Thousand
Full Moon: Dr. Sushila Ram Sathe (81+).
Contributor: N
Sushila Ram
Sathe (Sahasrabuddhe), (interview Oct 14, 2012)
Sushila has been practicing Ayurvedic Medicine for over 55+ years. She devoted to the wellbeing of
families of Textile Mill workers in the heart of Mumbai. When I met her she was
in great spirits and had many events to recall.
During our conversation her memories revolved mostly around her mother
(now 99) and her late husband Dr. Ram Sathe.
When Sushila
was young her family had moved from Girgaon in Mumbai to Dadar. Her Father was
a school principal and always pushed for modern and non-religious ways for
educating children. Her mother being
only 16 years older than her always treated her as a friend and became her mentor. Sushila had a happy and contented childhood.
After completing her
high school, she was accepted for the Ayurvedic (BAMS) degree studies in Potdar
College. Just before the second year
examinations, her father passed away very suddenly. It was a shocking and depressing event in her
life. Her mother encouraged her to complete the course work. With the family now facing a mountain of
difficulties her mother rose to the challenge and started working part time at
a nursery school. As a result Sushila could complete her BAMS degree successfully. After graduation and a few years of work in
hospitals, it was time to find a suitable groom. Ram Sathe’s proposal from Bhusaval turned out
to be an astrological match. Sushila
traveled to Bhusaval alone (a girl travelling long distances alone was rare in
those days) to meet Ram. The display of
independence made her look like a typical ‘forward’ person from a big
city. Sushila was a working girl
standing on her own two feet while the "boy," although had
exceptionally distinguished academic success till B. Sc., was not financially independent. She managed the meeting and associated
questions-answer session before returning to Mumbai. She distinctly remembers that Ram’s parents had
asked her if she could sing! She later
asked Ram if he was interested in pursuing higher education after marriage and
put a condition that in that case he will have to move to Mumbai to which he
agreed.
After their
marriage Ram and Sushila stayed with her family. Her mother and siblings got
along splendidly with Ram. He started
working at Ruparel College, close to home, as a chemistry lab demonstrator,
much below his level with a BSc degree, experience, and distinguished
educational record. It however gave him
stability and an opportunity to take classes towards a Master's degree. He studied hard for the course. After many hardships he reached his goal. She
remembers it to be the most memorable, joyous, and proud occasion for her when
a Master of Science degree was conferred upon him.
Although subsequently,
he obtained a Ph.D. at Royal Institute of Science in London and later attained
dazzling success by attaining distinction and standing first in his class of IAS(Indian Administrative
Service) officers that Master's degree which was achieved after many hardships seems to give Sushila a deep rooted joy and satisfaction!
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