Spring Cleaning

Bigwigs of the Club meet over membership review

President Mallika Kagzi raises vote of thanks with a round of hot tea

It is spring time in Mumbai. Now that there's barely a month left in 2016-17, the Club undertook its 'annual membership review' by weeding out all deadwood and unwanted elements.
With president Mallika Kagzi in the chair and secretary Kiran Prakash conducting the meeting with treasurer Kajal Babani, the managing committee identified four members who have been absconding for long without leaving a forwarding address. Their membership was summarily annulled and the remaining members were told to pay their subscription for 2017-18 before April 1. It was also decided not to raise (or reduce) the annual subscription fees for the moment.
Out of nine office bearers in the managing committee, seven attended the meeting – Razia Khan and Geeta Latte being the two absentees. Both Chairmen (Emeritus), Hari Singh Shekhawat and Yusuf Rassiwala also took part.
Another significant decision taken at today's meeting was to maintain status quo on the five ‘honorary members’ of the Club: Lt Col Angad Singh (retd), Sitaram Hivarkar, Nazma Sayyed, Ram Shankar Shukla and Tara Chand Seth. Given their track record and positive disposition towards all activities of the Club, we can only benefit from the continued association of these seniors/ elders.
The committee also took a call on the Holi celebration at the Garden on March 13. As in the past, the Club would defray all expenses incurred for colour and refreshments served on the occasion. No separate collection/ contribution from members would be required. However, there will have to be a cap on the budget regardless of the number of guests or outsiders who might come crashing in during the festivity.
On the question of 'Mahamoorkh Sammelan' (ref yesterday’s post), Bijoy Gupta was told to separately make a presentation on what exactly he had in mind.

Conference of Fools

Bijoy Gupta (l) proposes holding Mahamoorkh Sammelan

Bijoy Gupta was at it again. He delivered yet another masterstroke this morning when he came up with the idea of organising a ‘Mahamoorkh Sammelan’, a conference of fools in the run up to the Holi festivities next month. He did not have to elaborate much as the suggestion instantly caught on like fire, leaving everybody buckling over in laughter.
But first things first. Yusuf Rassiwala was discussing in all seriousness the preparations for Holi on March 13 in the Garden and the kind of budget that should be allocated for the celebration this year.
The managing committee would, in any case, be taking a call on this tomorrow. Still, in the interest of eliciting more diverse views, the discussion was thrown open to everyone present after the exercises.
That was when Gupta piped in with the suggestion of members voting for the Mahamoorkh of the club. "Whoever gets the maximum votes will be felicitated and granted a position of honour (as de facto master of ceremonies)

Yusuf Rassiwala (r) elicits views for Holi celebration

during the festivities,” he explained. “Anybody wanting to do anything during the festival shall have to take the agya (permission) of the Mahamoorkh!”
The idea, incidentally, has cultural constructs (particularly in northern India) and Swati Panjabi, who has obviously attended such sammelans, pitched in with some suggestions on how to go about it.
However, Yusuf R told Gupta to plan the fun event the way he wanted and that the rest of us would fall in line accordingly.
What remained unsaid though was whether the ladies in the Club would also qualify to be elected Mahamoorkh.
Equally unclear is whether the candidates would be restricted to those present on the voting day or would they include all members – including those who have ceased to attend the exercises. Whatever be it, it takes rare courage to stick one's neck into something like this and being able to laugh at yourself in the end.
“Holi falls on a Monday,” Yusuf R reminded us. “So we must elect Mahamoorkh before that, say, on Saturday, March 11.”
Lt Col Angad Singh (retd):
I suggest all the members, irrespective of gender, be present and stand for being elected Mahamoorkh. After all, we are doing this only for enjoyment. The winner will be one day's king!
Bihari Milwani:
Ladies in the club should not qualify for Mahamoorkh. They have Women's Day on 8th March. Gents should also have their own day.

DAY 2178

Pic of the Week

MEN ARE ALSO CAPABLE OF TALKING LIKE THIS!

Seems like Blog Monster is ever ready to keep a visual proof of what's cooking in the Club. But what's really cooking between these two? Can anyone say? --Kiran Prakash

I think some big planning is going on for a party or some secret is being shared between them. --Dilip Babani

Having come after a number of days, is he trying to give a bite at the ears? --Lt Col Angad Singh

What's cooking? Any conspiracy to sack me as auditor of the Club??? --Bihari Milwani

Managing Pain – Pt 3

Dr Muhammed Farooq Khan explains 'correspondence' in Sujok

The third session of Dr Muhammed Farooq Khan’s series of talks on pain management took off from where he had left last Saturday (ref post of February 18). Taking a minor diversion though, he briefly touched upon the concept of hypnotherapy with video clips on his mobile to illustrate its efficacy, especially on cases of childhood trauma and Parkinson’s Disease. “I’m afraid hypnotherapy has to be conducted in controlled conditions, not with a large gathering in an open Garden,” he said apologetically.
Settling down on Sujok, the Korean method of holistic healing, Dr Khan produced a colorful chart with detailed diagrams to indicate how the hands (and feet) represent a smaller,

Dr Khan attends to Dilip Babani

but true mirror image of all the meridians of the human anatomy. “Finding correspondence in the hand with an affected body part is the key to the therapy,” he underscored.
Putting theory to practice, Dr Khan identified the correspondence to Bhaswati Bose’s recurring back pain, Santosh Tyagi’s agonizing

Saying it with a rose: Happy Birthday, Santosh Tyagi!

knee pain, Kajal Babani’s persistent pain in her fingers, Naseem Khan’s refractive pain between the elbows and shoulder, Naheed Siddiqui’s neck pain, Dilip Babani’s sciatic pain and so on.
“The surest indication of having zeroed in on the point of correspondence is that the intensity of pain there will be much more excruciating than that of the region where the pain occurs,” Dr Khan pointed out. He added that upon applying pressure at that exact point of the hand, the pain in the affected body part would correspondingly subside – though not be cured. A sense of relief would nevertheless wash over the body, he said.
The 45-minute session was followed by Santosh Tyagi’s birthday treat – a kind of sequel to the celebration she had in the Rajasthan desert on February 10. This time, she not only outdid herself but also all the birthday boys and girls of the Club. For nobody had ever before put out such a massive variety of snacks and savories… simply too many to recount or record.
As if those were not enough, her daughter, Anjali showed up with packed Monjini boxes containing additional goodies. Still, Santosh was to apologise in the end for not having got us enough. “I wanted to include a couple of more items, but there was no time,” she said.
Kiran Prakash:
It is unimaginable for ANYBODY of Dr Farooq's stature to spare so much time (and take such pains) to explain and relieve pain at a place like the China Hut, all for the benefit of the members of Big Laaf. And this, without taking any remuneration. We shall be ever grateful to you, Dr Farooq. Our Club salutes you.
Kiran Prakash adds:
Once again, Happy Birthday Santosh-ji. I am sure that never before in the history of Big Laaf have we been treated to so much eatables in any party. I pray to God that you continue to live healthy and happy for many, many years to come. And especially from the members of Big Laaf, here's to you, "Ja Simran, jee le apni zindagi"!!!
Lt Col Angad Singh (retd):
We are thankful to Dr Khan for spending time with us and explaining the alternative therapy to live a healthy life without going under the knife or resorting to expensive allopathic treatment. His method of explaining is very simple and logical. It is gracious of him to take out and come to the Garden for these talks. We also wish Santosh-ji a very happy birthday and healthy life ahead. We wish her a long, enjoyable inning in times to come.
Dilip Babani:
Thank you very much, Dr Khan for your valuable advice and the remedy for our problems. We need your advice always. Please help us always. Thanks also to Banoo Apa for helping Dr Khan during his talks. May God bless you both.

Maha Shivaratri - 2017

Arun Patil marks his return to the Garden

Today was Maha Shivaratri, the ‘Great Night of Shiva’. We aren’t quite sure whether this is an occasion meant to commemorate the 'cosmic dance' of the legendary Nataraja. Or if it is supposed to mark the wedding anniversary of Shiva and Parvati. Either way, most of us found it auspicious enough to bunk the exercises today at the Garden.
Arun Patil made up for the drop in attendance

Kanta Sharma in a pensive mood

with a small celebration after the exercises. He is back from a 15-day shoot for a Tamil film near Chennai and had boxes of fruit halwa and mysur paak to show for it. We were happy for him as this was the first time since the amputation of his leg (two years back) that he has been able to pull off a difficult outstation job successfully. More than the financial gain, it is a huge life-changer for him as it should restore his confidence and self-esteem as an SFX professional.
Kanta Sharma was also back after a fairly long absence. Sadly, she is in mourning, having lost her younger brother in Delhi to a cardiac attack. The end came while she was touring with the Club in Rajasthan earlier this month. Her son, Aryan had deliberately withheld the news from her till she returned to Mumbai and thereafter, arranged to send her to Delhi for the last rites. She has still not recovered from that tragedy. Our condolences are with her.
Dilip Babani:
Arun-ji, welcome home. Nice haluwa and mithai!

Vegetable Mart?

Haggling over a cauliflower price

Time was when there were only a couple of fruit sellers outside our Garden gate. Today, there are no less than half a dozen of them who have set up stalls along the side walk. Some sell vegetables also to a fast growing clientele from the Garden. What’s more, hawkers with push carts are stopping by the gate early morning,

Happy Birthday KARUN SHARMA

offering farm-fresh produce at wholesale rates.
These vendors have all along enjoyed the patronage of our members (for obvious reasons) while on their way back home. But never has the mini bazaar spilled into the Garden -- till Kiran Prakash today deciding to hawk cauliflower at a discounted price. The exercises had just about got over when he stepped up making a full-throated pitch: “Phool gobi, 25 rupya – 25 rupya!” Thereafter, he fished out a huge polythene bag full of greens, making another fervent pitch "exclusively" for members of Big Laaf. Somehow, that did not find any takers.
Most of us were obviously taken aback by the suddenness of it all. Another reason for the lack of response could be that we have become so accustomed to freebies that the general expectation was that Kiran Prakash too would cut his price down to zero.

Bijoy Gupta justifies his phobia of naked camels

After all, not too long ago (actually, last Saturday) Shekhawat had been distributing bananas free of cost to members. It turned out that those bananas were ‘stolen’ from Bijoy Gupta, who had bought them for his home!
Incidentally, Gupta was to disclose today why he had become so upset about the “naked camels” of Rajasthan (ref past of February 20). “They were constantly staring at my wife,” he lamented. “Tell me which husband will tolerate that!” And as is his wont, he blamed Shekhawat for this disgrace and demanded Rs5,000 from him as damages. “You and the camels belong to the same place,” Gupta reasoned. "Since you did not warn us in advance, you must pay now!"
Meanwhile, here’s wishing Karun Sharma many happy returns of the day. He is currently away on work in Delhi, thus depriving us the privilege to usher in his birthday at the Garden. It would have been his first birthday with us. He promises to return by the first week of March and make up for the missed opportunity.
Kiran Prakash:
Happy Birthday, dear Karun Sharma. Many happy returns of the day. Hope you are enjoying at Delhi. Have a blast!!!
Geeta Latte:
Happy Birthday, dear Uncle.
Karun H. Sharma:
It is such a fine feeling that my Big Laaf family is remembering and wishing me on my birthday. I am enjoying the moment. I had a small bash at the food court of a nearby mall. But I definitely missed Big Laaf. My original two-day visit has extended to one month. I hope to return to my Big Laaf family soon.
Bihari Milwani:
What a coincidence: If A=1, B=2... then K+A+R+U+N = 65. And today is beginning of Karun's 65th year (64 years completed) and he has deprived Big Laaf members from wishing him personally on this occasion. Very bad!!!
Dilip Babani:
Happy Birthday, dear Karun Sharma!

Matchless Wit

“Why is she wearing such a beautiful pink dress today”!

Banoo Apa: Always upbeat

If Bijoy Gupta must stand out as the funniest man in the Club, the distinction among ladies should belong to Banoo Apa. One has only to be within hearing distance of her to catch the unending stream of witticisms during the exercises and it would be hard to keep up a straight face. Her humor is spontaneous, artless, contagious and devastating.
Today, she had only to spot Kajal Babani in a lovely pink outfit to declare, out of the blue, that the latter ought to host a party. Anybody else would have complimented Kajal for looking good in a bright outfit.

Kajal's mom (l) treats us to sandwiches

But Banoo Apa’s reasoning for demanding a party was peculiar: “Why is she wearing such a beautiful pink dress today”!
Then there was that famous incident recently about a little puppy snuggling up to her feet during the exercises. Promptly, Banoo Apa abandoned the circle and parked herself royally on a bench, refusing to even keep count during the tai chi round. “That stupid puppy sniffed at my feet?”

Geeta Latte (l) gets us sweets from Jaipur/ Agra

she protested. "How can I do exercise now."
This is the kind of humour that rocks on timing and tone of expression. On both counts, Banoo Apa is simply matchless. Of course, there’s Karuna Waghmare who can be just as funny, but it all comes out in spurts, depending on her mood. Fahmida Khan’s wisecracks are also enjoyable, but again, much of it is meant for the gallery and contrived.
With Banoo Apa the sparks fly naturally and continually – regardless of anyone listening or not. She is perennially on her own trip, such that it would appear that there can never be a dull moment of grief or anger in her life. That apart, she is known for her impeccable dress sense, compassionate nature befitting a Club elder and for conducting herself with utmost dignity.
Little wonder, very few in the Club know her by her real name – Shaher Banoo Khan. In fact, the day she discovered that even people older to her call her “Apa” out of respect, she threw up her arms and in mock exasperation declared: “Call me Mother India if you want, I don’t care!” That’s Banoo Apa to us.
Bihari Milwani:
Beware, next time you come to the Club wearing new clothes, Mother India will demand a party.

Voting Day – 2017

Jokes' session after the exercises

The civic polls today robbed us of a majority of members who report for the exercises. We were left with 18 this morning – nine males and nine females. The remaining had obviously gone to cast their votes at a nearby polling station, which opened at 7:30 a.m.
Still, we had our share of fun. The sky was (surprisingly) overcast and with a cool breeze blowing across, it was unusually pleasant in the Garden. Santosh Tyagi showed up, still limping from her Rajasthan trip (February 5 - 12). Dilip Babani narrated a few jokes. Bihari Milwani hung around longer than usual as it was polling day and

Lt Col Angad Singh (retd)

he had a two-hour reprieve from work...
In all this, Lt Col Angad Singh (retd) offered to host a party as “he felt like it”. He was dissuaded since he is still in mourning, having lost his wife and son-in-law recently. Besides, there was no real occasion to celebrate (his birthday is in April) and if at all, we ought to be hosting a party for him. He has been away from us for almost a year and it is no small joy to have him back now in our midst. He had brought us revdis yesterday (see post) from Mohali to mark his return to the Garden.
That said, it must be mentioned that “Colonel Sah’b” (as Angad Singh is endearingly addressed) is coping remarkably well after the twin tragedies that have overtaken him. At age 83, he conducts himself with the stoic fortitude only an army man is capable of – thus setting an example for the rest of us. “This is part of life,” is all he is prepared to say about his personal loss.
The Club salutes this man.
Lt Col Angad Singh (retd):
My thanks to Blog Monster for his kind comments. His comments and the positive approach exhibited by other members of the Club are very encouraging. They have raised my morale and made me fit to bear my personal loss. I feel quite happy and engrossed in the company of my Club members. This is a God-gifted time for me when I feel completely at home when all my negative thoughts turn into positive ones. I hardly realise how time passes in the company of members of the Club. May God bless you all.

Nude Camels

Naked camels of Rajasthan

Bijoy Gupta’s story can now be told. For it had taken a rare stroke of genius on Saturday for him to deduce that his bumchum, Shekhawat is not responsible for his behavior. “Even the camels of Rajasthan are shameless,” Gupta proclaimed in the middle of the exercises, sending everybody reeling in laughter.
Recounting his recent trip to "Shekhawat’s quam", Gupta was at his hilarious best as he went on to elaborate: “Can you imagine,

Bijoy Gupta

the camels in Rajasthan roam around stark naked? I can understand small animals – dogs, cats, rabbits, mouse… but such huge, tall camels, absolutely nude in the middle of the desert!”
And then came the absolute whacker: “The niyat (intent) of those camels was bad. They were least bothered that we were izzatdar (respectable) people representing Big Laaf in Mumbai. Still they roamed about naked in front of us.”
“If you were so concerned about nudity, why did you not get the camels to wear knickers?” Shekhawat challenged.
Pleading helplessness, Gupta pulled a long face: “What could I have done all alone? There were so many camels -- such huge, big naked monsters – walking around audaciously.

Lt Col Angad Singh treats us to revdis on his return from Mohali today

 

I was badly outnumbered.”
Clearly, this explains why Gupta had refused to climb up on a camel, even as his wife, Pushpa had galloped away merrily with the rest of the group on the camel safari in Jaisalmer. Left stranded in the open expanse of the sands, he tried to retrace his way on foot to the desert camp – only to realize, before long, that he was hopelessly lost in the middle of nowhere.
In the gathering darkness, a tall, burly man spotted the solitary figure walking aimlessly. “He must have taken pity on me because of my age,” Gupta narrated. “But I had no clue where I was. I could not even recall the name of our camp. All I could tell the goonda was that I was with a 28-member group from Mumbai and we were lodged in a camp somewhere. Once I reach there, I shall be able to recognize my tent.”
The goonda turned out to be Gupta’s savior that fateful evening. To cut a long story short, he dispatched a henchman to escort “the old man and deposit him at his thikana” in one piece. The henchman did as instructed and Gupta lived to tell his tale. So much for his phobia of 'naked camels'!
Bihari Milwani:
The nude camels Gupta-ji saw, were they male or female?
Dilip Babani:
Gupta-ji, you were lucky! People in the desert, once lost, are lost forever. You do not know where you are going or coming. And if you were wearing gold that evening, that goonda would have taken you somewhere else. So next time don't go there alone.

DAY 2171

Pic of the Week

WARM SEND-OFF: A MOMENT TO BE TREASURED

Such joy... you can see this in Big Laaf only. Incredible! --Bhaswati Bose

Have a nice stay in Delhi, Tara Chand-ji. --Dilip Babani

Ooh, Aah… Ouch!

Tense moments: Dr Farook Khan attends to Bihari Milwani

“Until you are slapped, you won't understand the hurt!”
On this dramatic note, Dr Muhammed Farook Khan drew an analogy with the subjective aspect of Sujok Therapy which, in his opinion, provides the “quickest, on-the-spot relief for joint pains” with zero side effects.
Dr Khan was speaking on the topic, ‘Treating Pain with Pain’, as a follow-up to his last talk on pain management (ref post of February 1). “As I said earlier, there is no permanent cure for pain,” he reiterated. “We can at best manage, or treat pain in order to provide relief.”
Advocating the Korean acupuncture therapy, Dr Khan revealed that Sujok provided an effective reprieve, even for frozen shoulder and Parkinson’s disease.

Dr Muhammed Farooq Khan

However, restricting himself to treating only joint pains today, he produced an array of tiny needles (he described as his ‘Ram Vaan’) with which he would puncture our hands.
That was enough to take our breath away. “Other doctors may use five to eight needles to locate your pain, but I shall use only one,” he comforted us,

Banoo Apa hosted a lavish breakfast treat for all participants

drawing upon his experience of 45 years in the field.
Through a process of mirroring the joints of the human anatomy on the fingers of one’s hand, Dr Khan demonstrated how ‘the theory of correspondence’ came into play on locating pain. Rukhsana Khan offered herself as his first guinea pig and was duly given a prick on the finger for the persistent pain in her right knee joint.
That was enough to embolden others, ranging from Mrs Shekhawat to Khatoon Baig. Bihari Milwani also submitted himself for an issue in his lumbar region, but “no correspondence pain” could be detected. Dilip Babani, in spite of repeated goading from wife Kajal, refused to admit he had pain in his knees.
Mallika Kagzi was equally petrified by the sight of shining needles and declared that two rounds of the Garden were enough to give her a full-blown body ache from head to foot. “After the age of 40, the pain is not localized in any specific area. It is there from top to toe. You should have come to us with this therapy 20 years back,” she joked with Dr Khan.
The lec-dem had to be cut short due to paucity of time. And in the end of the hour-long session, Banoo Apa treated us to a lavish breakfast of home-made delicacies, including dahi-wada and of course, tea.
Bihari Milwani:
Dr Khan was actually applying Newton's theory: "Action and reaction are always equal and in opposite direction". So by locating your pain he gives new pain with his needle so that the two opposing pains nullifies one another and disappears!
Dilip Babani:
We all are happy to learn about pain from Dr Khan. Really, he is a very straightforward and honest doctor. He speaks truthfully. Now everybody knows that pain will not go away forever. Again and again, it will come back and we have to go for therapy again and again. We are grateful to Dr Khan for revealing this truth about pain.
Lt Col Angad Singh (from Mohali):
Dr Khan is teaching us simple mathematics: (-) + (-) = + [minus + minus equals plus] or hurt + hurt = HAPPINESS!!!

Sponsored Trip?

Shekhawat (in yellow) greets Yogiraj Dabhadkar

The travel bug seems to have got the better of whatever sanity there’s left in the Club. Why else should we expect the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to sponsor a trip for us to Lonavala should its local candidate win in the civic polls on February 21?
“You will have to pay for our trip to-and-fro, food and lodging,” Shekhawat instructed Yogiraj Dabhadkar, the young BJP candidate who visited us a second time today (ref post of February 7) canvassing for votes. “We are around 40 members in the Club. Only if you promise to sponsor our trip to Lonavala shall we vote for you.”
Shekhawat had clean forgotten that the Club's demand last time around (as articulated by Karuna Waghmare) was for an all-expenses paid trip to Kolhapur. And like any eager politician anywhere, Dabhadkar did not disappoint this time also.
He however, had other issues weighing on his mind that he shared with us. He spoke of a raging “drugs menace” in the by-lanes of Yamuna Nagar which he promised to eradicate.

Mallika Kagzi revived her 'tea party'
(with nankhatai) after ages

The other big issue, he pointed out,

Geeta Latte  is holidaying
in Jaipur, Agra, etc.

was the illegal reclamation of marshy land and destruction of mangroves on the northern periphery of Lokhandwala.
“Already they have converted parts of the swamp area into a huge dumping ground for garbage,” Dabhadkar informed. “You cannot bear the stench in those parts. Can you imagine the foul odour that would envelope Lokhandwala if the entire area were to be turned into a dumping ground? I promise to reverse this if you elect me.”
While everybody nodded their heads gravely in silence, Shekhawat was on his own trip rambling about McDowell No 1 and his fauji (armed forces) background. Before leaving, Dabhadkar added that Geeta Latte’s “passport problem” had been addressed after he had "personally spoken to the concerned authorities”. Strangely, nobody spoke of dog poop this time!

Limping Back

Normalcy returns to the Club... with the resumption of jokes' narrations

Slowly, but surely, the Club is limping back to normalcy. An unmentioned fact of the just-concluded Rajasthan Tour (February 5 to 12) was the extent of physical duress, even suffering – what with those punishing travel schedules, uncertain hours, unappetizing food, camel rides, et al. Everything meant to throw the human body out of gear was endured by our elders with a smile in their all-consuming excitement of discovering new places and people.
But there’s been a price to pay also. From the moment they touched base in Mumbai, almost all the Rajasthan returnees have been on medication for ailments ranging from muscular cramps to stomach upsets. Many were quick to recover, but some like Santosh Tyagi and Nahid Siddiqui are still under the weather with body ache, giddiness, running tummy, etc. They are yet to report for the exercises and with every passing day, their absence has become a cause of mounting concern.
On the positive side, we have a minor miracle in Kiran Prakash (known for his delicate stomach) having survived the spicy Rajasthani food and reporting for the exercises without fail, every day. An equally vulnerable Fahmida Khan has not missed a single morning – not to mention Yusuf Rasiwala, Banoo Apa, Naseem Khan, Siba Prasad Maitra, Bhaswati Bose… and the hardiest of them all, Nahid Khan who is back to conducting the exercises.
It is their presence that lends a semblance of normalcy returning to the Garden.

Happy Birthday Pt II

Mumtaz Jahan (rt) handing out glassfuls of Kashmiri kahwah

Mumtaz Jahan celebrated her second birthday in as many days. Clearly not satisfied by the lavish spread yesterday, she hosted another treat today, this time with a traditional Kashmiri specialty that money cannot buy in Mumbai -- kahwah.
This home-brewed concoction of almond flakes, saffron, honey and green tea leaves was just what the doctor would have ordered for us after our exercises.

Fahmida (rt) tried to hold back Tara Chand

Mercifully, Bijoy Gupta (ref yesterday’s post) had not turned up this morning.
For the rest of us, the lukewarm brew came as a welcome diversion from the milk tea we are accustomed to having every other morning. Mumtaz had thoughtfully brought nankhatai and mini coconut pastries as accompaniments which together made for a unique, wholesome birthday treat. May she live twice as long for this double celebration.
Amid all the merriment and bonhomie, Tara Chand Seth sounded a discordant note by announcing that he would have to leave for Delhi later in the day.

Shekhawat (l) announces next session of Dr Muhammed Farooq Khan

His flight ticket was already booked and as always, he wasn’t sure when he would return. “Delhi is also home to me,” he iterated.
Tara Chand has been with us for barely two-and-half months this time and naturally, many did not want him to leave so soon. Fahmida Khan tried to persuade the 88-year-old to stay back and even physically clung on to him in the hope he would change his mind. Others simply tried to extract a commitment that he would be back in Mumbai before the notorious Delhi monsoon.
Meanwhile, Shekhawat announced that the next session on pain by Dr Muhammed Farooq Khan (ref post of February 1) would be held this weekend (Saturday) – same time, same place. The topic to be covered is Managing Pain with Pain. “All members who wish to have their pain treated should desist from taking any pain killer 24 hours before the session,” Shekhawat urged.
The session will be followed by light refreshments, courtesy Banoo Apa.

Valentine’s Day – 2017

Dilip and Kajal: Saying it with roses

Love is in the air – but in a manner only we, in Big Laaf, can appreciate and celebrate. Of course, there were the customary presents of roses – Dilip Babani to Kajal, Shekhawat to all the ladies, starting with Mumtaz Jahan and so on.

Bijoy Gupta (rt) is unstoppable

After all, it was also Mumtaz’s birthday and she celebrated in style with a grand party at the end of the exercises.
But ultimately, it was Bijoy Gupta who hogged the limelight through the morning. Showing up at the Garden after a long furlough, he took Shekhawat off the bat by wanting to know why he wasn’t wearing a rakhi today. “Don’t you know it is Valentine's Day?” Gupta teased Shekhawat. “I do not see any rakhi on your hand.”
Stumped for words, Shekhawat deflected the innuendo (of professing brotherly love) by advising Gupta to go tie a rakhi if he was so keen to. “You may like rakhis. I don’t wear rakhi on Valentine’s Day,” he insisted with macho pride.
But Gupta wasn’t giving up easily.

Mumtaz Jahan celebrates birthday with a big bash

All through the exercises, he kept taking pot shots at his friend. And the moment he saw Shekhawat plonking himself next to a lady on a bench, he shouted: “Look, he is celebrating Valentine’s Day out here in the open.

Shekhawat presents a rose to Mumtaz

This man has no shame. He should be doing all this behind the peepul tree out there!”
Some of us tried provoking him on his Rajasthan trip (yesterday’s post) and even Shekhawat was curious about his encounter with ghosts. Gupta gave nothing away. Suddenly he spotted Naseem Khan and pretended not to recognize her. “But in Rajasthan you looked so dashing and different,” he exulted. “You were dressed like Miss London!”
Ultimately, Kiran Prakash managed to extract some pearls of wisdom on Gupta's pet peeve -- green tea. “What is wrong with normal tea?” Gupta asked. “You have milk, sugar, tea leaves, ginger, cardamom… aah, so refreshing. They say green tea is healthy, you live longer. Just to live a few more days, you spend an entire life in misery drinking green tea. Does it make any sense? After I saw my wife unpacking a box of green tea in that Jodhpur hotel, I began getting sleepless nights.”
Kiran Prakash:
With the Guptas around, we had great fun in Rajasathan. Well organised, well executed trip. While the day went for visits to forts, haveli and boating, the evenings were equally exciting with our own 'talent exhibition sessions'. Those who could not go, missed a lot.
Dilip Babani:
Happy Birthday, Mumtaz-ji. Nice party you gave us on Valentine's Day.

Rajasthan Returnees

Bijoy Gupta

Bijoy Gupta has unknowingly created around him a constituency of ardent followers sold out on his brand of irreverent humour. He had only to open his mouth during the just-concluded Rajasthan Tour for all of them to howl together in laughter – be it on his wicked

Kiran Prakash (arms raised) confers titles on the Rajasthan returnees

taunts about the haveli-turned-hotel (in which they were lodged in Jodhpur) being haunted or about why he detests green tea or on how he lost his way in the desert dunes of Jaisalmer and his many misadventures thereafter.
Sadly, he did not turn up at the Garden this morning. Most of the others in the group were there, happy and refreshed after a pleasant train journey back to Mumbai yesterday. Yusuf Rassiwala and Siba Prasad Maitra were the only ones to take a flight back with their wives and they had a harrowing time.

Jaggery sweets from Fahmida Khan (r)

Gajaks from Lakshmi Hadimani (l)

Their Air India plane developed a technical snag, leaving them stranded at Jaipur airport for nearly 15 hours. They returned home in the dead of night on Saturday.
Barring this incident, everybody had only positive things to say about the week-long trip. Fahmida Khan and Laxmi Hadimani added to the merriment by distributing jiggery sweets and gajak.
Kiran Prakash raised the festive pitch still higher by conferring the title of ‘Best Romantic Jodi of the Trip’ on Mr and Mrs Yusuf Rassiwala with Mr and Mrs Siba Prasad Maitra, a close runner-up.

Kanta Sharma

Swati Panjabi

The Fevicol Couple of the Trip title went to Shanti Singh- Gurmeet Kapoor and Banoo Apa was declared Best Dancer on the Trip.
Fahmida was adjudged Best Entertainer of the Trip and she even re-enacted her famous spooky number (ref post of February 9) at the Jodhpur hotel for our benefit. While everybody laughed, Shekhawat for one, looked particularly rattled. He believes in ghosts and chudails!
In all this, unfortunately, there were two major dampeners. Swati Panjabi lost her mother and she had to detrain at Baroda to catch up with the chautha ceremony in her maternal home. Kanta Sharma left for Delhi upon hearing of the passing away of her brother.
In both instances, the deaths occurred during the course of the trip, the news deliberately withheld from them for obvious reasons. Our condolences and prayers are with the bereaved. May the souls of the departed rest in peace.
Dilip Babani:
Nice stories were told to us about Rajasthan tour by Kiran Prakash, Yusuf-bhai, Maitra, Bhaswati and Fehmida Khan. I think many members missed going on the tour.
Ibrahim Qureshi:
We had a really great time with the group during the Rajasthan tour. Heartiest congratulations to Bhaswanti and team for organizing such an amazing trip. Looking forward to joining you all in future as well.

DAY 2164

Pic of the Week

DESERT CAMP: Bedouins of BIG LAAF reach Rajasthan's Thar Desert

The biggest surprise of the trip was appearance of a big size cake in Thar Desert to celebrate the birthday of Santosh Tyagi. Only our organiser, Bhaswati Bose could have thought of that. Staying in tent too in the desert was a life-time experience. Thanks, Bhaswati. God bless you. --Kiran Prakash

The Rajasthan tour photo is very nice. All are saying that the hotel-haveli was very good but only one thing was bad: There was a chudail roaming around with a candle at night. Otherwise the tour was fantastic. All enjoyed the Rajasthani food, camel ride and desert safari in nice, cold weather. The tour was 100 percent a success! --Dilip Babani

Vacation Over

Attendance remains in single digit this morning

Today was the last day of vacationing – for the group that had gone to Rajasthan as well as for those who were left behind, but did not attend the exercises in the Garden. For the former, the week-long break was intentional. For the latter, the absence was incidental. Even so, it was good fun at both ends.
On Monday, we should hopefully have our full complement in the Garden.

Ram Shankar Shukla

And it would be back to business as usual. A member- ship review is overdue and with the financial year drawing to an end, the time has come to separate the wheat from the chaff. This is a rather unpleasant exercise the managing committee will have to undertake in time for the collection of annual subscription, beginning April 1.

Lt Col Angad Singh

Tara Chand Seth

Sitaram Hivarkar

Today, a proposal was informally made to Shekhawat to waive the subscription fee of Rs50 per month in respect of the five Honorary Members in our midst. For reasons of advanced age and/ or physical incapacity, it was decided last year, as a special case, to protect their membership and not insist on their regular attendance.
Turns out now that Lt Col Angad Singh, 83, had paid up for the year but could not attend the Club as he was away in Mohali. Likewise Tara Chand Seth, 88, has to be in Delhi for the best part. Ram Shankar Shukla, 82, divides time between Mumbai and Kanpur. Sitaram Hivarkar, 78, suffers from a crippling knee condition and Najma Sayyed is going through unimaginable agony due to weight issues and recurrent hip surgeries.
Knowing how much they value their association with Big Laaf, it would be grossly unfair to let the membership of these stalwarts lapse on grounds of their inability to show up and pay. We can afford this generosity of heart as a mark of respect to our Club elders. Moreover, the by-laws permit such an waiver in ‘exceptional circumstances’.
Shekhawat has left it to the managing committee to take a call.
Bihari Milwani:
I suggest we collect a token Rs 100 per annum from members above the age of 80 years so that they can proudly say that they are members of the Club.
Zareena Khan:
Fantastic trip to Rajasthan. Very well managed and arranged by the organiser. Thanks Bhaswati!

Foreign Plot

Shekhawat corners Karuna Waghmare early morning, before the exercises

There seems to be some substance in Bihari Milwani’s comments yesterday (see post). Shekhawat is indeed plotting something for a foreign tour from the Club. No sooner had Karuna Waghmare reported for the exercises today than he took her aside in the semi-darkness. “You will have to join us for a picnic abroad,” he said.
Karuna was taken aback, more so as the exercises were about to start.

Happy Birthday, Santosh-ji!
(file photo)

“I don’t mind,” she replied cautiously. “You take me to Dubai and I will go. Other places, I am not interested…”
Being Karuna’s front-door neighbor, Shekhawat is obviously aware that Karuna has been quite a globe-trotter in her time. As she was to recount, there is hardly a place on the planet she has not been to. “My husband loved travelling,” she explained. “America, Australia, England, Africa, Europe… I have been everywhere with him. After he passed away, all my travelling stopped. I just travel to Powai nowadays to meet my daughter.”
Later, after the exercises, when Shekhawat spoke of “organising a foreign programme”, Karuna elaborated that she had also been to Singapore, Malaysia, even Egypt. “What about Bangkok and Pattaya?” Shekhawat probed. “I have been there also,” Karuna replied. "But not to Dubai."
The only impediment Shekhawat foresees is getting visas for all. He realizes that most of our members (especially ladies) do not have an independent source of income, nor do they own property or file income tax returns to back a visa request.
Widows and those with virgin passports are particularly handicapped. Since even an application for tourist visa would require pre-bookings of air travel and hotel stay, the risk of forfeiting those amounts (upon visa rejection) is very real. That could run upwards of Rs50,000. So Shekhawat is a little circumspect and would rather go for an “easy destination” like Sri Lanka, Thailand or Hong Kong – but GO he must around March-April, he said.
Meanwhile, Santosh Tyagi celebrated her birthday near Jaisalmer, around the sand dunes of the Thar Desert. She had been camping there overnight with the Rajasthan group in tents and woke up to a huge surprise when told to cut her birthday cake. The celebration was followed by an exhilarating desert safari in open jeeps, according to information reaching here.
Bihari Milwani:
'Shekhawat the Lion' should know that his front door neighbor, 'Wagh (mare) the Tigress' is keeping close vigil on his movements. He should play safe and better take her to Dubai instead of going to some other place.