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| Baba |
Baba got a new job in a Tea Estate and there is a huge story around it too. My father did his early education from Etna Gram in Undivided East Bengal near a small town called Jessore... We belonged to a learned family of Boidya Bramins of Sen Sharma responsible to publish the Holy calendar (Yearly Book) called Gupto's Panjika.... This was a calendar of events for the coming year with all calculations of sunrise/sunsets and good days and the bad and it had everything and I believe even sold today in the streets of Kolkata..... My Dadu was Mohini Mohan Sen Sharma (Changed to Sengupto) and my Dida was from the famous Nihar Ranjan/Channkya Sen family of Faridpur also in East Bengal.
My Dadu was a police Officer and posted in Canning in 1940's and Baba did his secondary education from Canning Government School and then went into Jadavpur Engineering College to study mechanical engineering. His batch mate for the first year was Hemanto Kumar Mukherjee who did study for one year before he made his mark in music. Baba and him were the best of friends with Biswajeet the famous movie star.
Post graduation Baba got a job as a Service Engineer with Parry and Company having their office in Chowringhee Road near ICI paints and they were the service agents of Kirloskars engineering products and Baba used to visit Tea gardens to service their Boilers and other equipment. Baba used to tour a lot in various Tea gardens and would stay in Quarters of Bara Babus as that was the ways of gardens handled by the white Bara Sahibs.
Macneill and Barry and Kirburns had the biggest share of tea gardens belonging to Lord Inchcape and Lord S.P. Sinha was then the Chairman of the group. Bob Dockings was the Garden Superintendent of Tarapore Tea Company Ltd which had 9 tea gardens in Cachar District around Kumbheegram airport. Dewan Tea Estate was the main garden where Bob Dockings and the Gora Sahibs lived and Sanjoy Shankar Ray (Younger brother of Siddahartha Shankar Ray) was assistant Manager of Labac T.E.
It seems that Bara Sahib's bunglow was not getting adequate water from the Boiler as one of the water pipes had clogged and jammed and the Gora Engineer and his fitters had badly bent and twisted the pipes to such an extend that the pipe broke but could not be taken out for a new pipe to be replaced. No water for 3 days and Bara Sahib could not have his garam pani bath in the bath tub and Baba was deputed to do something.
Baba landed in Silchar (Khumbheegram Airport in an IAC plane and a lorry (Bedford) was sent to fetch him. Baba was rushed into the bunglow and when he saw the disaster he asked for some old cloth-jute rope and tar...... He wrapped all this around the damaged pipe and put the liquid tar around the cloth and put fire to the stuff. after the pipe turned hot he took a small hammer and put the wrench into the hot pipe and gave it some hits and out came the pipe..... In an hour's time Bara Sahib could have his hot water and hot tub to wash himself. During the whole time he stood beside Baba and was amazed at the simplicity of the operation where common sense was applied and not engineering science.
Baba spent the night with Bara Sahib in his 14 room Bungalow and had the best wine and food and was treated like a lord.Bob Dockings gave Baba a personal letter for Lord Sinha and this time Bara Sahib himself drove Baba to the airport for the return flight and when Baba reached 9 Lord Sinha Road to hand over the sealed letter he met Lord Sinha himself and was told to report to Head office the next day as he was selected to become an Assistant Manager and return back at once to Dooars.
I remember the moment when Baba came home to Regent Park in Tollygunge and broke the news there was joy and anger.... Dadu could not tolerate the fact that Baba was breaking out of the joint family and setting off to some job of a mali in a tea garden and till the time Dadu expired he never knew what Baba did in a garden.... We left that same night and stayed in a hotel and early morning Baba and Ma and Didibhai and me went to Burnpur to my Nana's place.
Baba returned to Kolkata and resigned and joined Macneill & Barry and he left for Dooars by flight landing in Bagdogra and joined DimDima Tea Estate reporting to Uncle Austin (Gora Sahib with an Indian Memsahib). We joined him a month later.
Ma and Didibhai and me were booked into a strange compartment in a train (First class coupe) and I was amazed at all the upholstery and fine woodwork inside the coupe and we had a toilet to ourselves. WoW. I remember I had just recovered from Jaundice and still weak but I was jumping from one berth to another like a monkey as I had never seen such luxury and the journey was memorable too. We passed forests and mountains and I could see snow peaked mountains for the first time (Kanchanjunga) and reached Dalgaon station around 8 am. A familiar gentleman in a tea shirt and half baggy pants with long socks and a solar hat with Keds welcomed us and I saw my mum jump on the man and hug him I realised that was Baba. He was in the office dress of a tea planter and he took us to a car (Big car--Ford Prefect bottle green purchased from Duar Garage and he drove us for sometime and we entered a big gate and there was a huge lawn and flowers all around and some people (Malis) stood up and bowed while we drove in. We stopped in the arched porch which had creepers all around the walls and a horde of servants came to fuss over us and take our b and touch my parents feet and wished me and Didibhai.....
We sat in the drawing room which had huge sofas and chairs and what not and I saw that a fire was burning inside the room (fireplace) and Ma... Didbhai and me sat lost...... we were stupidly lost.... We just wanted to go to our home as we thought this was his Boss Bungalow and for about an hour we sat in one sofa huddled together till Baba came back for breakfast and explained that this was indeed our home...... Then the monkey in me took over....I jumped and hopped and skipped all over and ran wind on the lawns and forgot it was winter and soon I just collapsed as the after effect of excitement and jaundice both attacked me and doctor had to come and I was ordered into bed. The bed was so funny as when I moved it bounced with me (Springs) and then I realised I had a room to myself and Didibhai had her own room and Baba and Ma was in some other room by themselves......WoW!!!!WoW!!! and more WoW.... living with Aunts/Uncles and cousins in one rooom and suddenly a room to myself was heaven till nightfall......
We lived very near the game sanctuary and wild life started activating itself and the noises were scary and I ran to Baba's room to see my sister already there and for a week we all lived in the parents bedroom.....
It took me a week to recover and I was pampered and spoilt rotten by our Staff and the Doctor and every morning I used to be put into a cane chair under a tree and covered up in warm quilts with comics and food and fruits and would be there till lunch and my recovery was fast. I had the beautiful mountains in front of me and a river behind me and a big lawn around me. The bungalow had 3 bedrooms and one hall room and a smoking room?? and.... and.... and.....never mind..
Once a week was club day and the four of us went to Dalgaon Planters club where I just saw cars and more cars parked in a big field and a young man came and took out a long bag from our car and hung it around his back and neck.... Baba said that he was our caddie and Baba took out a funny looking stick and walked to a small high raised ground and put a small while ball into a screw like thing and gave the ball a hit. He and two Aunties and another Uncle walked into the green field and each one stopped and gave their respective balls another hit. I was told this was golf and we children walked obediently behind while others hit balls.
Soon I realised that Baba was actually doing everything but hitting the ball. He had a huge stomach and I don't think he could actually see the ball and all his swings were getting him nowhere and in a nine hole course he had a score of 128. Amen. Auntie Eilene (Uncle Austin's Indian wife) had a score of 92..... In two weeks I was hitting the ball better than Baba and he gave up golf and decided to play Tennis....
Another story and maybe another time and Baba was a great sport and refused to give up and had a huge lady following who loved the way he played tennis... He was all over the court chasing balls and not making contact and yet he never gave up. He could not as it was company policy that one had to play one sport during club days and he decided that chasing balls was better than losing balls (golf).
I loved club nites and there was a grand high Tea where every family contributed to bringing food from home and we all pooled in cakes and pastries and what nots.....I loved the food but could not indulge as was still sick but the atmosphere was great and then we got to see a movie in the hall sitting in big cane chairs and having finger fries etc.
On Holidays we would take our car for drives all over Dooars....Our car was a 1928 Ford Prefect model and she was old and needed help every 10km....We had to open the bonnet and let the hot air escape and then open the radiator cap somehow and pour water and cool her down.....A big bucket was part of the tool kit. Yet we went all over Dooars and Bhutan and as soon as the car stalled Ma and me would take the bucket out and run to the nearest water hole and rush back with water and thankfully Dooars has many rivers and streams and we never ran out of water.....But trust me it was comical fetching water.
My first Christmas party was in Dalgaon where there was a Santa Claus waiting in the door and I got a Badminton racket and a a football and got to meet a lot of kids and enjoyed dancing to a live band and realised that Ma was the best dancer in that club and I could move well with her automatically...Genes maybe but I still remember that night dancing away with Ma... Gwen Austin 4 years older than me and my best friend too.....
Soon 5th March 1958 arrived and Didibhai and me got ready to drive up to Darjeeling to join school.
That will be in the next blog......
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