. He had more followers than friends. He was a born trainer and was an epitome of patience, knowledge and hard work. He studied tirelessly by burning the midnight oil, day in and day out. He often use to say and write...”Even this will pass away...” A thought from an optimistic and a positive person.
Daddu was narrating a story where he had gone to a party with Subhash Ghai. Mumtaaz and Waheeda Rehman had also come to the party to grace the occasion.
Daddu was a complete teetotaller then and hence had no glass in his hand. Waheeda Rehman was surprised to know that such a charismatic guy didn’t like alcohol. After acting in Saheb Biwi aur Gulaam, Waheedaji was inspired by Meena Kumari’s acting.
She also wanted to emulate the same sadness in her roles and so she was consuming alcohol with the same vigour and grit so that she can feel the role she had to perform later.
Mumtaaj-jeee as pronounced by Daddu was more like a tomboy then and often went that extra mile in parties and get-togethers. She also liked Daddu as he was a millionaire after all and because of the fact that daddu didn’t hang out with women.
“Zar, Zoru aur Zameen se bach ke rehna baba...”Daddu used to say. Pranav would say later..”Agar ye teen cheez zindagi main aapko mile hee nahin, to bach ke hee rehna padega na..”. We would laugh at the top of our voices after all those funny sessions with Daddu.
Pranav’s attitude to life was to enjoy every moment. To some people his ideas and views were meaningless, but he would become more stronger after any debacle. Impossible was a word that he didn’t know and this made him a confident person in life. His views would have fitted well in a 70 mm screen but it didn’t mean they were far-fetched ones. They were as realistic as any other sane idea can be, but they were wrapped with passion and grit.
So Daddu was surrounded by all the hot shot and top notch celebrities, businessmen, politicians, brokers, sportspersons in that party and he was not enjoying himself. Mumtaaz touched him and Daddu was filled with agony as he didn’t like being with women. Amitabh patted him on the back with a friendly gesture and asked Daddu..”Aur Aaj Kal Kya Naya Kar Rahe Ho Daddu ..Kuchh Business Ideas Humein Bhi do..“ Daddu told Amitabh to come to his house. Amitabh was very happy and offered him a drink and Daddu declined again. Finally Daddu was given a glass of orange juice by Rekhaji. As Daddu admired Rekhaji a lot, he could not decline the offer.
As far as my state was concerned, it was more like a coiled spring in a mattress. A mattress where people were jumping and the coils were pressed down with enormous velocity. I had lost my mind after Rekhaji’s entry in Daddu’s story. I excused myself from the intellectual conversation and ran upstairs. I desperately needed a Disprin or a pain balm to calm my senses. My head was spinning out of control but I was laughing
which was unstoppable. I came to my room where Abhishek was reading a book and he was startled with my sudden intrusion into the room with high decibel levels.
Abhishek was a pretty simple guy with high ambitions in life. He was very sensitive and he loved his friends. He was the best person one can have, as a friend. He always had a shoulder to cry on, for his friends. This also made him a possessive person which sometimes created problems for him and others. But such problems didn’t last till eternity. We were very good buddies then and I still cherish those moments.
Abhishek showed me where the Disprin was kept. After knowing what had happened downstairs, he started laughing hysterically. Our laughter was also audible to other room mates who came rushing to our room to know the cause of it. Kaushik was one of them.
Kaushik shouted at us..”Abe Saalon has has ke phat jaaoge or mar jaaoge..batao kya hua..? “...By then Disprin had started working and I narrated the whole story to him. Kaushik didn’t react like Abhishek as he was a victim to Daddu’s stories before.
Kaushik was a down to earth guy with a sharp brain and a witty sense of humour. He can make you laugh even if you were crying. He was brave and fearless. He wanted to make it big in life and often learnt from the mistakes made by others. He was also a true friend and a helpful guy. He often ended up into troublesome situations with the Police and Traffic wardens. Rahul would often say to him “Jaane de na yaar...”
By that time the victimised lot had also come to our room and narrated the rest of the story that I had left in the middle. We all started laughing and had a good time making fun of Daddu.
There are numerous such incidents that can only be illustrated in a book than few pages. I will continue writing about my experiences in Shiv Shakti Lodge as these incidents are very close to my heart.
I wish I could relive the same moments again....Kya bolte ho Doston....
Daddu’s stories always termed him as a hero. He had shared his moments with Mumtaaz, Waheeda Rehman and Amitabh Bachhan. He didn’t share screen space with them as Daddu thought that it was not a noble job.
He also had a large coal mine and because of which we could see Shahrukh and Madhuri romance each other in the movie Koylaa. Rakesh Rosan would have committed suicide if he was an audience to that conversation.
He had also gone to Japan to play hockey against the Japanese and bagged many awards over there. I would not have shed a tear if he would have said that Dhyaanchand was his student.
Yet, he was working as a warden without any salary in Shiv Shakti Lodge.
There were numerous tales that he had spun in Shiv Shakti Lodge. These tales were the centre of our conversation in parties and chit-chats .
Daddu as he was popularly known as was the so called warden of Shiv Shakti Lodge in Indore. This Lodge was situated just a stone’s throw away from the railway station and was inhabited mostly by students. This lodge was owned by a very shrewd and cunning man, Shibu. Shibu looked like a devil and would have made a turnip, weep.
Daddu worked without any salary or perks. Shibu had made a secret pact with him which was not known to anyone till the end. Shibu bear his food and clothing expenses and had allowed him to stay in the lodge. The notion of Roti, Kapda aur Makaan was quite justifiable by Shibu. Bose and Armit liked Daddu a lot as he was old and he was funny too.
Rahul was more of an observant and always lend his ears to Daddu’s tales. Rahul had lot of patience in listening to other people’s stories. I still remember him learning from even the most trivial of situations. That made him the severest of critics in the lodge. If you be with him for a while, you do not have to carry a mirror as he will know you inside out. This uncanny sense of observing people carried extra baggage with it as well, but he knew how to deal with such situations.
Armit and Bose were more in a resigned state when listening to Daddu and they looked intently at Daddu which made Daddu even more excited. Armit was a straight guy devoid of any complications in life. He had a simple mantra “Jeeyo or Jeene do”. He was the cynosure of all eyes as he also looked very cute.
Bose was like a father figure to everyone in the lodge. He was more called as Bose sir than just Bose. He had more followers than friends. He was a born trainer and was an epitome of patience, knowledge and hard work. He studied tirelessly by burning the midnight oil, day in and day out. He often use to say and write...”Even this will pass away...” A thought from an optimistic and a positive person.
Daddu was narrating a story where he had gone to a party with Subhash Ghai. Mumtaaz and Waheeda Rehman had also come to the party to grace the occasion.
Daddu was a complete teetotaller then and hence had no glass in his hand. Waheeda Rehman was surprised to know that such a charismatic guy didn’t like alcohol. After acting in Saheb Biwi aur Gulaam, Waheedaji was inspired by Meena Kumari’s acting.
She also wanted to emulate the same sadness in her roles and so she was consuming alcohol with the same vigour and grit so that she can feel the role she had to perform later.
Mumtaaj-jeee as pronounced by Daddu was more like a tomboy then and often went that extra mile in parties and get-togethers. She also liked Daddu as he was a millionaire after all and because of the fact that daddu didn’t hang out with women.
“Zar, Zoru aur Zameen se bach ke rehna baba...”Daddu used to say. Pranav would say later..”Agar ye teen cheez zindagi main aapko mile hee nahin, to bach ke hee rehna padega na..”. We would laugh at the top of our voices after all those funny sessions with Daddu.
Pranav’s attitude to life was to enjoy every moment. To some people his ideas and views were meaningless, but he would become more stronger after any debacle. Impossible was a word that he didn’t know and this made him a confident person in life. His views would have fitted well in a 70 mm screen but it didn’t mean they were far-fetched ones. They were as realistic as any other sane idea can be, but they were wrapped with passion and grit.
So Daddu was surrounded by all the hot shot and top notch celebrities, businessmen, politicians, brokers, sportspersons in that party and he was not enjoying himself. Mumtaaz touched him and Daddu was filled with agony as he didn’t like being with women. Amitabh patted him on the back with a friendly gesture and asked Daddu..”Aur Aaj Kal Kya Naya Kar Rahe Ho Daddu ..Kuchh Business Ideas Humein Bhi do..“ Daddu told Amitabh to come to his house. Amitabh was very happy and offered him a drink and Daddu declined again. Finally Daddu was given a glass of orange juice by Rekhaji. As Daddu admired Rekhaji a lot, he could not decline the offer.
As far as my state was concerned, it was more like a coiled spring in a mattress. A mattress where people were jumping and the coils were pressed down with enormous velocity. I had lost my mind after Rekhaji’s entry in Daddu’s story. I excused myself from the intellectual conversation and ran upstairs. I desperately needed a Disprin or a pain balm to calm my senses. My head was spinning out of control but I was laughing
which was unstoppable. I came to my room where Abhishek was reading a book and he was startled with my sudden intrusion into the room with high decibel levels.
Abhishek was a pretty simple guy with high ambitions in life. He was very sensitive and he loved his friends. He was the best person one can have, as a friend. He always had a shoulder to cry on, for his friends. This also made him a possessive person which sometimes created problems for him and others. But such problems didn’t last till eternity. We were very good buddies then and I still cherish those moments.
Abhishek showed me where the Disprin was kept. After knowing what had happened downstairs, he started laughing hysterically. Our laughter was also audible to other room mates who came rushing to our room to know the cause of it. Kaushik was one of them.
Kaushik shouted at us..”Abe Saalon has has ke phat jaaoge or mar jaaoge..batao kya hua..? “...By then Disprin had started working and I narrated the whole story to him. Kaushik didn’t react like Abhishek as he was a victim to Daddu’s stories before.
Kaushik was a down to earth guy with a sharp brain and a witty sense of humour. He can make you laugh even if you were crying. He was brave and fearless. He wanted to make it big in life and often learnt from the mistakes made by others. He was also a true friend and a helpful guy. He often ended up into troublesome situations with the Police and Traffic wardens. Rahul would often say to him “Jaane de na yaar...”
By that time the victimised lot had also come to our room and narrated the rest of the story that I had left in the middle. We all started laughing and had a good time making fun of Daddu.
There are numerous such incidents that can only be illustrated in a book than few pages. I will continue writing about my experiences in Shiv Shakti Lodge as these incidents are very close to my heart.
I wish I could relive the same moments again....Kya bolte ho Doston....
hahaha .. good one.
ReplyDeleteGood word pictures
it was amusing.... i was rather wishing to know what happened after Rekha'sorange juice..... . too bad u ran upstairs halfway :)
ReplyDeleteContinue the story santosh... i'll keep the aspirin handy.... though doesnt look like i'd need them.
I like the flow in the writingg... kept me glued. it's rather late. i'll read the other one later
Well there was Dilip kumar too with Rajendra Kumar, Raj Kapoor and Bindiya Goswami...God save their souls....
ReplyDeleteWhere did you find this interesting Daddu? He is need on Television as there are no more quality serials coming up i guess. He can make everyone laugh a lot.
ReplyDeletereminded me of characters in old DD serials :)..you should come up with more stories its pure and unforced humor..
ReplyDeleteMungari Lal Ke Hasin Sapne..I can recall another amusing one...Daddu was a frequent visitor to Russia and had couple of vessels in his name. Once he reached the Russian harbor and it seemed to the authorities, he was carrying too much of sugar in one of his vessel, he had to get rid of few tons. Instead of bringing it back he dumped few tons in the ocean as a result of which water tasted sweet...hA...hA...hA . Ripley's believe it or not....
ReplyDelete