Summer of 82

The man from Sargoda, who came to India as a teenager during Partition, celebrated his 82nd birthday this morning. It was a special day for all of us as well. Tara Chand Seth is not only the eldest member of the Club, he is the most respected and is much admired for his old world values and impeccable human qualities. Just as you cannot catch up with his brisk walk, his trenchant humour, sense of self-discipline, accommodative nature and concern for the lesser-privileged are exemplary. Above all, he is a perfect gentleman.
Tara Chand-ji’s son, Hari Om joined us for the moonh-meetha in the Chinese Hut. As the laddoos took some time to arrive, members got an opportunity to break through his reticence and know the otherwise low-profile man better. And when it came to the customary photo-op, Yusuf Rassiwala jokingly insisted on sitting plonk in front as he's "tired of being relegated to the background" (because of his height) in every photograph. Here (pic above), you see him in his trademark black cap, rising head-and-shoulders over the rest, while Hari Om poses with papa biting into the birthday laddoo (in the foreground).
Even before the celebration, Yusuf-bhai was in an unusually mischievous mood as he kept fooling about with everybody. The strange thing today was that he had come up peculiar bird sounds and slow whistles, every time he needed to inhale or exhale during the exercises. This went on right through the session, much to everybody's amusement, with occasional interjections from Srichand Arora for added comic relief. After all, who else would count One, Two, Three, Four… and when it comes to Seven, add, “Go to Heaven!”?
Attendance was depleted today, but it was fun, nonetheless.