86th Birthday

Tara Chand (centre) celebrates with a box of eggless pastries

Sixty-eight years ago, at Jalandhar Railway Station, an 18-year-old boy would stand at the edge of the platform, craning his neck out each time a train steamed in. Through the milling crowds, he anxiously scanned the faces of passengers disembarking. They were all casualties of the horrific Partition riots. Thereafter, he would check the luggage compartment at the rear of the train -- stacked with dead bodies.
Tara Chand does not remember for how many days he had performed this drill. Uprooted from his ancestral home at Sargoda (on the other side of the border), he joined the stream of refugees to India and somehow managed to reach Jalandhar, totally exhausted and penniless.

With his brother, sharing a bite

Like many others, he was separated from his family. With no place to go, he slept on the railway platform. And every time a train arrived, he would rush to check if his parents, brothers and sister were there.
“I didn’t even know if they were alive,” Tara Chand laughs today. “There was no way to find out then.

Nahid celebrates her return from Lucknow with gajak

The only consolation I had was that I was not alone. There were hundreds like me, even women and kids, all having lost their way in life and waiting for the next train to arrive, carrying some hope. For me, things changed the moment I heard my elder brother had reached Old Delhi Station and was looking for me.”
From then till today has been a phenomenal journey and Tara Chand remembers every milestone along the way – his settling down in business, getting married and starting a family, moving from Delhi to Mumbai, then losing his wife after prolonged illness 30 years back and staying a widower, now watching his grandkids grow…
The biggest blessing he considers is being in a closely-knit family and that he has his brothers especially to fall back on, even now.
“You look good for a 25-year-old,” Srichand Arora joked, giving him a bear hug today. “Should I look out for a suitable girl for you to marry?” Pat came the reply: “Depends on what you call suitable… a 50-year-old girl shall do fine for me!”
That is Tara Chand Seth – still very alert with quick reflexes, a splendid gift of repartee and above all, a fabulous sense of humour. They don’t make such men any more.
Kiran Prakash:
* Excellent description of events that happened 68 years ago. The sequence of events has been described so vividly, as if happening now right in front of my eyes. Blog Monster, you deserve a pat on your back.
* Happy Birthday and many happy returns of the day, Tara Chand-ji. With your energy, alertness and humour, you are indeed an inspiration for all of us at the Club.
Ajit Choudhary and family:
Tara Chand-ji, janam din ki hardik badhai! You are a great inspiration to all of us. May God keep you healthy, busy and happy.
Bhaswati Bose:
I agree with Kiran Prakash-ji. Today's blog is well-written and interesting but ends rather abruptly. Wish it was longer and covered more of Tara Chand-ji's eventful life.
Lt Col Angad Singh (retd) from Mohali:
The blog monster (master) is doing excellent work. It is nice that Tara Chand Seth is very alert, physically fit and maintaining a very healthy mind. This is because of a cohesive joint family which has a built-in system that takes care for the elderly members. Sadly, this system is falling apart because of changing social and economic requirements of nuclear families.