Thousand Moon: Shrimati
Sudhatai Shrikhande
Contributed by: Dr. R. Boradkar
Shrimati
Sudhatai Shrikhande [sudhamavshi to us] is 87 years and is fit as a fiddle. She
lives in Pune and spends her time with her son and daughters .Her amiable
personality has made her dear to all who know her.
Though
a cent per cent from Pune [Punekar] now ,she vividly remembers Bhandara a small town near
Nagpur where her father had a flourishing legal practice .She also has fond
memories of the house [ Wada] and the time she spent with her sisters and a
brother, but the way she remembers her mother is unique. All mothers are
special but if we put it in the Orwellian logic some are more special and it is
definitely so with her mother.
The
anecdotes she narrates about her mother tell us about her courage and quick-wit but above everything else they show us the Humane side of her
personality. To be Humane is to be human... but it is something that is generally
forgotten.
Here
are some brief anecdotes and each one shows a facet in her personality that is
something more than ordinary.
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Once
my mother was going to Bhandara. On way she wanted to spend a couple of days with one of her relatives in Wardha, So she got down at
Wardha station. To her surprise police stopped her from proceeding to the town
as there was rioting and it was unsafe.[it was a day or two after mahatma
Gandhi’s assassination] She did not know what to do .It just occurred to her
then that the collector of Wardha one
Shri Wazalwar was a close friend of Palsules, her family .She approached the
police and requested them to convey a message to Shri Wazalwar that his aunt
was trapped on the station and so would like to see him.The message was
conveyed and the collector personally came to the station and saw to it that
she was taken safely to her relative Advocate Bapat.
The
second incident occurred when my mother was visiting my sister in Jamshedpur .Pundit Nehru was then on a
visit to Jamshedpur. She wanted to see Pundit Nehru so she went and saw him. He
used to travel in an open car and it was easy for her to see. On way back she
stopped at a temple where she met a south Indian woman.
The
woman who had four kids wanted to see Pt Nehru but couldn't because of the
kids. When my mother knew the problem she promised the south Indian lady that she would look after
her kids. She gave her the address and asked her to bring the kids to her
daughter’s house. As promised she looked after the kids for an hour or two so
the south Indian lady could see Pt, Nehru.
Back
to Bhandara now.... We had a neighbor one Mrs Sindhutai Patki who was
a sort of social out caste because of her marriage to an already married man and
that was taboo. But my mother never
considered it so and treated Mrs Patki with compassion .When Mrs Patki was
expecting she even performed a Dohale Jevan ceremony for her , knowing that no
body else would do it and that too with
an enthusiasm as if Mrs. Patki was her own kith and kin.
Lastly
we come to our cook one shrimati Gangubai. Once Gangubai was not well and there was nobody to look
after her.When my mother knew, she
brought her home and looked after her till she got well .It took nearly eight days for her to get well and
then she was sent back to her home .Gangubai grew old in course of time ,could not work and became penniless. When it
was known my mother started sending two
square meals to her hut. Once she got a message from Gangubai that she felt
like eating Puranpoli. Diwali was approaching but some how my mother sensed
something and without waiting she prepared Puranpoli and sent it to Gangubai’s
hut .It was like fulfilling the last wish as Gangubai died in a couple of days
afterwards.
Coming
to happy memories of her own, she feels, the happiest day in her life was the day
when India achieved freedom from the British., She was in Amravati, studying
for Dip.T[Diploma in Teaching] in S.T.C. college. There were about 40-45 girls
from all castes and communities. All was well. She remembers that there were
five muslim girls who used to wear 9 yard saris for the sake of fun.
On
14th midnight at 12 past 1 India was to be free. The sense of freedom
prevailed everywhere. One could feel the joy .that pervaded the atmosphere..
The college had arranged a Flag hoisting ceremony at midnight to celebrate the
occasion. The college and the place where the flag of free India was to be
hoisted was decorated. A map of free India was drawn on the ground and was
decorated with lamps[Panatis].Flowers were placed on the flag and then it was folded in such a way, that when unfurled ,a
shower of flowers [pushpavrushti] would occur
and bathe the ground. The
collector’s wife was to hoist and unfurl the flag. The girls started gathering
right from 11-30 pm. The hoisting was to be done at twelve past one. As the mid
night hour approached, the anxiety reached its peak. Exactly one minute after
twelve midnight the flag was hoisted, unfurled and the moment was carved in
history with Golden letters .One could then understand what it is to be
overwhelmed [oor bharun yene].
The
girls hugged each other, sweets were distributed and they danced the whole
night.
It
was joy everywhere and it knew no bounds .The fifteenth of August nineteen
forty seven was truly a day of
unforgettable joy and happiness.
Time
halts for no one; The morning of 30th January 1948 was like any
other morning in the capital city of India, new Delhi. But the evening was
pregnant with murder .At ten minutes past five in the evening, the voice that
had ruled India and also hailed as the voice of peace in the world was silenced
by three bullets. The news was stunning .It left every one shocked all over the
world.
After
the initial silence there was storm, mainly in Maharashtra there were Riots and
arson.
Shrimati
Sudhatai Shrikhande Navi Peth Pune
