He sang Rabindra Sangeet and looked after buildings

Here is the sixth unforgettable character in my life …

I met him in the hospital – I had gone for my monthly medical checkup, he had come for some other ailment. He was happy because he would be taking his son the next day to the American visa office – the boy was preparing for his MS in Engineering in an American University. It was good news.
My mind went back to the seventies when he had arrived from Calcutta, ostensibly to escape from the Naxalites. He had a diploma in civil engineering and possessed a wonderful voice, suited to Rabindra Sangeet. He got employed in the Civil engineering department and had to look after the maintenance of buildings.

Within no time, he became a favorite of the Bengalis and assumed a permanent role in the festivals like Rabindra Jayanti, Saraswati puja, and the Durga Puja. He even participated in non-Bengali programs because one who can sing can do so in any language. In due course of time, he married a local girl – she was ambitious, she also could sing and dance. The pair was a made-for-each-other couple. As luck would have it, she got a job on compassionate grounds in the same organization after her father’s premature death.
They had struggled in the initial stages and their son has made them proud now. He has retired from service and, once his son completes his MS from an American University, it would be still more feathers in their caps. My friend is an example of how Lady Luck can shower her blessings, if she wants.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org

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