It’s Khopoli Now

Bijoy Gupta interprets Shekhawat's proposal for a picnic at Karjat

From Lonavala to Khandala and now Khopoli, the destination for our day-picnic scheduled this month is getting closer to home.
Elaborating on this today, Shekhawat said it would take us no more than a two-and-half hour drive to reach this scenic spot at the base of the Sahyadri range. “We would be going this Sunday (August 6) and return the same day,” he informed. “I have already spoken to the resort and they are ready to give us a good discount.”
Shekhawat however, could not name the resort, but for some “Joshi”. Promptly Siba Prasad Maitra googled on his mobile phone and came up with “Joshi Homely Food”, a tiffin service operating from Lonavala. No mention of any resort by that name in Khopoli.
But Shekhawat was least deterred. “I shall start collecting money for the trip from tomorrow,” he said, mentioning the amount.

Arun Patil

“It would cover expenses for the bus to and fro as well as breakfast, lunch and high tea. Two people have already signed up.”
Bijoy Gupta instantly offered to 'interpret' Shekhawat’s proposal. “What he means to say is that the charges apply to men only. All females would be taken free. Shekhawat will bear their expenses on the trip. Why does he get pension after all? He needs to spend it somewhere.”
Gupta’s intervention stemmed from a discussion earlier in the morning when Shekhawat agreed to foot the bill of lady members from the Club. For ladies outside the Club, he however, insisted on charging Rs300 per head. Arun Patil immediately offered to use his Bollywood contacts to get a horde of movie starlets and models for the picnic.
“Great!” Shekhawat exclaimed. “But they will also have to pay Rs300 per head.”
“What do you mean?” Arun shot back. “You will have to ulta pay those girls Rs3,000 per head to come on your picnic. They would lend glamour to the group.”
Shekhawat did not get the logic – more so, since he was offering subsidized food and transport to the girls. But he did not argue. In effect, it put paid to his hopes of being in the company of some pretty young things this weekend.

Bihari Milwani:
Wow! Picnic on Sunday. All working and non-working couples can join. There will be no need for Shekhawat to sponsor female members.

Lt Col Angad Singh (retd):
The very mention of a picnic shows how excited everybody gets. Money and payments are secondary things. Certainly go on the picnic -- enjoy the company and keep laughing.

Day 2321

Pic of the Week

AT THE PARTY: This one's for the family album!

Lovely photo. Banoo-ji is so lovingly feeding her dearest husband. A very nice couple they are. See the eyes of Banoo-apa. There's soooooo much love in her eyes for her nice husband. May God bless them both. This is true love. --Dilip Babani

Ssshhhh... please do not disturb! --Anonymous

Holiday Mood

Bangkok banter in the shaded grove

Another pleasant and chilled out morning. Like yesterday, there was no party lined up today. Probably this explained the low turnout at the exercises, which was rather unusual for a week-end.
But a murder of crows made up for this as they partied joyfully in the Garden over what Fahmida Khan described as “boneless meat” wriggling in the grass. Kiran Prakash clicked a graphic picture of this mass annihilation of earthworms.
What struck everyone though was the all-pervasive holiday mood among all present. Nobody was in any hurry today to leave after the exercises.
Whether it could be the weather or tomorrow being a Sunday, the dominant buzz was what lay in store for the group going on the Bangkok Tour.
With almost all the air tickets now booked for the batch of 20, suggestions and advice ((largely unsolicited) started flying thick and fast – from

Nahid Siddiqui

Rukhsana Khan

the foodstuff to be carried in the aircraft to what to shop in Bangkok to what to eat, what to do… and so on.
Somehow, nobody seemed to be as much interested in sight-seeing.
Still, it was fun. And in keeping with this happy holiday atmosphere, even the most reticent among us suddenly became vocal.
For instance, Nahid Siddiqui, arguably the most reserved and soft-spoken of our female members, began commenting during the exercises on the way Rukhsana Khan speaks.
“What power she has in that voice!” Nahid exclaimed. “She must be having at least two eggs every morning before coming to the Garden. Or maybe she has samosas, who knows? How else can she speak in such a loud voice?” The absurdity of the comment notwithstanding, Rukhsana took it as a compliment and let out a full-throated guffaw.

Lt Col Angad Singh (retd):
Nice to know that a Big Laaf group is going to Bangkok. I am sure it will be a good and enjoyable tour. Keep enjoying and laughing.

Shooting the Breeze

BREATH OF FRESH AIR: Back to exercising in the open

It was a cool and breezy morning. Mercifully, there was no party today. We got some relief from the rains as well. If the met guys are to be believed, a dry spell has set in, which would continue into the first week of August. Little wonder the grass in the Garden had been cropped and we happily vacated the China Hut to exercise in the open.
With normalcy thus returning and not much to do, the mind turned into a ‘picnic workshop’ – the destination this time being Khandala. How and when was this settled is uncertain because till yesterday, Dilip Babani was talking about Lonavala. “Khandala is different from Lonavala,” Shekhawat insisted as he went around asking, “Aati hai Khandala?”
Taken aback, some ladies wanted to know what was there in Khandala.

Shanti Singh (in yellow) is curious about Khandala

“What will we do in Khandala?” Shanti Singh demanded.
Shekhawat was only waiting for this question. Instantly he broke into a jig, singing lustily “Ghoomenge phirenge. Naachenge-gaayenge, Aish karenge, Aur kya?”
Shekhawat is back to his exuberant self, jumping about and playing the fool. There is a marked improvement in his health from the time he was down in the dumps (ref post of June 26) when it had taken

Bhaswati Bose narrates Ghalib joke

the intervention of Siba Prasad Maitra to put him on the rails.
Now again, it has taken Maitra to prevail upon Shekhawat not to risk going on the Bangkok tour (ref post of July 26). “Should god-forbid anything untoward happen, everybody will curse you,” Maitra reasoned. “The entire tour will be ruined.” For once, Shekhawat listened.
Meanwhile, here is an allegorical account on Bengali-Hindi sent by Banoo Apa which had us giggling no end: “A Bengali babu once went to Mirza Ghalib to learn shayari. Ghalib asked the man to repeat after him: ‘Na Gila karte hai, Na Shikwa karte hai.../ Tum Salaamat Raho is Duniya mein/ Yahi Dua karte hai!’ The Bengali babu repeated: ‘Na Geela korta hai, Na Sookha korta hai.../ Tum Saala Mat Raho is Duniya mein, Yehi Dua korta hai’!" Ghalib fainted!

Dilip Babani:
Shekhawat-ji will organise a picnic to Khandala very soon.

Lt Col Angad Singh (retd):
Nice to know that our dear Shekhawat is back and is as fit as a fiddle. I wish him good health and an enjoyable time.

Against Odds

Bunty sings for birthday girl, Razia Khan (foreground) 

It’s getting to be too much of a good thing. For we have lost count of the number of birthday bashes we’ve already had this month. And we were treated to yet another big one today morning.
Razia Khan was not in the best of health today. Yet, she managed to lay out an expansive spread, what with a variety of savories, fries, sweets and cake slices… clearly defying a persistent throat problem that causes her to break into frequent bouts of coughing.
What was even worse, her daughter-in-law Tahira has been detected with kidney stones and is under heavy medication. In spite of being in obvious pain, she popped in a few pills and was present in the morning to usher the birthday of her “best mother, best sister and best friend” – as she put it.
That was not all. Banoo Apa had hurt herself badly yesterday evening from a reckless auto-rickshaw ride that left her with a nasty catch in the waist.

Banoo Apa presents a gift

Siba Prasad Maitra presents birthday calendar

Defying all odds, she made it a point to be there in the Garden for her friend’s birthday and came in limping slowly, lugging two heavy flasks of tea and a personal gift for Razia – the only one to do so!
And then there was our good friend Bunty casting his magical spell and bringing cheer with

Razia with daughter-in-law, Tahira

Poring over the birthday calendar

two evocative songs – one for the birthday girl (Bar bar yeh din aaye… Happy birthday to you!) and the other, for all of us (‘Zindagi bhar nahi bhoolegi woh barsaat ki raat’).
Earlier in the morning, Siba Prasad Maitra did the honors of presenting Razia with her birthday calendar on behalf of the Club. We joined them with singing the birthday song and in true Big Laaf tradition, a fourth laugh was raised for her after the exercises. Once again, here’s wishing Razia Khan many happy returns of the day.

Section of guests at the party

Dilip Babani:
Happy Birthday, Razia-ji.

Geeta Latte:
Happy Birthday, dear Razia Aunty 🎂💐🎂

Siba Prasad Maitra:
Happy Birthday, Razia-ji. Thanks for expressing your desire to receive the calendar from a Bengali. So I got the opportunity, though there were two more Bengalis around, Mr and Mrs Bose. It was indeed a great occasion to celebrate and we enjoyed a lot.

Karun Sharma:
Razia-ji, I missed your party. I wish I could be around to wish you, but you were in my thoughts. May God give you all happiness.

Yusuf Rassiwala:
Razia-ji, even though your health was not permitting, you still came to the Garden and celebrated your birthday with a grand party. This speaks highly about your love and affection for our Club members. We all enjoyed the party. We pray for your early recovery. ALLAH BLESS YOU AND YOUR FAMILY.

Uncertainty Over

Shekhawat (in green) insists on going to Bangkok-Patayya

The Bangkok Tour is on. All uncertainties over it taking off in November were lifted today when we were informed that more than the requisite minimum of 20 have signed up for the tour. Prominent among them are Kiran Prakash, Bihari Milwani and his wife, Nahid Siddiqui, Pushpa Gupta, Naseem Khan and of course, Bhaswati Bose. They have all paid the advance for their flight tickets, thereby confirming participation.
This is however, the first step in a series of formalities we shall have to abide by for our first overseas tour from the Club. After securing the best airline deal (based on which the exact dates of the trip would be fixed), the next step would be to obtain confirmation on hotel bookings and local travel, both in Bangkok and Pattaya.
There is also the detail of travel insurance and only after that, can we venture into applying for a tourist visa. Clearly, there will be many a slip between the cup and the lip and in the event of rejections/ dropout, a back-up of 10-odd names on a ‘waiting list’ is being drawn up. (In fact, there

The tree falls upon a car (photo courtesy Siba Prasad Maitra)

are many who want to go, given the attractive economics of the tour, but their passports have not yet come through.) Should all go well, the contingent will balloon to 30 members.
In all this, a big question mark hangs over Shekhawat. He was actually the one to have initiated this tour, but his health has let him down of late. It is not even a fortnight since he has come out of a critical medical procedure, but he is now gung ho, eager to go to Bangkok-Patayya. Much as nobody wants to exclude him, prudence (and more importantly, his wife) demands he does not risk his life by going on the trip. A clearance from his doctor (also required for his travel insurance) should settle the matter.
Meanwhile, a tree crashed in the neighborhood due to the rains, causing panic in the Garden. Newspapers and TV are full with reports of people getting crushed to death under falling trees in different parts of the city. Dilip and Kajal Babani rushed home to check. Banoo Apa informed she had to crawl her way through the fallen tree which was blocking her path.
Siba Prasad Maitra has sent us this picture (above left) of the devastation he was witness to early morning.

Geeta Latte:
Best of luck dears... 👼💐👍

Surprise Party

Birthday boy, BUNTY

Bunty singing with wife, Priya

Today we got a glimpse of how two beautiful and enormously gifted individuals were drawn together and went on to tie the knot many years ago.
For a while Bunty (a.k.a. Mahendra Singh Thakur) pretended to be Rajesh Khanna and with wife Priya agreeing to do a Mumtaz, together they sang the popular romantic duet of the seventies, ‘Yunhi tum mujhse baat karti ho…’
“This was the song I sang for her during our courtship days,” Bunty revealed as he celebrated his birthday this morning.
He had turned 51 last Friday (on July 21), but since the date coincided with Rakhi Bansi’s birthday, he agreed to defer his celebration by four days. Today was the first convenient date available to him as there was no other birthday on in the Club. In this behind-the-scenes planning and organising, Vasudev Batheja played a key role.
Since many in the Club were unaware of all this, Bunty’s treat came as a pleasant surprise to most.

Vasudev Batheja

Banoo Apa for one, had brought a box of rose-flavoured mawa barfi (a rarity these days) little knowing that Bunty had already lined up a rich spread of savories that included saboo-dana wada, samosa, pedas, muffins… and of course, tea.
Banoo Apa cheerfully explained her treat as a measure of prolonging Yusuf Rassiwala’s 70th anniversary celebrations from Sunday (ref yesterday’s post). Her husband, Dr Muhammed Farooq Khan also graced the occasion.

Arnav stands tall in the middle

Another big bonus of the morning was that we got to meet Bunty’s son, Arnav. He is a bright college kid

Banoo Apa treats us to mawa barfi

preparing for an MBA course. But today, he was his mother’s right-hand man, helping with preparing the plates and attending to guests. He has a sister, younger to him. We would hopefully get to meet all of them together some day. Meanwhile, here’s wishing Bunty and his wonderful family the very best.

The party spills out on the street

Bhaswati Bose:
Belated Happy Birthday, Bunty. We have had many birthday parties, but this was the first time the birthday boy and his wife sang together for us. Their melodious duet made our day.

Kiran Prakash:
Belated Happy Birthday, dear Bunty. It was indeed a musical birthday party today. May God shower his blessings and both of you continue to progress in your personal and professional journey.

Yusuf Rassiwala:
Bunty-ji, thank you very much for inviting our Big Laaf members to your birthday party. We all really enjoyed it very much. It was very pleasant to hear your duet song with your beautiful wife, Priya. Lovely couple, lovely song and melodious voice. A graceful combination. With all good wishes to you and your family. ALLAH BLESS YOU ALL.

Geeta Latte:
Happy Birthday to you, Mr Bunty 🎂💐

Bunty Thakur:
I'm priveleged to be a part of this group. Thank you, everyone.

Dilip Babani:
Happy Birthday, Bunty-ji.

Baap of all Parties

Yusuf Rassiwala

Dilip Babani skipped dinner last night. An unabashed foodie, he took us by surprise when he declared this morning that he was on a starvation diet. “I have had only one biscuit and a cup of tea in the morning

Sharing a private moment with guests

and that too, to go along with my diabetes pills,” he informed.
Dilip was not the only one to have denied himself even a morsel of food since attending Yusuf Rassiwala’s grand luncheon party at Courtyard Restaurant yesterday. Such was the irresistible array of starters and beverages on offer, not to mention the mind-boggling variety on the main course that most of us, if not all, had perforce retired to bed last night without dinner. We were stuffed to the gills.
Yusuf R had booked the entire ground floor of the restaurant to host what was a combination of his annual Eid party and birthday celebration. He turned 70 yesterday.

Panoramic view of the party hall

More than 80 invitees turned up to felicitate him, 45 of them members and their spouses as well as friends of Big Laaf. They included Bunty and wife Priya, Vasudev Batheja, Harish and Geetika Wadhwa, Dr Farooq Muhammed Khan, Devraj Das and some others.
So overwhelmed was Yusuf R’s wife, Niloufer at the massing of so many guests that she could not hold back her tears.

Niloufer turns emotional

“All I ask of you is to continue giving my husband your

Cutting the 70th birthday cake

love, blessings and good wishes and to pray for his good health and happiness…” she said on the PA system before breaking down sobbing. She could not complete the sentence.
The programme for the afternoon was phased out in three stages:
Intros: Welcoming of guests with Yusuf R making his introductory remarks: “I have two families, both equally dear to me. One comprises my wife, my two beautiful bahus and my two able sons, my lovely grandchildren and the entire Rassiwala clan, its offshoots… and the other is my Big Laaf family

Morning after... today

in the Garden with whom I cannot

Kajal Babani presents the Club Calendar

but begin my day every morning…”
Entertainment: On demand, Bunty took charge of the mike with a series of foot-tapping film songs (Harish providing the karaoke score in the background) followed by Priya Thakur and thereafter Siba Prasad Maitra, Banoo Apa, Bijoy Gupta, Vasudev Batheja and the usual suspects.

A proud and blessed family

Razia Khan compered this segment with aplomb, peppering her lines with trademark witticisms and Urdu couplets.
Cake Cutting: This was the time for the kids in the hall to scramble around Yusuf R as he cut his birthday cake to the strains on ‘Happy Birthday to You’ playing full-blast on the music system. Suddenly the music stopped as Kajal Babani weaved her way through the crowd and with some ceremony presented Yusuf R the Club calendar to the popping of cell-phone flashes. The action thereafter shifted to the lunch area and it was not without a beautiful perfume roll-on bottle as ‘return gift’ did the guests leave the premises.
It was this attention to detail and more importantly, the personal courtesies accorded to every guest that made this party stand out. Every person was made to feel a VIP. Given the numbers and the scale of the do, it was no mean task ensuring that there was no room for any complaint -- all thanks to the host and his wonderful family. Long live all of them!

Bihari Milwani:
When is Niloufer Rassiwala attaining the landmark of 70 years so that we get one more chance to enjoy such a party?

Dilip Babani:
Yusuf-bhai, it was a very very nice party. Lovely food, lovely people and lovely atmosphere. Lovely music with nice song and nice dance. Our Big Laaf family members enjoyed every moment of the party. Bunty-ji, Priya-ji, Banoo Apa, Maitra-ji, Gupta-ji, Razia-ji and the entire Rassiwala family made the party very, very nice. Harish-ji's music system made the party more enjoyable. Thanks Yusuf-bhai, for such a lovely and fantastic party. Happy birthday, once again.

Geeta Latte:
Bestest party ever 👆👌🎂! ! !

Karun Sharma:
Yusuf-bhai proved that he is a great host. He took care of everyone and ensured that everyone receives the best attention. Rightly said, this was 'baap of all parties' and it was was thrown by the Baap of Big Laaf. Another noticeable thing was the time plan was in place and the span of 12 to 3 was perfect. Whistling by Dilip during songs reminded me of my college days. Geeta and Dev were busy with the video coverage. Both of them are extremely warm and beautiful siblings.

Lt Col Angad Singh (retd):
Yusuf-bhai, congrats for entering into the age of a revered group. Wishing you a very happy, healthy and long enjoyable innings. I wish I could be there to felicitate you in person. God bless you all.

Yusuf Rassiwala:
I am thankful to all the members of Big Laaf for attending my birthday party. The party was organised with the help of our club members -- Dilip-saab and Kajal-ma'm, Harish-bhai for his music system... I also thank Razia-ma'm for compering the programme in such a nice and professional way. Last but not the least, our friends Mr and Mrs Bunty (Mahendrabhai) along with Vasudev Bhateja who took to playback singing, attracting all to the dance floor. Blog Monster was at his best capturing the beautiful moments. It was completely the joint effort of all members that accounts for the party's success. Once again I thank all the members and guests for showing their affection and love to me and my family. Bihari-sa'ab will have to wait for 5 years for Niloufer's 70th birthday. I will be 75 years then -- my Golden Jubilee. With all good wishes and love. ALLAH BLESS YOU ALL.

Intekhab Alam Khan:
Belated Happy Birthday, Yusuf Uncle.

DAY 2314

Pic of the Week

SILENT COMMUNION

Lovely photo. Geeta always takes care of dogs. The dog looks at her as he wants to be loved by her. Geeta always gives biscuits to the dog. And the dog goes after Geeta as he knows that he will get something to eat. The dog knows about good people and bad people. --Dilip Babani

Looks like the yoga teacher is asking a new student: "What is your name?" --Bihari Milwani

Hi Geeta, what are you teaching the dog? Concentration? --Siba Prasad Maitra

Yessssss! 😂😂 --Geeta Latte

Quorum?

The post-exercise session is a bigger draw

No birthday plus heavy rainfall equals low attendance.
Or so did it seem this morning when there were just four of us to start the exercises. In such a situation, the question that inevitably arises is whether we should wait for some time for more people to turn up or must we rigidly stick to our schedule of starting at the dot of seven.
In other words, can any allowance be made for those stuck in the rains or getting delayed for no fault of theirs? Alternatively, should there be a quorum fixed (as in official meetings) before we begin with our morning proceedings?
Opinion is divided. On the one hand there are some sticklers to discipline like Arun Patil, Tara Chand Seth and Nahid Khan who insist that regardless of any exigency, we must start with our exercises at 7:00 a.m. sharp – even if we happen to be one or two present.
On the other hand, people like Shekhawat, Zarina Khan and even Khatoon Baig have argued that in exceptional circumstances, a delay of five or ten minutes will not hurt anyone so long as the late-comers get the benefit of taking part in the exercises from the start.
Clearly, there are pros and cons to both arguments, each having long-term implications. After all, who decides what is an exigency or ‘exceptional circumstance’? How long can we wait, if we must? What about those who couldn’t care less about the exercises and come late without fail? Most important, what must be the ideal quorum without which we cannot begin the exercises?
Or should the best course be that we conveniently overlook these matters and leave it all to the whims and fancies of those present on any given day?
The jury is still out.

Kiran Prakash:
The exercises should start and close on the dot. Big Laaf has created an image for itself in this regard and we should protect that. In the event of exceptional situations, the moment two persons are there, we should begin. All those, including myself, who are keen to take full advantage should come on time. It's also true that sometimes, for various reasons, people are not able to reach on time and we must accept that. That's how we have grown and are respected too.

Bihari Milwani:
* A quorum of two should be fixed. But for a birthday party or anniversary party the quorum should be 10. That will solve all the issues.
* Today everyone was busy getting ready for tomorrow's mega birthday party. That explains the reason for low attendance.

Lt Col Angad Singh (retd):
The exercises must start at the laid down timing and it will automatically finish at the correct time. Punctuality is important and every one should be well in time. There can be many excuses for being late or absent. However, there is no excuse for being punctual. You will enjoy more and feel happy and relaxed. Keep laughing.

Birthday No 5

Rakhi Bansi invites guests to her birthday party today

The Big Laaf birthday bandwagon continues to roll non-stop as another July-born threw a lavish treat for the club this morning. Rakhi Bansi’s was the fifth birthday bash of the month and the third celebration back-to-back – thereby marking a hat-trick of sorts.
For a change, there were fresh idli-vadas and sambaar, followed by hot tea – a perfect combination against the backdrop of intermittent showers all morning.

BIRTHDAY GIRL RAKHI

As takeaways, Rakhi had chocolate bars and cake-slices for everyone present.
Significantly, this was one

Personally attending to guests

birthday bash we had least expected. Rakhi happens to reside closest to the Garden (just across the road, in Mira Towers) but is unable to make time in the morning for our exercises. In fact, she is rarely, if ever, seen around. As such, there were no photographs of her available for the Club calendar we customarily gift people on their birthdays.
Nevertheless, we raised the fourth laugh today for her (in absentia) and also sang the birthday song. She was late at turning up, but since she had announced her party plans at Geeta Latte’s do yesterday, we waited patiently for her. Nobody left. In the end our patience paid off and we dispersed properly stuffed and happy.
If only, Rakhi can make it every day to the Garden!

Gorging on the sumptuous treat

Karun Sharma:
Rakhi was packet of enthusiasm as she danced and declared it was her birthday. Snacks were tasty and sumptuous. The tea was special and the rain also stopped in between to enjoy the birthday celebration.

Geeta Latte:
Happy Birthday to you, Rakhi Aunty💐🎂💐

Favourite Child

Kiran Prakash hands calendar

Bhaswati Bose sings for Geeta

Karun Sharma recites a poem

After the birthday blast yesterday, it was for the Club’s youngest member today to prove that she too is capable of growing up in July. But in the end, with all the song and dance, the joy and revelry, Geeta Latte confirmed that she shall remain the little girl she has always been to us.

Razia Khan presents a gift

Yusuf Rassiwala gives his blessings

Clearly, it was impossible not to be overwhelmed by all the love, blessings and good wishes heaped upon her this morning.
Starting with Kiran Prakash presenting her the Club calendar and Tara Chand Seth giving her a good grandfatherly hug to Bhaswati Bose fondly holding her cheeks and singing to Shanti Singh and Banoo Apa dancing for her and Yusuf Rassiwala blessing her by placing his hand upon her head, Geeta was everybody’s favorite child today.
Siba Prasad Maitra sang for her not

Siba Prasad Maitra sings

Banoo Apa does a little jig

one, not two, but three birthday songs (one, even in English) while Bijoy Gupta, as expected, interjected with a couple of wacky numbers.
On a sober note though, Karun Sharma recited a poem composed for the occasion and as always, Razia Khan was there with a personal gift for the birthday girl.
There were several other memorable moments as well, some of which are captured in the accompanying pictures. Yusuf Rassiwala summed it up best when he observed aloud that the Club had "never before witnessed a birthday celebration of such warmth and spontaneity”. The only dampener though was Shekhawat complaining of his umbrella getting damaged ("toot gaya") the moment he invited Geeta under it!

Bijoy Gupta goes berserk

Shekhawat shows broken umbrella

Iyengar Bakery boxes for all

Kiran Prakash:
Happy Birthday, Geeta. Many happy returns of the day. Be always happy and continue to spread happiness all around you. We all love you and wish you well in your life and to make us proud. Today is your day. Enjoy.

Karun Sharma:
Geeta came prepared as the birthday girl and the blog ensured the celebrations were well covered. It was a hugely motivated event where people came out and showered blessings naturally and willingly. God bless you Geeta.

Intekhab Alam Khan:
Many happy returns of the day, Geeta. Have a great time.

Lt Col Angad Singh (retd):
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Geeta. It is nice to enjoy birthday during monsoon. We all feel elated to celebrate the birthday of our youngest club member. You have been an active participant and I hope you continue to be so in times to come. Keep enjoying and laughing.

Bhaswati Bose:
Happy Birthday dearest 'Tai Chi'. What a lovely and enjoyable morning we had today. You deserve all the happiness of the world in future. Thanks for the great treat. The items from Iyenger Bakery were excellent. Have a wonderful day, my sweetie pie!

Dilip Babani:
Happy Birthday Geeta. May God bless you. It was a very nice party box you gave. The party was very nice and so are the photos. All members of Big Laaf love you.

Geeta Latte:
Thank you so-ooooo much for wishing me on my birthday and making my day extra special 👆🙏💝 It was the best birthday celebration of my life👆👌🙏

Still Growing Up

Bijoy Gupta (r) is irrepressible... serenading Bhaswati Bose (l)

Some people never grow up. People in our club cannot grow up. As any follower of this blog would figure out by now, we are all prime victims of arrested growth.
So every time someone announces that he/ she has grown by a year, it calls for a major celebration.

Milwani's special gift

As birthday celebrations go for the month of July, it was Bhaswati Bose’s turn today to get the Club together to eat, drink and make merry till the sun was shining. Luckily, it did not rain this morning. The break from a prolonged wet spell, by itself, merited a celebration.
Bunty was there with his wife, Priya (ref yesterday's post), as were other old friends of the Club -- Vasudev Batheja, Harish Wadhwa and Vijay Bhai.

Gifts galore: Tara Chand is at ext rt and Milwani, in the left

Checking the birthday calendar

88-year-old Tara Chand Seth usually keeps away from the excesses of parties (for reasons of health) but today, he made an exception. It was from his hands that Bhaswati received

Bhaswati (r) plays hostess

her Club calendar amid rousing applause and the usual practice of raising the fourth laugh and singing the birthday song.
Bihari Milwani, as always had come up with something unusual – a beautiful stalk of tiny red

Eat, drink and make merry... as the sun shines

flowers stuck to a bottle, labeled “Shubho Janmadin” (in Bengali script) with Bhaswati’s photo in profile. We can always expect the unexpected from this gentleman.
Bijoy Gupta sprung another surprise when, on the pretext of serenading the 'birthday girl', he belted out a bawdy folk number with suggestive gestures and cheeky one-liners (like “nainon mein bas jaoon”) that left many momentarily red faced. But soon everybody jumped with joy and clapped, knowing well that Gupta alone is capable of pulling off such gimmicks without malice.
In the end, it is sentiments that matter and so long as everyone has a blast, nothing more is needed. Kajal Babani, Geeta Latte, Fahmida Khan and Pushpa Gupta deserve a word of praise for organizing the eats and preparing the plates. And Banoo Apa… what more can be said of the tea she gets every time? She’s the best!

Dilip Babani:
Happy Birthday, Mrs Bose. Very nice party. May God bless you.

Bihari Milwani:
Only old people grow up. We are still young children. We come in time regularly for the laughing exercises, that too in HALF PANTS.

Intekhab Alam Khan:
Many happy returns of the day to you Mrs Bose. Enjoy your day.

Kiran Prakash:
Happy Birthday, Bhaswati. Many happy returns of the day. May God grant you His choicest blessings and you continue to be in the best of health and spirits. Your birthday party was superb.

Geeta Latte:
Many, many happy returns of the day to my sweetest friend💐🎂💐👼

Lt Col Angad Singh (retd):
Many happy returns on your birthday, Bhaswati. It gives me immense pleasure to know that July is full of birthdays. It is the most enjoyable season -- rimjhim barse badalia... Keep laughing and enjoying. This is blissful.

Bhaswati Bose:
Thank you all for your good wishes. Your kind words have doubly made my day. Hope to celebrate many more birthdays with all of you together in the years to come.