LAST CHRISTMAS - No. 1 SONG AT CHRISTMAS 2023

I was delighted to see the news on the front page of Times of India stating that the song "Last Christmas" by Wham! has been crowned this year's Christmas number one, 39 years after it was released.

I have loved this song ever since I first heard it which probably was in Singapore in 1985, if not earlier in Bombay. The three years we were in Singapore, it was being played all over malls and department stores particularly at Christmas time. I must have heard it hundreds of times and it remains a favourite of mine till date.

The song sung by Wham! which was a George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley duo, was released on 3 December 1984 and has an up-and-down history. After its release, it spent 5 weeks at no. 2 on the UK Single's Chart. Despite its appeal and popularity, it could not beat another Christmas song, "Do They Know It's Christmas?". The latter was a video recording conceived by Bob Geldof and Midge Urs who got 40 top singers together in a group titled "Band Aid" to raise funds for Ethiopian anti-famine efforts. Ironically, George Michael was part of Band Aid, preventing his own "Last Christmas" from rising to number one!

Thereafter, "Last Christmas" rose and fell on the UK Charts and till 2020, was considered the highest selling single never to top the charts. Then on New Year's Day 2021, 36 years after its release, it reached no. 1 for the first time. Thereafter, it has reached number one spot again in 2022 and now in 2023. 

The song is universally popular and has reached the top spot in Scandinavian countries, Germany, Italy and many other European and non-European nations.

The video recording of the song is interesting. It features characters played by Michael and Ridgeley with their girl friends at a ski resort. It becomes apparent that the character played by Ridgeley's girl friend had a previous relationship with that of Michael's and she still seems to be somewhat indifferent towards the character played by Ridgeley. However, all is well at the end with both couples going off happily with their present partners. 

And now the lyrics. The opening and refrain-

"Last Christmas I gave you my heart

But the very next day you gave it away

This year, to save me from tears

I'll give it to someone special, special."

The bitter sweet line-

"Now I know what a fool I've been

But if you kissed me now

I know you'd fool me again!"

Merry Christmas!

P.S. Am I in good company listening to this 39 year old song? Well, according to the UK Official Charts Company, the song notched up 13.3 million plays during this year's Yuletide seven-day chart cycle, making it the most-streamed Christmas No. 1.

VICE ADMIRAL RKS "RUSSI" GHANDHI - NAVAL ICON

In my view, the Indian Navy has had two iconic leaders, Admirals Ronnie Pereira and Russi Ghandhi, colleagues and contemporaries, both tall, handsome and striking personalities with loads of charisma, and both Gunnery specialists. Yet there was a difference- Ronnie Pereira could be compared to a popularly elected President whereas Russi Ghandhi was more like a benevolent monarch.

While in service, I knew Ronnie Pereira well as I served as his Fleet Communications Officer when he was commanding the Eastern Fleet and through golf, I had almost no personal contact with Russi Ghandhi. But stories about him were always circulating particularly when he was commanding the frigate Betwa. Another source was Vinnie Mama, a Gunner and impressive personality himself, who knew and admired both Russi and Ronnie. One had also seen photos of Russi as the smart ADC to Lord Mountbatten, Governor General of India, at the Independence ceremonies in 1947. And in 1958, when we were cadets on the training ship Tir, Russi was commanding the frigate Cauvery which accompanied us on a cruise to Singapore and Malaysia.

Adm Ghandhi had the distinction of being the only officer to have commanded a ship during all three  wars after Independence. During the liberation of Goa, he was Commanding Officer (CO) of Betwa which sank the ship Afonso de Albuquerque and hastened the Portuguese surrender. In 1965, he was CO Khukri and during the 1971 war, he commanded the cruiser and flagship of the Western Fleet, Mysore, and was awarded the Vir Chakra. After commanding both Eastern and Western Fleets and the Western Naval Command, he was in the run to become Chief of the Naval Staff but the government could not ignore Adm Pereira. Unlike what we saw in latter years in case of competing rivals, there was no bad blood between Ronnie Pereira and Russi Ghandhi who remained on good terms and the latter happily went on to be the head of Shipping Corporation of India and then Governor of Himachal Pradesh.

His personality earned him Hollywood recognition and he starred in the movie, "Sea Wolves". Based on a true story of an operation during WW II, the film featured Russi Ghandhi in the role of Governor General of Goa. The film had a star-studded cast with Gregory Peck, Roger Moore, David Niven and Trevor Howard. Adm Ghandhi also provided technical guidance for the naval action in the movie.

I never heard any officer speaking of both Ronnie and Russi on anything but glowing terms. Officers who served under them loved them. Both possessed charisma, commanded respect and were models of honesty and integrity. Sailors on their ships adored them and displayed high morale as brought out by the fact that their ships would always win the prestigious Fleet Pulling Regatta. I wonder what would have happened if their boats were pitted against each other but to the best of my knowledge, they commanded their ships at different times!

My only person to person contact with him was in 1962 when peculiar circumstances resulted in my commanding the destroyer Gomati as a Lieutenant of just about a year's seniority at the age of 23. The ship was non-operational awaiting a refit but it was a great experience to be responsible for men and material at that young age. The Naval Dockyard had a long list of ships awaiting refit after the Goa Liberation War, so finally it was decided to send Gomati to Garden Reach Calcutta. NHQ directed that the ship sail with only a skeleton crew of essential sailors and we were asked by Cdr Russi Ghandhi, Drafting Commander responsible for sailors' appointments, to forward a list of such personnel. Not satisfied with our first reply, Cdr Ghandhi asked me to come and see him. This time, I made out a detailed list marking each sailor at his action stations post in three watches. Cdr Ghandhi was quite impressed and approved our list with a pat on my back.

I was on Gomati when Russi Ghandhi was commanding Betwa and both ships were berthed alongside on the jetty. Cdr Ghandhi, who lived in his own house in Juhu and drove to work in his elegant Jaguar, used to come on board his ship at about 9.30 am, finish the paperwork in his cabin, walk around the ship talking to sailors on work, order his pink gin at 12.30, have his lunch and drive back at 2.30 pm. Nobody minded his coming late or going back early; in fact, he was admired for it with people saying that it was the delegation of responsibilty and trust in his ship's company that was the secret of the ship's efficiency. Far better than captains who thought they must spend hours on board before and after working hours to ensure people did their job!

I wrote this in a 'middle' titled 'Captain's Capers' published in the Times of India on 08 August 2003. I did not use any names but a few days later, received a handwritten letter from Admiral Ghandhi saying he had read the piece. He had made inquiries and succeeded in getting my address. It was a very sweet letter saying that he thought nobody had noticed his comings and goings but my piece revealed that his activities had been watched! He then asked me to introduce myself and I wrote back giving my details including my relationship with Vinnie Mama who he knew well. Thereafter we were in constant touch and he always wrote a very appreciative letter whenever the TOI or Indian Express published my middles.

Those days I was also visiting Bombay quite often thanks to Shumita working there. I always made a point to contact him and he would ask me to come to the US Golf Club where we would sit by the seaside under a palm tree and, dressed in immaculate whites with red socks, he would regale me with his naval anecdotes. At times he and his wife, 'Bubbles', would come to Shumita's apartment for a drink when I would also call another great naval storyteller, Cmde Randhir Malia.

We remained in touch till he passed away on 23 December 2014, exactly nine years ago.

Ronnie Pereira and Russi Ghandhi, two unforgettable iconic leaders of the Indian Navy.

 

RETURN OF VINYL

I cut my teeth in music on 78 rpm shellac records played on a hand-wound His Master's Voice gramophone. It was fun winding the machine with a hand-crank to rotate the turntable, placing a record on it and putting the tone arm on the record to start playing. A record would normally be about 3 minutes long and as it approached its end, I would start rewinding vigorously so that the music would continue with little disruption.

Then came electric players which overtook all the manual functions after putting the record on the turntable. One could even stack 7-8 records on a vertical spindle so that they would change automatically and the music would play uninterrupted for a long time. Records were made of vinyl and came in two additional sizes: the smaller 45 rpm ones with just one or two songs and the long-playing (LP) 33 1/3 rpm which would last for about half an hour.

When I was in School, there were no shops selling English records in Jaipur. Then Rajendra "Sunny" Sahai, two years my senior and elder brother of my good friend Yadu, passed out from School and went to St. Stephen's Delhi. He told me that there was a shop, Marques and Co. in Connaught Circus which mainly sold musical instruments but also records. So whenever I came to Delhi, I would visit the shop and buy a whole lot of them. The shop also sold a small book with lyrics of top songs of the year. That was another 'must buy' for me annually.

When we shifted to Delhi after my retirement from the Navy, Shumita wanted to buy a piano. So off we went to Marques and bought one. The shop was being managed by Marques Jr. who played many instruments including the piano. He became Shumita's tutor and used to come home for her lessons. I told him about my earlier visits and whenever he came, he and I would chat a lot about the good old days.

Buying records was a great experience particularly in Bombay. There was this big shop, Rhythm House, at Kalaghoda just 100 metres from Lion Gate, entrance to the Naval Dockyard, which had many cubicles with record players. So you picked up a few LPs, locked yourself up in a cubicle, and spent as much time as you wanted listening to your favourite songs. Nobody cared if after hours of listening, you didn't even buy anything!

Many restaurants installed jukeboxes in which a large number of singles were stacked. You went through the titles, inserted a coin and played the number of your choice. A favourite cafe of mine was Napoli, next to Ambassador hotel near Marine Drive in Bombay, which usually had all the numbers of my current liking. I would spend more on the jukebox than on what I ate or drank there.

Cassette revolution followed and vinyl records started disappearing. Advantages of audio cassettes were that they and their players were small in size and could be fitted anywhere such as in cars, or in a Walkman while jogging or walking. Cassettes have been overtaken by CDs which too are small and being digital, have a smooth and unwavering sound.

And now, vinyl is making a comeback! Apparently, 41 million vinyl records worth $1.2 billion were sold in the US in 2022. Each LP costs Rs. 3000-25000 depending on its quality and if you need a player, you can buy one for Rs. 1-4 lakhs.The last LP I bought was in late '90s from a shop in Chandni Chowk. I have forgotten what I paid for it but I believe the price has quadrupled in the last two years.

So why are people going back to vinyl and larger discs? According to experts, the analog sound of vinyl reverberates and creates a warmer sound. CDs are digitally mastered and create too perfect a sound whereas the rawer format of vinyl is more akin to how an artist truly sounds.

But for me, the biggest factor is nostalgia. After I joined the Navy, my visits home became less frequent. Many years later, I searched for my old gramophone but it was missing. On inquiring, Mataji, my Nani, told me that she had got rid of it as it was old and nobody was using it. I was heartbroken. Meanwhile, I had bought myself a record player. So even when cassettes and CDs were the rage, I resolved that I would always keep my player for old times' sake.

For some time the player and the records were lying idle. But I have brought them all out now. It is so exciting to go through the collection and look at, say the 12"x12" picture of Francoise Hardy, put the disc on the turntable, choose the track I want to listen to and place the stylus there. Then watch the turntable turn, turn, turn and savour the charming song in a hypnotic trance.

Time for me now to go and look for Ali MacGraw and Ryan O'Neal with "Love means never having to say sorry" on the cover and listen to "Love Story".

MY COURSE AND SHIPMATE - JK ROY CHOUDHURY

After an association of over 68 years, JK Roy Choudhury bade farewell to his mates of the 14th course  and the Navy on 15 December 2023. 

The association began on 22 July 1955 when we joined the NDA. Chou, Roy Chou, JK or Jayanto as various friends chose to call him, was sent to 'A' Squadron and I to 'F' for one term followed by 'K'. I did not know him too well then except that he was excellent in Physical Training, vaulting over wooden horses with ease, Boxing, Football and Athletics in each of which he was awarded NDA Blues. Who can forget that memorable 100 metres sprint in which the elastic in his shorts came loose with Jayanto continuing to run at top speed holding up the shorts throughout and still winning the race!

After passing out from the NDA, the 20 or so us naval cadets boarded the cadet training ship, Tir, and Jayanto and I started coming closer. On to the cruiser Mysore as Midshipmen for six months and then for our three month small ship time, Jayanto, BB Singh and I were transferred to the destroyer Ranjit. That is when I really got to know this happy-go-lucky, full of life and carefree person.

We moved on to different ships and shore appointments and after our specialisations, he, in Gunnery and I, in Communications, were posted on the carrier Vikrant and Trishul respectively. In July 1969, Vikrant was sent to the East Coast for two months with Trishul as the plane guard. During this period, the two ships were based in Madras and Jayanto and I spent many evenings together.

On our return to Bombay, there was that incident when after the engagement cocktails of RB "Bunny" Suri, Jayanto and I accompanied by JK "Tally-Ho" Talwar, went to Taj Hotel to satisfy our hunger. Jayanto recommended Swedish Open Sandwiches and we ordered that. The waiter brought a whole tray and after we had one each, Tally-Ho said that was enough as the price was high. Jayanto, however, said that we could have as many as we wanted for the price indicated for the dish on the A la Carte. So he and I had one more sandwich each. When the bill came, we were charged for five sandwiches. With no credit cards in those days, it turned out that only Tally-Ho had the cash and duly paid the tag cursing under his breath, "You and your open sandwiches!"

Shortly after, Jayanto was transferred to Trishul as Gunnery Officer. But we spent only a couple of months together before I was transferred out to Signal School, Cochin.

With war clouds hovering, Jayanto was sent to the Eastern Sector to assist the Mukti Bahini forces. He commanded a converted fishing trawler and had the strange experience of being strafed mistakenly by our own Air Force. For his valour, he was awarded the Vir Chakra.

We were to serve together again. In early 1973, Jayanto was appointed as the Fleet Gunnery Officer on the staff of Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Fleet while I was already the Fleet Communications Officer. By now, both of us were married and our wives got along with each other well. I vividly recall seeing the movie "Bobby" all together. Shiela and Akhila were in the centre with Jayanto and I on either side. When the song, "Chabhi kho jaye" came on, both of us started singing loudly much to the embarrassment of our better halves.

Our boss was Rear Admiral Ronnie Pereira who as you know, went on to become Chief of the Naval Staff. When the annual report time came, Admiral Pereira called us to his office one by one to show us our report, something which is rarely done. I remember Jayanto coming out all flushed and excited saying he never expected such a fine report as the Admiral had given him.

We spent a great one year together before I was sent for the Staff College Course. Unfortunately the Navy did not treat Jayanto well and he resigned, settled down in Darjeeling and joined the Merchant Navy. Our interaction became infrequent limited to occasional phone calls. Jayanto being what he was, never opened an email account!

In 2013, Premvir Das, Virendra 'Magoo' Nehra and I decided to go to Darjeeling with our better halves for a holiday. Accommodation was readily arranged with the Army thanks to SK Sharma, another mate who sadly and unexpectedly passed away recently. The Army Annexe where we stayed was within walking distance from Jayanto's house and we spent a lot of time with him and Shiela.

That's the last time we saw them. The only contact remained occasional calls.

About six months ago, Nalini Das sent me a forward of The Archies song "Sugar Sugar", saying that Jayanto had sent it to her asking her to forward it to me to remind me of Trishul days. Magoo too told me that Jayanto was unwell and wanted to talk to me. I immediately rang him up and the phone was answered by his son, Kaustav, who said Jayanto was unable to speak but he would put the phone on speaker for Jayanto to hear me talk and answer through Kaustav. We did that and Kaustav and I are in touch todate. 

I told Kaustav that I write a blog and there are many posts where I have written about Jayanto. He said to forward those to him and he would read them out to his father. Which is what we did and I got many sweet messages that Jayanto enjoyed those posts with a heavy dose of nostalgia.

The regular interaction with Kaustav kept us uptodate with Jayanto's condition. The messages were kind of mixed, some saying that he was improving. The end, however, came unexpectedly but with the consolation that he passed away peacefully with Shiela and Kaustav by his side.

Jayanto, you may be gone but memories of the happy times we spent together will live with me as long as I do.

Rest in peace.

REMEMBER "LOVE STORY"?

"Ryan O'Neal, star of 1970 movie, 'Love Story', passes on". So read the newsline.

And I go back to early '70s with the movie and the music.What a movie that was! A perfect film of romance: the story, the acting, the direction and the music. Two young students, a wealthy ivy-leaguer, Oliver Barrett IV (Ryan O'Neal), and a baker's daughter, Jennifer 'Jenny' Cavilleri (Ali MacGraw), fall in love. Despite his father's objections to the point of disinheriting him,  Oliver marries Jenny but then 'the moving finger writes'! 

The screenplay was written by Erich Segal and this is one of the rare instances of a screenplay being adapted into a novel rather than the other way around. The book, like the movie, was an instant hit and best seller. The dialogue in the movie is funny, full of peppy and bubbly Jenny's tarty quips to love-stricken Oliver who takes it all with a smile. Somewhere in the movie, Jenny says to Oliver, "Love means never having to say sorry." This line was repeated by Oliver to his father at the end when the latter apologises to his son for the way things turned out.

The line became legendary and inspired a whole lot of merchandise printed with "Love is...." followed by phrases such as "....sharing a toothbrush".

The director, Arthur Hiller, was never to make a film even half as successful as this. Ryan O'Neal, who won Oscar and Golden Globe nominations for Best Actor, starred in other films notably "Paper Moon" with his daughter, Tatum, and won a Golden Globe nomination for it, but would always be remembered  as the handsome young man with lots of emotions in "Love Story". So would Ali MacGraw who won the Golden Globe Award and an Oscar nomination for Best Actress as Jenny, the beautiful free-spirited and funny but ill-fated girl.  "Love Story" also won her the vote of the top female box office star in the world in 1972.  The movie got both Ryan O'Neal and Ali MacGraw the honour of a star in the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Erich Segal did achieve best seller status with seven other romantic novels and a humorous children's book but mention his name and you will get the reply, "Oh, the author of 'Love Story'!" 

Ali MacGraw featured in the Time magazine cover story of 11 January 1971 shortly after the movie was released. To understand how deeply "Love Story" moved the audience, I can do no better than quote from the cover story in that issue describing the scene at the end of the movie outside the theatre "...the show breaks. While the frozen fanatics in the line look in disbelief, only about 20 customers emerge. What the hell, was the theatre empty? Can the film be a bomb after the New York Times called it "perfection"? More waiting, tempers rising. Then ten minutes later. comes the second wave, the other 95% of the audience. Wet-eyed men looking neither right nor left. Girls carrying men's handkerchiefs, eye makeup gone, gazing at sidewalks. All victims of Erich Segal's Love Story, the five Kleenex weeper, the marzipan heartbreaker. It has actually taken them ten minutes just to compose themselves enough to face the real world again." The story continues, "There are millions more to come."

I saw the movie in Vishakhapatnam with Akhila and my cousin Manjula and I can truly say that all of us came out teary-eyed with wet hankies and avoiding looking at each other.

Finally the music. Francis Lai's genius was at its best in composing the music for the film. The movie had 7 Oscar nominations but Francis Lai was the only winner with the Best Original Score award. He got the Golden Globe too. The haunting theme was unforgettable and heart-rending. The movie score included excerpts from Mozart's Sonata in F Major and Bach's Concerto No. 3 as Jenny was fond of them. Delightful too are 'Snow Frolic' and 'Skating in Central Park' which seemed so far away till Ruchir settled in New York!

In the movie, the theme song was only instrumental. Shortly after, the vocal version was released sung beautifully by Andy Williams. It was titled "Where Do I Begin?" It too was a hit and is popular to this day. It has versions from many top artistes such as Tony Bennett, Shirley Bassey, Celine Dion and Taylor Swift. But Andy Williams' remains the most loved.

The lyrics are simple and powerful and capture the deep emotions of falling in love followed by the poignancy of a breaking heart. The most touching lines are-

"Can love be measured by the hours in a day,

I have no answers now but this much I can say

I know I'll need her  'til the stars all burn away

And she'll be there."

The depth of emotions and the underlying pain are more palpable when you know that the story begins with the end!

 

NAPOLEON - AND JOSEPHINE

Renowned filmmaker and Director Ridley Scott's much awaited "Napoleon" is running in theatres now. Akhila and I went to see it a few days ago. We thought the movie worth a watch with my giving it half a star more than Akhila. The battle scenes are gripping particularly the final one of Waterloo with a vivid picturisation of the tactics used by the Duke of Wellington. 

Generally, American and British critics have praised the movie while the French have panned it. Incidentally, Napoleon's disputed descendant, 37-year old Jean-Christophe, his great-great-great grand nephew via Napoleon's youngest brother, Jerome, found faults with the film but still recommended that people see it. I am neither a critic nor a historian. So I shall refrain from commenting on the movie or the accuracy of the film's story. But the movie has brought Napoleon -and Josephine- to life again with a flood of articles since its release. Here are some titbits.

Napoleon has fascinated historians over the ages and is globally third behind Jesus Christ and Hitler in the number of books written about personalities. But he surpasses all in the number of movies made for cinema or television with over 1000 films about him. The first film was made in 1897, almost immediately after the invention of movies. It was "Napoleon Meets the Pope" by the Lumiere Brothers. By 1914, the year World War I began, 180 films devoted to him had already been made! Hailed as a classic was a silent movie "Napoleon" made in 1927, 10 years before Ridley Scott was born. Many of us might recall "Desiree"(1954), "War and Peace" (1956) and "Waterloo" (1970) with Marlon Brando, Herbert Lom and Rod Steiger respectively in the role of Napoleon.

Profokiev wrote an opera based on Napoleon and Beethoven was inspired to compose his 3rd symphony, "Eroica", and dedicate it to him. Shortly after, Beethoven felt disillusioned by the acts of the ambitious Napoleon and withdrew the dedication.

On a lighter note, there is a Bugs Bunny cartoon on Napoleon in which Bugs, disguised as Josephine, begins by asking Napoleon, “What's up, Nappy?" and then continues to bug him to the point of almost being guillotined!

In France, the number of books about him total more than 45000, the highest devoted to a single subject. Books are still being written about him winning numerous awards even now. Frenchmen revere him as an icon while the world debates whether he was a hero or a self-serving megalomaniac, ruthless in pursuing his ambitions no matter what the cost in human lives. One way or the other, he retains his popularity; 20 'Bicorne' hats identified with him survive and one of them was auctioned at 1.9 million Euros (US $ 2.1 million) on 19 November this year.

Napoleon fell head over heels in love with Josephine, a widow seven years older than him. Her real name was Marie Josephe Rose Tascher de la Pagerie and she was commonly called Rose which was not liked by Napoleon. So he named her Josephine. Napoleon adored his eldest brother named Joseph and according to the renowned psychoanalyst, Sigmund Freud, Napoleon gave his lover the name Josephine so that he could 'transfer to her a part of the tender feelings he reserved for his eldest brother.'

Overcoming some opposition, he married Josephine fudging ages in the registration to narrow the age gap to 1 1/2 years; he moved up from 25 to 26 1/2 and showed Josephine as 28 instead of 32. In his absence on battles, Josephine had affairs which he came to know of and accosted her with the issue. She was defiant and apparently told him, "You are just a tiny little brute that is nothing without me." Ridley Scott has brought this out in the movie in a scene in which Josephine makes Napoleon repeat a number of times, "I am nothing without you."

Napoleon loved her passionately but Josephine could not bear him any children even after 13 years of marriage. He finally divorced her and married the Austrian archduchess, Marie-Louise, who bore him a son. Nevertheless, he remained deeply in love with Josephine and when he learnt of her death in 1814 while exiled in St. Helena, he locked himself up in his room for two days and did not eat or talk to anyone.

When he himself passed away seven years later, the last word he uttered was "Josephine."

DELHI SMOG - A LAMENT

I often tell folks, "Give me a situation and I will give you an appropriate song". So the other day, playing golf in the Delhi smog, I wondered, is there a song to describe this? And the brain flashed, "Killing Me Softly"!

50 years ago in 1973, Roberta Flack recorded this beautiful number which hit the number one spot in USA and many other countries and won her two Grammys. With apologies to her, I give you this adaptation and take comfort in thinking that if Roberta had experienced the Delhi smog, she might have thought on similar lines-

Stuffing my lungs with its vapours

Throttling my throat with its fumes

Killing me softly with its smog

Killing me softly with its smog

Clouding my whole life with its fog

Killing me softly with its smog

I felt all choked with hacking

Embarrassed by its strength

I felt it blocked my nostrils

And gagged my normal breath

I prayed that it would end 

But it just kept right on

Stuffing my lungs with its vapours

Throttling my throat with its fumes

Killing me softly with its smog

Killing me softly with its smog

Clouding my whole life with its fog

Killing me softly with its smog

It felt as if I would choke

In all my dark despair

But the murk kept thickening

For it I wasn't there

My eyes were teary and bleary

But it just kept right on

Stuffing my lungs with its vapours

Throttling my throat with its fumes

Killing me softly with its smog

Killing me softly with its smog

Clouding my whole life with its fog

Killing me softly with its smog

BEATLES NEW SINGLE AT No. 1 AFTER 54 YEARS

A new number by The Beatles, "Now And Then", has hit the UK music charts number one spot yesterday, 10th November. But The Beatles broke up in 1972, John Lennon was assassinated in December 1980 and George Harrison died in November 2001. So how can we have a new number from the group now? Thanks to 'Artificial Intelligence' or AI for short. 

While there is controversy surrounding this technology what with deepfakes, morphs and "hallucinations" whereby AI sites give imagined replies in case of information they don't have, there are two outstanding musical events we have to be thankful to AI for. The first is ABBA's Voyage concert which had its opening ceremony in London in May last year. All four members of the group were in the audience watching their virtual 'avatars' as in 1979 called ABBAtars perform on stage. The Voyage show will continue till 29 November 2024. And now we have this recording by The Beatles. 

The story behind "Now and Then" is interesting. John Lennon wrote it at the piano and recorded it on tape in 1978. Yoko Ono found the cassette with some others in 1994 and gave the lot for the compilation of The Beatles "Anthology". The sound quality of "Now and Then" was very poor and George Harrison was initially not interested. But Ringo and Paul in particular, were keen to pursue it. So they got George to contribute electric and acoustic guitar accompaniment while Ringo provided drums and Paul, bass, guitar and piano in support of John's voice. This was recorded in 1995 but the sound quality of John's voice remained poor and the project was shelved.

Two years ago, filmmaker Peter Jackson found the tapes in a dusty cupboard and, with advanced technology, succeeded in isolating John's voice clearly. He contacted Paul and Ringo and, with George's old recording, they added their own accompaniment combining all to produce a complete song. Paul and Ringo were happy and satisfied that the recording retained the originality of The Beatles' voices and instruments and that AI was used only as a facilitator and not to clone for the Beatles.

The song was released on 2 November and within 10 hours, made its entry in the UK music charts at No. 42. In three days, it had become the Fab Fours' most streamed track ever beating the previous best "Here Comes the Sun". And in one week, it climbed to the top spot in the charts knocking off the most popular singer of today, Taylor Swift. "Now And Then" became the group's 18th topper, 54 years after the 17th, "The Ballad of John and Yoko" in 1969 and 61 years after their first single, "Love Me Do". It is now being played and sung along all over including the quaint Beatles-themed cafe in Rishikesh along river Ganga, their three month home in 1968.

The Beatles also became the oldest band ever to hit number one spot with Paul aged 82 and Ringo 83. 

So what is the secret of the intense and immediate appeal of The Beatles even after 60 years during which pop music has seen so many new and popular singers and forms? Ian Leslie, who is writing a book about the relationship between John Lennon and Paul McCartney, wrote in the New York Times, "Beatles songs still speak to us so directly because they are vehicles for the transmission of feelings too powerful for normal speech.... Almost everything they felt -and they felt a lot- was poured into music." John Lennon himself said, "Talking is the slowest form of communicating. Music is much better."

The Beatles could clearly bring this out in their songs, short and sweet, simple and direct. Most of their songs were only about 2 1/2 minutes long, with just a few lines which were often repeated. Sweetly sung, they are easy to sing along. Take "Love Me Do", written by Paul, age 16, for his girlfriend. 2 minutes and 22 seconds with the following major lines repeated-

"Love, love me do, You know I love you, I'll always be true, So please love me do....

Someone to love, Somebody new, Someone to love, Someone like you."

Simple love lines were sung captivatingly and listeners just loved them. In their first top single "From Me To You", they declared 'If there's anything that you want, if there's anything I can do, Just call on me and I'll send it along, with love from me to you.' The title of "I Want To Hold Your Hand" says it plainly; the physical contact is so good that 'when I touch you I feel happy inside, it's such a feeling that my love, I can't hide.' In "Can't Buy Me Love", it is love over money- 'I'll give you all I've got to give if you say you love me too, I may not have a lot to give but what I've got I'll give to you. I don't care too much for money, money can't buy me love.' And in "Hard Day's Night", it is the comfort of the loved one at home that would wipe away all the fatigue of the day's hard work- 'It's been a hard day's night, and I've been working like a dog....But when I get home to you, I find the things that you do, will make me feel alright....'Cause when I get you alone, you know I feel okay.' 

And so on to the 'last' song, "Now And Then"  which sings of a former partner or lover and the wish to be together again. It is believed that John Lennon missed Paul McCartney a lot and wanted to make up and reunite. Paul probably sensed this and hence his eagerness to produce the song-

'I know it's true, it's all because of you, and if I make it through, it's all because of you.

And now and then, if we must start again, well, we will know for sure that I will love you.

Now and then, I miss you, Oh, now and then, I want you to be there for me, always to return to me....

Now and then, I miss you, Oh, now and then, I want you to be there for me."

Did we say 'last song'? There are many cassettes left behind by John Lennon and something may still be waiting to be discovered. As John sang, "Imagine!"

LYRICS BY OSCAR HAMMERSTEIN II

This is my 150th post on this blog. So the subject is music which is closest to my heart.

And in music, lyrics are extremely important. Someone wrote, "Without words, it is just a nice tune. Add words - now you've got a song. And songs can change your world."

When it comes to words, Oscar Hammerstein II, named after his grandfather, was one of the best. If in the credits of a musical you read, "Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II", you knew you could sit, dream and romanticise listening to the lyrics.

More than just a lyricist, Oscar was a librettist who revolutionised American musical theatre by integrating all aspects of a musical with the songs and dances arising out of the plot and contributing to the story line. Just over a hundred years ago, in 1922, came his first success, "Wildflower". Another success followed, "Rose Marie" in 1924, and then the great hit, "Showboat" in 1927 in partnership with  composer, Jerome Kern, which firmly put Oscar in line to become one of the most famous and popular musicians ever.

He wrote for movies as well and won two Academy Awards for Best Original Song, "The Last Time I Saw Paris" from "Lady Be Good" in 1941 and "It Might As Well Be Spring" from "State Fair" in 1945. But his heart was in Broadway musicals. In early 1940s, composer Richard Rodgers was looking for a collaborator to adapt the play "Green Grow The Lilacs" into a musical. He persuaded Oscar to join him and in 1943, they brought "Oklahoma" to Broadway and one of the most famous musical partnerships was born. For the next 17 years, till Oscar's passing away in 1960, the two produced hits after hits winning numerous awards. Apart from "Oklahoma", their most famous musicals included "Carousel", "State Fair", "South Pacific", "The King And I", "Flower Drum Song" and finally, "The Sound Of Music" in 1959. The last song Oscar wrote was "Edelweiss" for "The Sound of Music."

Hammerstein has been the only Oscar to win the Academy Award of the same name and was nominated for three more 'Best Songs' including "A Kiss To Build A Dream On" sung beautifully by Louis Armstrong. He won two Pulitzer prizes for writing "Oklahoma" and "South Pacific", two Grammy Awards, one for the 'Best Show Album' for "The Sound Of Music" and the second as 'Trustees Award'. He won five Tony Awards, three of them for Best Musical with Richard Rodgers for "South Pacific", "The King And I" and "The Sound Of Music".

A number of plays were made into movies which most of us would have seen. They were also outstanding successes such as "The Sound of Music", "South Pacific", "The King and I" and "Oklahoma". "The Sound of Music" is the third highest grossing movie of all time and the most successful musical ever filmed.

In reverse, "State Fair" was first made as a movie and then adapted as a play.

Oscar was a member of the American Theater Hall of Fame and won many citations and other awards, many of them combined with Richard Rodgers. Musicians and critics called him 'the man who owned Broadway'. And the title song from "Oklahoma" was adopted as its state song by the state of Oklahoma.

Now let us come to the exquisite lyrics and songs which contributed towards Oscar becoming a giant in the musical world. As always in such matters, it is not an easy task to shortlist but I shall attempt to write about the ones I love for the appealing lyrics in chronological order.

"Ol' Man River" from "Showboat" is not only the oldest but one of the early ones I learnt in 1951 almost immediately after I started listening to Western music. I can picture Irish Father MacKessack singing it in our music class after school in his baritone voice a la Paul Robeson. In the song, a black slave describes his hapless plight while the river Mississippi keeps rolling along unconcerned. The words would move even the coldest of hearts-

"Dere's an ol' man called the Mississippi, dat's the ol' man I'd like to be!

What does he care if de world's got troubles, what does he care if de land ain't free....

Ol' man river, dat ol' man river, he must know sumpin', but don't say nothin',

He jes keeps rollin', he keeps on rollin' along.

He don't plant taters, he don't plant cotton, and dem that plants 'em, is soon forgotten,

But ol' man river, he jes keeps rollin' along.

You and me, we sweat and strain, body all achin', and racked with pain,

Tote dat barge! lift dat bale! Get a little drunk, and you land in jail.

I gets weary, and sick of tryin', I'm tired of living, and scared of dyin',

But ol' man river, he jes keeps rollin' along!"

Next we have the Oscar winning "The Last Time I Saw Paris". The song was used in the movie "Lady Be Good" even though it was not written for it. I first heard it and loved it when I saw the 1954 movie starring Van Johnson and Elizabeth Taylor in which it was the title song. Set in Paris, it is a tragic story of a marriage gone sour because of a misunderstanding. The song in which Paris is spoken of as a young lady was sung captivatingly by the French-American singer, Odette, and repeated a number of times touching deep emotions in the viewer/listener-

"The last time I saw Paris, her heart was warm and gay,

I heard the laughter of her heart in every street cafe.

The last time I saw Paris, her trees were dressed for spring,

And lovers walked beneath those trees and birds found songs to sing....

The last time I saw Paris, her heart was warm and gay,

No matter how they change her, I'll remember her that way."

On to "Oklahoma", the first musical written by Rodgers and Hammerstein (R&H) and an instant success. The setting is the countryside in Oklahoma and is a story of two romances, the main one between cowboy Curly and farm girl Laurie. The musical has 14 numbers, all great, so I shall pick up three of what I consider the best-

"Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'" comes in the opening scene sung by Curly going to meet Laurie. He is cheerful, optimistic and certain that things will go his way. "Oh, what a beautiful mornin', oh, what a beautiful day. I've got a beautiful feelin', everything's goin' my way.'

Next, "People Will Say We're In Love". Shy, reserved, not wanting people to know they are in love, Laurie warns, "Don't sigh and gaze at me, your sighs are so like mine, your eyes mustn't glow like mine....Don't dance all night with me, 'til the stars fade from above, they'll see it's all right with me, people will say we're in love." But Curly shouts, "Let people will say we're in love. Who cares what happens now, just keep your hand in mine, your hand feels so grand in mine. Let people say we're in love."

In the song by the other couple, Annie demands total commitment from Will, "All Er Nuthin'". "With me it's all er nuthin', is it all er nuthin' with you? It can't be in between, it can't be now and then, no half-and-half romance will do."

"Oklahoma" was followed by "Carousel" two years later. A carousel barker Billy Bigelow falls in love with millworker Julie Jordan and, in order to provide for Julie and an unborn child, takes part in a robbery and is killed. Fifteen years later, he is given a chance to go back to earth for a day to set things right. The two outstanding songs which are sung more than once in the play are "If I Loved You" and "You'll Never Walk Alone."

Billy and Julie love each other but are too shy to openly express themselves. So they qualify their feelings by the word 'if'-

"If I loved you, time and again I would try to say all I'd want you to know.

If I loved you, words wouldn't come in an easy way, round in circles I'd go.

Longing to tell you but afraid and shy, I'd let my golden chances pass me by,

Soon you'd leave me, off you would go in the mist of day,

Never, never to know, how I loved you, if I loved you."

The song is regarded as one of the best love songs ever.

"You'll Never Walk Alone" is sung twice, firstly by Julie's cousin, Nettie, to comfort and support the former when Billy is killed. Then, by the invisible Billy permitted to return to earth for one day to set things right and attend the graduation ceremony of his daughter-

"When you walk through a storm, hold your head up high and don't be afraid of the dark,

At the end of the storm there's a golden sky, and the sweet silver song of a lark....

Walk on, walk on, with hope in your heart,

And you'll never walk alone...you'll never walk alone."

The song has been used by many agencies including religious ones as a support song. Recently, it was used in UK and Europe to encourage medical staff and patients under quarantine during Covid.

R&H's next box office bumper on Broadway was "South Pacific" in 1949. Many of us would have seen the movie adaptation released in 1958. The plot was based on a number of stories from the book "Tales of South Pacific" by James Michener. It has 15 songs covering a variety of emotions from happy to sad, funny to romantic. "Dites-Moi" is a delightfully sweet song sung by two Polynesian children. The heroine, nurse Nellie, reiterates that she would remain "A Cockeyed Optimist" no matter what; in today's world, remembering one line would do us all a lot of good, "I hear the human race, is falling on its face, and hasn't very far to go.... But I'm stuck like a dope, with a thing called hope, and I can't get it into my head!" Then we have sailors who have everything on the island but girls,"There Is Nothing Like A Dame". But Bloody Mary, a fat, native middle-aged woman who chats and flirts good-naturedly with American sailors, sings of the island's irresistible attraction in "Bali Ha'i" which has its 'head sticking out from a low-flying cloud'. Nellie, who has fallen in love with a much older Frenchman, Emile, desperately wants to forget him, "I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair." Emile, however, would not let Nellie go and sings that unforgettable number, "Some Enchanted Evening", which in my book is on par with "If I Loved You" as a love song-

"Some enchanted evening, you may see a stranger, you may see a stranger across a crowded room,

And somehow you know, you know even then, that somewhere you'll see her again and again....

Some enchanted evening, when you find your true love, when you feel her call you across a crowded room, 

Then fly to her side, and make her your own, or all through your life, you may dream all alone.

Once you have found her, never let her go, once you have found her, never let her go."

Two more years down the line, R&H brought "The King and I" on stage. In 1956, it was adapted into a film. This was a story of the experiences of a British governess, Anna, hired by the King of Siam for his children in the early 1860s. From different cultures, Anna and the King are in constant conflict but also in love with each other that neither could admit. Recalling its popular songs, the first one is "I Whistle A Happy Tune" which Anna sings to comfort her son-and herself-while approaching Bangkok to take up her assignment, "Whenever I feel afraid, I hold my head erect, and whistle a happy tune, so no one will suspect I am afraid." In "Hello Young Lovers", Anna reminisces about her love for her late husband, "Hello young lovers, whoever you are, I hope your troubles are few....Don't cry young lovers, whatever you do. Don't cry because I'm alone, all my memories are happy tonight, I've had a love of my own." Then in "Shall We Dance", Anna asks the King for a dance to celebrate a successful dinner for the British envoy. They begin tentatively but then dance a polka wholeheartedly without inhibitions-

Anna: "Shall we still be together with our arms around each other, and shall you be my new...

King: "Romance?"

Anna: "On the clear understanding that this kind of thing can happen."

Both: "Shall we dance? Shall we dance? Shall we dance?"

So we come to their final play, blockbuster "The Sound of Music", which opened on Broadway in 1959. It was an instant hit and one wonders if even R & H would have been able to repeat anything like it if Oscar had not passed away eight months after its opening. While a lucky few might have seen the musical on stage, I wonder if there is anyone who has not seen the movie adaptation which was released in 1965. Delightful and heartwarming are some words which come to mind just thinking about it. The film and its songs have retained their magic even after nearly 60 years and continue to enthral everyone aged 2 and above.

Just to refresh, the story, set in Salzburg, Austria, is about a young lady, Maria, who is studying to become a nun but because of her free nature, the Mother Superior doubts her capability to become a nun and instead, sends her to the villa of naval Captain von Trapp, a widower, as governess to his seven children. Captain has kept his kids under tight naval discipline but Maria treats them gently and they start loving her. She takes them around Salzburg and teaches them how to sing. Eventually, Captain and Maria fall in love and marry. Meanwhile, Nazi Germany captures Austria and the von Trapp family escape to Switzerland during a music festival in which they are participating.

I may add that the film was shot in and around Salzburg and there is a dedicated Sound of Music tour that takes you to all the sites where the movie and its songs were filmed. I have been fortunate to have done the tour twice, once when I went to nearby Munich on work and again when Akhila and I spent a few days in Salzburg. The sites are breathtakingly spectacular and I wonder if Oscar visited them for inspiration for his brilliant lyrics!

Both the play and the movie have about 20 songs and most were super hits. Here are some of them.

The title song in the beginning has Maria bursting through the hills savouring the outdoors with arms wide open and singing "The hills are alive with the sound of music, with songs they have sung for a thousand years....I go to the hills, when my heart is lonely, I know I will hear what I've heard before-my heart will be blessed with the sound of music, and I'll sing once more." The song is in the top ten of AFI's 100 years....100 songs.

To the children, Maria sings "My Favourite Things" which has become one of the most loved songs the world over- "Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens, bright copper kettles and warm woollen mittens....Cream-coloured ponies and crisp apple strudels, doorbells and sleigh bells and schnitzel with noodles....these are a few of my favourite things....When the dog bites, when the bee stings, when I'm feeling sad, I simply remember my favourite things, and then I don't feel so sad."

Then Maria sings "Do-Re-Mi" to teach the children musical notes. This is another song which has become hugely popular all over- "Let's start at the very beginning, a very good place to start, when you read you begin with A-B-C, when you sing you begin with Do-Re-Mi....Do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti....When you know the notes to sing, you can sing most anything."

Maria and the children do a puppet show for the Captain, his woman friend Elsa and a close pal Max. They sing and yodel "The Lonely Goatherd" as the theme for the show-"High on a hill was a lonely goatherd, layee odl, layee odl, layee oo. Loud was the voice of the lonely goatherd layee odl, layee odl, layee oo."

The Captain throws a party and before the guests sit down to dine, the children, told to go to bed, take their leave one by one in a number which is unmatched for its sweetness- "There's a sad sort of clanging from the clock in the hall and the bells in the steeple too. And up in the nurs'ry, an absurd little bird is popping out to say 'coo-coo, coo-coo, coo-coo'. Regretfully they tell us, but firmly compel us, to say goodbye to you. So long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, good night."

At the music festival, as the family is preparing to escape, Captain von Trapp sings a passionately patriotic number "Edelweiss" which is a musical tribute to his homeland-

"Edelweiss, Edelweiss, every morning you greet me,

Small and white, clean and bright, you look happy to meet me.

Blossom of snow may you bloom and grow, bloom and grow forever-

Edelweiss, Edelweiss, bless my homeland forever."

This was the last song Oscar Hammerstein II wrote. With it, he said, "So long, farewell.... good bye" to the world but couldn't say "auf wiedersehen!"

A NAVAL ICON - ADMIRAL RONNIE PEREIRA

A quote well known in the Navy is that of George Bernard Shaw which goes as follows-

"Men go into the Navy thinking they will enjoy it,

They do enjoy it for a year, at least the stupid ones do, riding back and forth quite dully on ships....

Gradually they become crazy, then they become crazier and crazier....

They are the ones who become Captains....

And the maddest of them become Admirals."

Seriously, becoming an Admiral is no joke and 'maddest' could perhaps be amended to read 'most capable'. We have had some outstanding ones like Admiral Chatterji who, as Director of Naval Plans at the age of 32, envisioned a two aircraft carrier Indian Navy way back in 1947. It took 40 years for his vision to come true. As Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), he was responsible for the acquisition of missile boats which were brilliantly employed by his successor Admiral Nanda, a great strategist, to bring Pakistan and its Navy to its knees.

This year, 2023, marks the birth centenary and 30 years of passing away of another exceptional Admiral, RL Pereira, CNS 1979-82. He was a born leader. Blessed with good height and build and handsome features, he had an impressive personality, always smiling but oozing authority. His honesty and integrity were beyond question even in golf where most people turn a blind eye to any transgression made by their caddies. Not Ronnie P (as he called himself), who broke his hand slapping a caddie who had kicked his ball to a better lie. Ronnie was completely unassuming and would walk into the wardroom bar like any other officer and sign not only for his own drink but for all around him.

He was very accessible and anyone could go and see him without an appointment in office or at home. He would inspire all under him to give off their best as evident by the fact that a ship under his command always won the Fleet Pulling Regatta, considered the ultimate test of morale of a ship's company. There is the often told story that when he was commanding the cruiser Delhi, his Best Whaler crew mistakenly rowed to victory in the wrong race and were disqualified. They had to row again immediately after in their correct race but were completely exhausted. Ronnie himself took over as Coxswain and exhorted them to victory that got them the coveted trophy, the Cock.

With all that, Ronnie was a strict disciplinarian and had a fine sense of right and wrong. Any lapse would earn an exemplary punishment. But Ronnie also had a heart of gold and once the punishment was awarded, Ronnie would forgive and give the man a fair chance to redeem himself. When he was commanding the Eastern Fleet, a Lieutenant commanding a patrol craft was dismissed from service and put in prison. Ronnie addressed his Fleet COs and said that while the youngster had rightly been punished for his offence, he was still one of 'us' and each ship in turn would send a meal daily to the officer in jail. 

In another case when he was the Deputy Commandant in the National Defence Academy, a cadet was relegated by a term for some offence. However, in a French Exam, he had come first and was entitled for a prize. The Principal withheld the prize but Ronnie ordered all the cadets to assemble and personally presented the cadet his due award with an apology that the prize was not awarded earlier.

Ronnie had a great sense of humour too. When he was CNS and I was Director Naval Signals (DNS), quite often there were complaints from senior officers' about their telephones not working. Although I had little to do with P & T, the blame would be put on my shoulders and I would be at the receiving end of their anger. One morning, I saw a cartoon in a paper showing a man on a telephone with the caption, "This is the Director P & T. Your telephone is working and you haven't thanked me yet." I changed 'Director P & T' to 'DNS' and inserted a copy of the cartoon in the senior officers' morning signals pack. The only person to react was Ronnie who rang up and said, "Ravi, my phone is working, thank you very much" followed by a full-throated guffaw.

I knew him well as I had the privilege of serving as Fleet Communications Officer when he was commanding the Eastern Fleet and playing golf with him. Ronnie had all the qualities of leadership and a lot of charisma. He was a true naval icon.

 

P.S. There was another Admiral, a colleague of Ronnie's of about the same seniority with many similarities who would also be considered by many to have been a naval icon. I hope to write about him some day.

 

SHRINATHJI AT NATHDWARA

The urge to visit Nathdwara for Shrinathji's darshan was irresistible.

It had been five years since we went there last. It was time to go again.

Shrinathji is the central presiding deity of the Vaishnava sect and the 'Ishta-Devata' or personal deity of the community of Suryadwaj brahmins to which our family belongs. The idol of Shrinathji is of seven year old Lord Krishna depicting the act of lifting a hill with his left hand to protect his home town of Govardhan from a deluge of rain.

Legend has it that in 1409, a stone appeared on Govardhan hill near Mathura which people thought was a snake deity as it happened to be on the festival of 'naag-panchmi'. Some years later, the stone emerged further out of the hill revealing a human head. When Vallabhacharya, a saint, philosopher and devotee of Lord Krishna, came to know of it, he built a temple in Govardhan to instal the idol which is believed to have self-manifested from stone.

Folklore has a cute story as told by Akhila's mother to her. A little girl named Naro used to take out the family's cow to Govardhan hill every day. Naro's father noticed that on return, the cow's udders were dry. On questioning, Naro said that milk used to flow out of the cow at a particular spot on the hill. The father accompanied her the next day and was amazed to see that happen. He along with some relatives started digging the spot where they believed they heard a child's voice. Finally, the idol emerged.

History records that the idol was shifted from Govardhan to Mathura and then Agra in 1672 to safeguard it from destruction by Aurangzeb. It was then decided to go further south and a special chariot without any metal parts was constructed for the transportation. At a village called Sihad in Mewar, the chariot got stuck in the mud. The Rana of Mewar volunteered to protect the idol and ordered a haveli to be built for housing it. And that is how Nathdwara came into being. Incidentally, the chariot is on display at the temple for viewing.

My first darshan of Shrinathji was in 1949 when Pitaji moved to Udaipur as a High Court Judge on formation of the state of Rajasthan. During '49-'50, we visited Nathdwara for all prominent festivals like Janmashtami, Diwali and Holi. I vividly recall being awestruck at seeing the ceiling-high mound of rice on Govardhan Puja or Annakoot which is celebrated the day after Diwali. 

Another feature on festivals is the playing of drums, trumpet and clarinet at the entrance of the temple. Recorded bhajans of Surdas sung in haveli music style by Pandit Jasraj accompanied by the deep, unique sound of pakhawaj (a type of drum), are broadcast over loudspeakers to create a reverential atmosphere for devotees awaiting darshan. 

Shrinathji's idol is treated exactly as a mother would treat her child. In fact, in another room in the temple, there is a palna (cradle) with a tiny idol of Krishna as a knee-crawling child and the pujaris rock the palna and keep Krishna entertained with tops and other toys. Daily rituals like bathing, dressing, feeding and siesta are followed religiously and Shrinathji adorned with jewels and silk vastras (dresses) with intricate embroidery and designs. The shrine is opened eight times for devotees to have a jhanki or viewing of the idol. Once a vastra is worn, it is not repeated and given away to devotees.

On the road from Udaipur to Kishangarh, there are four temples which are regarded as a mini 'char dham' by our community. Shrinathji is, of course, the most famous of them. 20 kms north of Nathdwara is a town called Kankroli which hosts the Dwarkadhish temple perched on a hill with a beautiful view of Rajsamand lake. The temple was completed in 1676 and houses the idol of Dwarkadhish, a swaroop of Lord Krishna. This idol too was originally in Gokul, near Mathura, and shifted first to Ahmedabad and then to Kankroli to prevent Aurangzeb from capturing or destroying it. Rituals followed for Dwarkadhishji are same as for Shrinathji.

Another 44 kms up towards Kishengarh, just off the highway, is the third leg of the char dham, Charbhuja temple, so-called because the Lord Krishna idol here has four hands. The temple was completed in 1444.

Turning back towards Udaipur and after passing Kankroli and Nathdwara, we come to the final leg of our char dham. Eklingji temple, 22 kms short of Udaipur, is devoted to Lord Shiva. This is the oldest temple of the four dating back to 734 AD. The temple has undergone its share of ravaging and reconstruction and the present idol, Eklingji (Shiva) was installed in late 15th century. The chief patron of the temple is the Maharana of Mewar and Akhila and I have been witness to the Maharana performing the aarti himself on one of our visits.

After leaving Udaipur in 1951, I have visited Nathdwara for Shrinathji darshan many times. Mummy took Akhila and me there soon after our wedding. Mummy's cousin, Santosh Mamaji was the Chief Executive Officer of the temple then. I mentioned to him that people seemed to push around needlessly while doing darshan even when there was not much crowd and asked him if he could stop it. He explained to me that it was a religious custom to push from side to side to create a sense of being amidst the waves of Yamuna river and he would not do anything about it.

A couple of years later, Ruchir's 'mundan' ceremony was performed in the courtyard of the temple.  Two and a half year old Ruchir was resisting and showing his displeasure at the barber shaving his head. However, he was held down while the barber did his job. On completion, the barber happily showed him a mirror but that made Ruchir more angry and he caught the barber by his hair and gave him two tight slaps!

In 2003, Akhila and I took Mummy along with us to Nathdwara. That was Mummy's final trip to the temple. 

On some of those trips, we completed the char dham also. 

And so, Akhila and I made a two day visit to Nathdwara end-September. We stayed at the Radisson hotel commissioned last year. The hotel is just 2 kms from the temple and its staff organised our darshans smoothly and efficiently. Our room also had a fine view of The Statue of Belief or Vishwas Swaroopam, a statue of Lord Shiva, also completed last year and said to be the tallest statue of Shiva in the world. It is 369 feet tall and can be seen from as far as 20 kms. At 8 every night, there is a light show which we could see from our room terrace.

Urge satisfied and mission achieved, we drove back to Jaipur after Eklingji darshan as well.

P.S. For anyone visiting Nathdwara, we highly recommend the tea served in the string of stalls just outside the temple. The tea is made in front of you in a large 'patila' (vessel) with the chaiwala grinding chunks of ginger into a paste and adding it with heaps of fresh pudina leaves to the boiling water, milk and tea leaves. Sugar is added and the tea served in tiny kulhars. The taste is unique and exquisite.

 

DEV SAAB - TEN BEST SONGS FROM HIS FILMS

Dev Anand, or Dev Saab as he was respectfully but affectionately called, would have been 100 on 23 September this year. Sadly, he passed away 12 years ago.

I spotted a similarity between Dev Saab and my Mansi. Both were born in 1923 and lived to be 88. Mansi was not an actor but must have had appropriate genes which she passed on to a daughter and a granddaughter both of them actors. Since Dev Saab was Mansi's age and 15 years my elder, I shall continue to call him Dev Saab.

He was one of the first three superstars of Indian cinema with Raj Kapoor and Dilip Kumar. Raj Kapoor took on Charlie Chaplin's Tramplike figure, poor, cheerful and honest despite adversity while Dilip Kumar acted his way to be known as the king of tragedy. Dev Saab was more versatile as a romantic hero equally at home mostly in comedies but also some tragedies as well as thrillers. He perfected his own unique style of delivering his dialogues in a rapid-fire mode accompanied by nods. Breezy, charming and cheerful, he always exuded hope and optimism. Critics compared him to Gregory Peck and gave him the title of 'Evergreen Hero'. 

Dev Saab was very fond of music and songs were an integral part of his films. He would take personal interest and interact with the composers and lyricists urging them to mould the songs as per his choice. He acted in over 100 films and the number of songs would run into hundreds. With his brilliant acting backed by the top singers, composers and lyricists, it is a tough task to shortlist the best songs. 

Still, choices are personal and so here is my list of ten, not in any particular order. 

"Khoya Khoya Chand" from "Kaala Pani". As Sunil Warrier in Times of India wrote, Dev Saab 'goes mountain-sashaying with legs and arms swinging with abandon as if unscrewed.' Waheeda Rehman was in the female lead role.

"Chhod Do Aanchal Zamana Kya Kahega" (Paying Guest). Filmed with Nutan playfully asking Dev Saab to leave her alone.

"Pal Bhar Ke Liye Koi Hame Pyar Kar Le, Jhoota Hi Sahi" (Johny Mera Naam). Here Dev Saab is wooing Hema Malini in and out of numerous windows for at least a moment of love even if it is a lie! A delightfully mischievous number.

"Hai Apna Dil To Awaara" (Solva Saal). Sung for Waheeda Rehman in a train. Special feature, RD Burman' accompaniment on the mouth organ.

"Main Zindagi Ka Saath Nibhata Chala Gaya" (Hum Dono). Dev Saab as an Army officer ruminating how he got over ups and downs in his life.

"Gaata Rahe Mera Dil" (Guide). Dev Saab's acting and Kishore Kumar's brilliant singing make this composition of SD Burman unforgettable.

"Tere Mere Sapne" (Guide). This time it is Mohammed Rafi lending his voice to Dev Saab in an emotional number which he sings for the heroine, Waheeda Rehman.

"Phoolon Ka Taron Ka Sabka Kehna Hai" (Hare Krishna Hare Ram). A sweet song straight from the heart sung by a devoted brother (Dev Saab) to his loving sister (Zeenat Aman). This has become a standard number to be sung or played on a sister's birthday or Rakhi festival.

"Sau Saal Pehle" (Jab Pyar Kisi Se Hota Hai). Dev Saab and Asha Parekh with the melodious voices of Mohd. Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar declare everlasting love for each other from 100 years ago to today to tomorrow.

"Abhi Na Jao Chhod Kar" (Hum Dono). Dev Saab and Sadhana picturise this hugely emotional song by Mohd. Rafi and Asha Bhosle. Lyrics penned by Sahir Ludhianvi are outstanding: can the heart ever be satisfied with the time one spends with one's loved one? Let some lines speak for themselves-

"....Abhi abhi to aayi ho, bahar banke chhayi ho,

Hawa zara mehak to le, nazar zara behak to le,

Yeh shaam dhal to le zara, yeh dil sambhal to le zara,

Main thodi deir jee to loon, nashe ke ghoont pee to loon,

Abhi to kuchh kaha nahin, abhi to kuchh suna nahin,

Abhi na jao chhod kar ke dil abhi bhara nahin."

Wah Dev saab, wah! Wish you were still here to keep bringing such numbers to us.

 

 

THE RINK, MUSSOORIE

The picture, largely in red, and the caption in Times of India, "Inferno Reduces Hilly Icon To Ashes" caught my attention. It further said that a fire broke out in a hotel in Mussoorie in which "The Rink", 'an iconic 19th century heritage building was reduced to ashes....It had once housed Asia's largest wooden skating rink.'

That brought back memories of my visits to The Rink Hotel. The first was in 1949 when Masarji was commanding the 5th Gorkha Rifles in Dehradun and Mansi invited Mummy and me, age 10, to spend the summer holidays with them. We went up to Mussoorie for a week and visited the Hotel a few times. Then in 1965, I visited Mussoorie with the National Defence College team and found time to skate in The Rink. My final visit was in June 1995, when I took Mummy, Akhila and the kids to the hill station to escape the simmering Delhi summer for a while. This time, aging bones dictated that I stay away from skating and let Ruchir and Shumita indulge in the sport.

But the predominant memory is one of 1949. On an evening out, we went to the The Rink and I was introduced to the art of roller skating. I indulged in it for about an hour and loved it.

The next afternoon, I asked Mummy to take me skating again. The Hotel was more than 4 kms. from where we were staying, too far to go walking. Mummy was more keen on her siesta than to venture out looking for a rickshaw, the only transport available. So she firmly declined while I kept on insisting on going. She got into bed and I walked out saying I was headed for The Rink, come what may, hoping she would be forced to follow.

After I had walked a bit, I turned around to see whether Mummy was following me. That is when things went wrong. As Mummy told me later, she had just stepped out to see where I was. When she saw me turning, she thought I was coming back and went back to bed. On the other hand, when I saw her out in the open, I reckoned she was following me! 

Smug in my belief that my pressure tactics had worked, I resumed my march to The Rink. I reached the bend where the Mall Road began and stopped for Mummy to catch up but she was nowhere in sight. To make matters worse, it started to rain. There was a small bandstand by the roadside and I took shelter in it.

Now I was worried and at a loss wondering what to do. How long would it rain, should I go back to the house, although there was only one road but the house was a little off it and what if I missed it in poor visibility? I was also beginning to dread thoughts of the reception I might get on my return! Worry, worry, worry, and panic had started to creep in.

Just then, I saw a rickshaw with a lady partly hidden under an umbrella. As it passed the bandstand, I realised the lady was Mummy and ran after the rickshaw shouting for her. The rickshaw puller finally heard me and allowed me to catch up. I got into the rickshaw and a chilly silence prevailed between Mummy and me. She must have given the rickshaw puller directions earlier because he headed for The Rink and dropped us there. Mummy finally broke the silence telling me, “Go and skate.”

Spoilt kid? Perhaps.

WHAT IF....?

Mid-September is the time of year when I like to sit and look back at how years have gone by. 

An incident that involved Mummy over 40 years ago provided the theme for my thinking this time. We were staying on the 5th floor in the SP Marg flats. Mummy was with us and used to take Shumita, 5, for walks outside. One evening, the lift got stuck between floors. Shumita was panicking but Mummy kept her cool and while comforting Shumita, started rattling the lift doors and shouting for help. It took quite some time before some neighbours heard her and summoned an electrician who pulled Mummy and Shumita out of the lift. All this while, Mummy was completely calm and composed.

They came home and told us about the incident. It is then that Mummy burst out crying and wouldn't stop. We had a hard time pacifying her and asked her why she was crying when all was well. She said, "What if nobody had heard me and helped?"

We often ask ourselves what if something had happened differently and dismiss the thought lightly. But each of us would have been subject to a few major incidents that set the course of one's life in an unalterable direction. Mostly, there would have been an alternate. And then the question might have arisen, "What if 'that' had happened?"

Here are some in my book.

I. The first incident was the biggest influencer in my life. In 1942, my father, 30, passed away after a brief illness in Alwar. I was 4 and Mummy, 21. She had been married at the age of 16 just after becoming the first girl from our community to complete high school which she did as the only girl in a Boys' college in Mathura. Pitaji, my Nana, rushed to Alwar and brought Mummy and me to Mathura. Mummy was packed off to Benares, now Varanasi, to restart her education and I was taken care of by Pitaji and Mataji.

What if Daddy had lived his full life? Would we have remained in Alwar where he was working, what kind of schooling would I have had, would I have had siblings, etc., etc. Obviously, life would have been very different.

There could be a sub what-if too. Normally in a patriarchal society, which we were, Mummy and I might have been asked to live with my Dadi. My Dada had already passed away and my Dadi was very conservative and not educated. For sure, Mummy would not have been allowed to study further and would have been confined to the house in the purdah-dominated environment. And what kind of education would I have had?

Instead, Pitaji's broad mindedness and foresight shaped the course of our lives. Pitaji became my father, Mataji, an additional mother and my two Mamas, loving and respected brothers. The pain of losing my father was hugely mitigated by all their love and care. I was pampered by other relations as well and I was often teased by those close to me that I was a spoilt kid!

II. The next big happening was how I went to the NDA instead of St. Stephen's College, Delhi. After completing my Senior Cambridge from St. Xavier's, Jaipur, I had applied to join the NDA as also St. Stephen's College. Delhi. I qualified for the NDA but till mid-July, had not received any orders to join it. Meanwhile, I was called to Delhi for an interview at St. Stephen's and granted admission on payment of admission and boarding fees which were quite substantial. Determined not to waste Pitaji's money, I was in a dilemma, St. Stephen's or NDA? I mentioned the problem to the Principal who gave me half an hour to make up my mind. 

I managed to get a few coins, went to a Public Call phone (PCO), found a telephone directory, rang up the Army Exchange and got through to Col. Sharma, my Mausaji, who was posted in the Army HQ. I explained the situation to him and he said he would try to find out and that I should call him back in 15 minutes. I got through to him again and he informed me that my joining instructions had already been posted to Jaipur and I had to join the NDA in 3 days' time. St. Stephen's was declined, I rushed back to Jaipur and thence to Kharakvasla by train.

Many things could be subjected to 'what-if' here. 10 paise coins were hard to get, PCOs were infamous for not functioning, a tele directory was not found in most PCOs, Masarji (as I called him) might not have been available; everything had to work for me to get my information and it did. Otherwise, I would have been a bureaucrat or in the teaching profession as suggested by Father Mackessack at St. Xavier's!

III. NDA was a step I had taken to join the Navy and see the world. But after one term and six months of mental and physical ragging, marching like robots stomping heavily booted feet on the parade ground, jumping on wooden horses, dangling off the ground on beams, etc., it didn't seem to make any sense to me. Another factor disturbed me. After the first term in 'F' squadron and getting used to officers, fellow cadets and drill staff there, I was transferred to the newly formed 'K' and had to start adjusting all over again. Besides, the next course, 15th, was delayed and till they arrived, ragging for our course continued as we were still the juniormost. 

So I became convinced that I was not going to subject myself to all that nonsense any more. I decided to leave the NDA and informed my Divisional Officer and Pitaji. There was panic at home and my Mamas were told to visit me and find out what was troubling me. Over the next month, they made a number of visits and my Div Offr spoke to me for about an hour every day trying to convince me to stay on. But to no avail; I stuck to my decision to leave. Finally, Pitaji sent me a letter enclosing a request to the Commandant to release me and agreeing to bear all expenses NDA may levy for my training so far. Pitaji also wrote that before approaching the Commandant, I might like to read another letter that he was enclosing.

That letter was a 26 page masterpiece from Shashi Mama to Pitaji in which he trashed my grounds for leaving and summed me up as a stubborn mule bent on doing something totally unjustifiable. I read the letter a few times, tore Pitaji's request to the Commandant and informed everyone concerned that I would stay on in the NDA.

What if Pitaji had not shared that letter with me? He and Mummy were quite sympathetic with me and had started planning for my return. Pitaji had contacted St. Stephen's who were ready to admit me for BA Honours (Economics) in the next academic session. And what if I had dismissed Shashi Mama's arguments like I had been doing everyone's including his for over a month? However, that letter set my future course and I am a retired naval officer today and not a bureaucrat or educationist.

I had preserved that letter all through my career but lost it during my final move after retiring from the Navy. I wish I had it with me now so I could calmly go through it and try to understand what went through my mind then.

IV. The following incident sounds comic now but scared the hell out of me when it happened. I have described it in detail in my earlier blog 'Survival Tale II-Dismissal From Navy'. Briefly, during the visit of a US naval ship to Cochin, my coursemate Bakshish Singh and I, along with an American officer, were spotted on the road by the Base Commander (second-in-command) carrying a glass of drink in our hands while in uniform. The Commander threatened to throw us out of the Navy for what he called 'unofficer-like-behaviour'. According to Bakshish, this seemingly exaggerated threat was due to the fact that he had declined to marry the Cdr's daughter. To save our careers, I implored Bakshish to accept the Cdr's proposal but he said he couldn't do that as he was already committed to another girl.

Our appointment for being marched up to the Captain was in a few days' time. Meanwhile, some close relative of the Cdr passed away and he proceeded on leave. The case was then handled by the Acting Cdr who was a fine, large-hearted gentleman and we escaped with a scolding by the Captain.

What if the Cdr did not have to go away? I have often wondered if the Captain would have taken the extreme step of dismissal but he did have a tough reputation and was known as 'bulldog'. The Cdr seemed bent on throwing us out and as we were under training, it was within the powers of the Captain to dismiss us.

V. War over and happily married, I was looking forward to undergo the 1973 Staff College Course in Wellington as it was the turn of officers of my seniority to be selected. I was shocked, therefore, when the list came out but my name was missing. I put in a representation backed by Rear Admiral Sarma, Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Fleet and my boss, but there was no response from NHQ. Shashi Mama (Cdr PK Sharma) was in Delhi and met the Dy Director concerned in the Personnel Branch who told him that I should forget about Staff College. Apparently my mediocre (though improved from the  original 'adverse' through the intervention of RAdm Vasu Kamath, FOC Southern Command) report from OiC Signal School had come in the way of my selection.

In time the '74 list was put out which also did not have my name. Late '73, Cmde Mohan Grewal, Chief of Staff, Eastern Naval Command, was promoted to RAdm and transferred to NHQ as Asstt Chief of Personnel (ACOP). Within a few days, a signal was received adding my name to the '74 list.

Adm Grewal knew me from the NDC days in '65-'66 when he was Junior Directing Staff (Navy) and I was Flag Lt to Comdt. In Vizag too, we had a good equation and he had sympathised with me over my non-selection. So he corrected that wrong as soon as he got the opportunity to do so.

What if Adm Grewal had got a job other than ACOP? I would certainly have missed Staff College and probably shifted to some inane staff job in Vizag and passed over for promotion. Instead, I topped the '74 Course which washed out the mediocre report and I was promoted to Cdr at the end of my Course.

VI. By early-1985, I had commanded Trishul for about a year and a half and was due for my next posting. I received the NHQ letter appointing me as Defence Advisor, Indian High Commission, Singapore, to report by end-April, by which time the incumbent would have completed 3 years of normal tenure plus one year of extension granted to him. My family and I looked forward to moving to Singapore and began our preparations. But soon, there was another letter deferring my transfer as the incumbent had been granted an additional six months extension. I was slightly disappointed but quite happy with the resultant extension of my command and our eventual move to Singapore.

One evening, Kailash Kohli who was commanding Ganga, came over and said he had something important to tell me. He had gone to see the FOCinC and while waiting outside, overheard a telephone conversation between the CNS and the CinC to the effect that I was too senior to go to Singapore and that somebody else should be appointed as DA Singapore.

I thanked Kailash and immediately conveyed this to a senior well-wisher of mine in NHQ. My appointment held firm and I was in Singapore by end-October.

What if Kailash had not overheard the conversation or decided not to tell me? As I learnt subsequently, the threat was real and my family and I were on the verge of missing the 3 good years we had in Singapore. More than that, Ruchir and Shumita would not have had the high quality education and the wide, international exposure they got at the United World College, Singapore, which has stood them in good stead.

VII. 65 years ago, when we were cadets, our ship Tir was at anchor off Port Blair. Lt HML Saxena,  Navigating Officer, took us out in the ship's fast motor boat to teach us boat handling. I, a non-swimmer, fell overboard into the rough Andaman Sea and went underwater while the boat kept going. As I surfaced, I saw the ship's whaler, tied to the boom, next to me. I grabbed it and climbed into it and was picked up after a while.

What if I had surfaced below the whaler instead of by its side? Or what if I had surfaced a little bit away from the boat?

But here I am telling you these tales. "The moving finger writes...."

 

 

  

WHAT'S IN A NAME?

A famous quote from Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" is "What's in a name'?". In a soliloquy, Juliet, a Capulet in love with Romeo belonging to the sworn rival Montague clan, asks the question and goes on to provide an answer, "That which we call a rose by any other name would smell just as sweet", implying that names are irrelevant and it is the nature and characteristics of the person that matter.

In our family, as in many others in India, it was forbidden to address older relatives by name. I guess when the first child arrived in a family, he or she was told to address the parents and relatives by monikers which then continued to be used by siblings and future generations. So my Nana's father was known as Chachaji and mother as Bahuji. And everybody including me, a great grandchild, called them that. My cousins and I called my Nana, Pitaji, and Nani, Mataji, and so did our children. On my father's side, I identified a granduncle as Alwarwale Chachaji due to his city of residence.

Many names particularly of ladies were not ever known. Thereby hangs a tale. Bahuji went blind at a very young age and used to spend the daytime draped in a thin cotton sari sitting on a coir charpoy in the 'aangan' of her house. One day, Mummy, then just a kid, got curious and asked Bahuji her name. Bahuji told her to keep quiet and go away but Mummy kept on pestering her. Bahuji's third son, teenager Brijendra Chacha was nearby and listening. He picked up a piece of coal and started scribbling on Bahuji's back which Mummy quite innocently read out loud as he wrote. She went, "Ja-ga-bha-vi-ni" when Bahuji shouted and scolded her for being impertinent because that was her name!

Akhila's family followed the same rule. Her father was called Babuji and mother, Amma, and the whole of Bijnor knew them thus. 

At the National Defence Academy, we were around 1200 cadets at any one time. For clear identification, we were assigned a number and I was 2134 by which I would be known rather than by name. The numbers have stuck to us ever since and some of us still refer to a coursemate by his number. Jhangoo Aga, 2133, and I used to exchange letters addressing one another that way.

It was very important, though, to know a senior's name, in fact the full name, or one would be subject to intensive ragging. I must have done countless front and back rolls till I finally learnt to pronounce and spell the full form of the initials KASZ belonging to one of my seniors, Kankipati Appala Satyanarayana Zagapathi Raju.

A somewhat odd practice in traditional families was for wives and husbands not to take each other's name. I would find it somewhat funny when Pitaji, wanting Mataji's attention, would say, "Kyonji, mein kya keh raha hoon?" Mataji would be more brief and direct with just "Sunoji".

The tradition continues. I am not used to calling Akhila by her name and we catch each other's attention through "Listen". For a short while, I tried 'Darling' abbreviated to 'D+' but then fell back on 'listen'. 

That word is used by many other couples. Interestingly, a very close friend's wife even when talking to Akhila, refers to her spouse as "my husband" and never takes his name.

Not everyone believes that there is nothing in a name. Here is an interesting quote from "Anne of Green Gables"  by L.M. Montgomery- "I read in a book once that a rose by any other name would smell as sweet, but I've never been able to believe it. I don't believe a rose WOULD be as nice if it was called a thistle or a skunk cabbage." 

THREE SMILES FOR THE OLD MAN

I am growing old. No, correction, I AM old and growing older every day. 

That brings its own problems. Even if one has no serious issues, fair wear and tear is inevitable. Some pain there yesterday, some pain here today, wrinkles, dry skin, belly fat, visits to the toilet, cataract, hearing loss etc., etc., afflict most old folks. I remember reading a piece by the late Khushwant Singh in his well-read column, "With Malice Towards One And All", that he used to have around a dozen red, white, green pills with breakfast every morning. I laughed a lot then but now I realise I need not much less!

The ailments often lead to misunderstandings. Hearing loss is difficult for youngsters to understand who think one is not paying attention. A 'beg your pardon' from a young person is accepted as normal and the speaker has no problem in repeating what he said. But the phrase is taboo for an old man as it would invite impatience from the speaker and scorn on the oldie’s hearing. To avoid that, old folks often nod their head in agreement with something said though they might not have fully understood it. They are also wary of telephone conversations which too might lead to complications because of lack of comprehension.

A siesta is another requirement of most old folks and is mine too. Often people take it that they are unwelcome if the old man is trying to find time for it.

Unless one is cantankerous, and I do agree that quite a few are, most old folks need patience, sympathy and understanding. This in today's busy and fast-moving world is not an easy ask.

It is with these ruminations that I set out for my evening walk on Shanti Path today. The mind was fairly negative when I saw a policeman coming from the opposite direction. As the cop passed me, he smiled and raised his hand in salute. I was surprised as Indian cops are not usually known for such courtesies. I immediately responded to his salute and smiled back at him.

My mood lifted a bit and I was still thinking about the exceptional policeman when I saw a lad in his 20s on his run approaching me. He too gave me a big smile and nodded in a greeting as he passed by. Wow, what was happening today? Most youngsters are so engrossed looking at their smart watches and timing themselves that they scarcely notice anyone other than a pretty girl.

My walk over, I was climbing the stairs to my apartment in a much uplifted mood when I saw a 3-year old girl accompanied by her mother, ayah and others coming down. The little angel smiled, folded her hands and said a loud 'namaste' to me surprising even the ladies who were with her.

Three big smiles for the old man. God must be in His Heaven and all must be right with the world.

Hip-hip-hip-hooray!!!

AFI 100 YEARS .... 100 SONGS - HEART FILLED WITH JOY, EYES WITH TEARS OF JOY

Another post on songs? Blame it on AFI! 

I hadn't heard of the American Film Institute (AFI) and came across it while reading about 'As Time Goes By' for my post 'Kissa Kiss Ka.' That's how I found the '100 years...100 songs' list. Reading the titles was enough to play them in my mind and fill my heart with joy and eyes with tears of joy. What a memorable list it is with so many evergreens that have been delighting us through the years. 

First a little introduction. In 1998, the AFI started compiling a series of annual lists to celebrate the century of American Cinema. The first list published was '100 Years...100 Movies', maybe we will look at it someday. In 2004, it was the turn of '100 Years...100 Songs'.

Movies were silent to start with and so the songs considered were only from 1930s which contributed 11 songs. The numbers climbed up reaching 18 in the '50s and 20 in the'60s. Then the numbers declined steadily down to only 6 in the '90s strengthening my conviction that the music of my youthful days of '50s and '60s was the best. 

Some other general observations: "Singin' In The Rain", "The Sound Of Music" and "West Side Story" were movies that contributed 3 songs each, Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II were top composer and lyricist respectively with 6 songs each, Judy Garland and Gene Kelly topped the singers with 5 each although only 2 of Gene Kelly's songs were solo. Julie Andrews, Fred Astaire, Barbra Streisand have 4 each joined by a name I hadn't heard before, Marni Nixon. Little known Marni provided her voice to Audrey Hepburn in "My Fair Lady", Natalie Wood in "West Side Story" and Deborah Kerr in "The King and I".

The oldest song in the list is "Isn't It Romantic" sung By Maurice Chevalier and Jeanette MacDonald in the 1932 film "Love Me Tonight". I do not know that song and the oldest I am familiar with is "Cheek To Cheek" by Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in the '35 movie, "Top Hat". The lovely first stanza-

"Heaven...I'm in heaven, and my heart beats so I can hardly speak,

And I seem to find the happiness I seek,

When we're out together dancing cheek to cheek".

Topping the 100 is "Over The Rainbow" by Judy Garland from "The Wizard Of Oz" (1939). I saw the movie in School in early '50s screened on a 16 mm projector by our film pro, Father Cosgrove. Sung to perfection by Judy, the enchanting lyrics take you to dreamland-

"Somewhere over the rainbow, skies are blue,

And the dreams that you dare to dream, really do come true.

Somewhere over the rainbow, bluebirds fly,

Birds fly over the rainbow, why, then oh, why can't I."

After thoroughly enjoying the movie, I remember the walk back home to Hospital Road, Jaipur, with mates Yadu Sahai, Krishen Bhargava, Pramode and Suresh Pareek (not brothers) sashaying across the road singing, "We're off to see the Wizard, the wonderful Wizard of Oz." 

No.2  is the haunting "As Time Goes By" from "Casablanca" (1942). An unforgettable movie with brilliant acting by Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman, Dooley Wilson's rendition of the song made it even more memorable. Some lyrics I can never get over-

"You must remember this, a kiss is just a kiss, a sigh is just a sigh....

The world will always welcome lovers

As time goes by."

"Singin' In The Rain", theme song of the 1952 movie with the same name, is listed in the third place. Gene Kelly sang and tap danced the number wearing his winsome smile. It's a cheerful song with the singer declaring that he has found his happiness again in 'living a life full of you'. 

At number four is a song many would consider to be worthy of no. 1. "Moon River" sung by Audrey Hepburn, composed by Henry Mancini and lyrics by Johnny Mercer, was featured in "Breakfast At Tiffany's" (1961). It was an instant hit and won the Oscar for the Best Original Song that year. Popular singer Andy Williams made it his theme song for his shows. Its popularity can be gauged from the fact that it has been used as a test sample to study people's memory of popular songs. Travel buffs love its lyrics which also have a reference to Mark Twain's "Huckleberry Finn". My friend and colleague Kailash Kohli told me that some years ago, he had sent off his two daughters on a trip abroad giving them air tickets with a card carrying the following lines from the song-

"Two drifters, off to see the world, There's such a lot of world to see."

I might as well continue with the remaining lines of the stanza-

"We're after the same rainbow's end

Waitin' round the bend, my Huckleberry friend,

Moon river and me."

I also have a little story. I was very fond of the song and wanted to buy the record. In 1963, my ship Khukri visited Penang and I spent an afternoon looking for a record shop at the cost of sightseeing. Finally, I met with success and was delighted to buy the 45 rpm disc of Andy Williams' version. On board, I was showing off my new buy to my shipmates when I read the label, 'Made in India'! I was unaware that Polydor had in the meantime, started producing western pop music records in our country.

Number 5 is the popular Christmas song, Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" from "Holiday Inn" (1942). Most of us know the words and love to sing it in the Yuletide season, so it needs no elaboration.

At number 6 we have Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel's saucy "Mrs. Robinson" from "The Graduate" (1967), the story of the 'mother' of all affairs. Not only was the movie a winner but its music was outstanding and added to the popularity of Simon and Garfunkel. I am disappointed though, not to find "The Sound Of Silence" in the list, probably because it was released independently in 1964 and was included in the movie's soundtrack subsequently.

The list is 100 songs and I have just covered 6. So now, I have to apply the guillotine and cover briefly the ones I really like. I shall also ignore rankings as I feel it is tough enough to choose 100 songs out of thousands and then to rank them is a contentious task.

So we move on to "Stayin' Alive" by the Beegees in the 1977 movie "Saturday Night Fever" that all of us from Staff College rushed to see in Ooty. Spectacular dancing from John Trovolta and disco music with Barry Gibbs' signature falsetto voice made the movie and its songs immensely popular.

"The Sound Of Music" mesmerised us in 1965 with a thrilling story based on the real life of the von Trapp family. Rodgers and Hammerstein composed and wrote the songs and the list has three numbers from the movie, all by Julie Andrews: "The Sound Of Music", "My Favourite Things" and "Do Re Mi". I have lost count of the number of times I have seen the movie in theatre and on VCR and DVD. I have also been fortunate enough to have taken the fabulous "The Sound Of Music" tour twice in Salzburg.

From other musicals, there is the joyous, "I Could Have Danced All Night"(1964) from "My Fair Lady" performed by Audrey Hepburn on the screen but with the voice of Mani Nixon who could be termed as Hollywood's Lata Mangeshkar! Marni also sang "Tonight" and "Somewhere" for Natalie Wood in the modern Romeo and Juliet like tale, "West Side Story" (1961). Maurice Chevalier's delightful song from "Gigi" (1958), "Thank Heaven For Little Girls" is rightfully there....'for without them, what would the leetil boys do'! And to complete this list, "Some Enchanted Evening" from "South Pacific" (1958) acted by Rosanno Brazzi with the voice of Giorgio Tozzi...'once you have found her, never let her go'.

There are some songs which remind me of our Singapore days of '80s when Ruchir and Shumita were entering their teens and would play music all the time at home. Irene Cara's "What A Feeling" from "Flashdance" and "The Time Of My Life" by Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes from "Dirty Dancing" are two of them. Both the songs are snappy and captivating and the dancing of Patrick Swayze, who left the world too early, and Jennifer Grey in the latter film, was superb and unmatched.

Title songs from movies include "High Noon" by Tex Ritter (I like the Frankie Laine version better), "The Shadow Of Your Smile" by The Sandpipers, and "Goldfinger" by Shirley Bassey.

Some other outstanding songs. Celine Dion's highly emotional "My Heart Will Go On" from "Titanic" (1997) is high on the list and will always bring to mind the scene of Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet with outstretched arms on the prow of the ship; one of the best love songs ever. A big favourite of mine is The Righteous Brothers' "Unchained Melody" from "Ghost". "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head" from "Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid" by BJ Thomas, "Que Sera Sera" by Doris Day from "The Man Who Knew Too Much" and "Windmills Of Your Mind" by Michel Legrand from "The Thomas Crown Affair " are perennial favourites. To remember my school days and Father Mackessack's singing class, I was rewarded by the list having Paul Robeson's "Ol' Man River" from the 1936 movie, "Showboat"....'I'm tired of livin' and scared of dyin'', but ol' man river, he just keeps rollin' along.'

Some songs not included that I would have liked to see in the list-

A. "Lara's Theme" or "Somewhere My Love" from "Dr. Zhivago", composer Maurice Jarre.

B. Theme from "Born Free", composer John Barry.

C. "I Will Wait For You" from "The Umbrellas of Cherbourg", Catherine Deneuve with the voice of Danielle Lican.

D. "The Harry Lime Theme" from "The Third Man" by Anton Karas with its unique zither music.

E. Theme from "A Man And A Woman", composer Michel Legrand.

F. Theme from "Love Story", composer Francis Lai.

G. "We Have All The Time In The World" from "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" by Louis Armstrong.

H. "Al Di La" from "Lovers Must Learn" or "Rome Adventure" by Emilio Pericoli. 

J. "Take My Breath Away" by Berlin from "Top Gun".

Am sure you would have your own favourites to add. To get you going, think of "To Sir With Love" by Lulu! 

"So long, farewell, auf weidersehen, good night."