Preamble by SANJAY BHUCKORY
[A few months ago, during the confinement, I asked my mother Chandranee to write on her life companion and soulmate, Somdath, in view of his birth centenary on 1st November 2021. Destiny has willed it otherwise, as my mother departed this world last week. Our family is extremely grateful to Le Mauricien for posthumously granting Chandranee the opportunity to speak about Somdath’s various facets.]
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Somdath the Singer
My brother Deorishi Boolell had a get-together with his friends on the eve of his wedding. I peeped through the window to see who was singing. My heart jumped, I couldn’t believe my eyes to see that good-looking, elegant, young man. On top of it, he was singing a popular film song that I liked. That was in 1948, and I was 14. After several years, I saw him a few times when he came to see my brother Satcam: the same excitement, the same admiration. Oh my God, he was looking still more attractive. I had finished school and had started to work. I thought he didn’t even know that I existed. So I had to stop dreaming of him, but how? Later, I came to know that he knew me.
Our Engagement
In those days, girls married very young. I had quite a few proposals, which I turned down. One day, Somdath sent a proposal to me through a friend of mine, related to him. I jumped out of happiness. Both our parents met, and this is how our destiny was sealed. He started coming to pick me from my work in Rose Hill. This is how we spent time together and came to know each other. During weekends, he would come home to teach me Hindi. Social distancing was part of the tradition then. I was as impressed by his looks, and by how cultured, kind, caring, generous, good-tempered and good at heart he was.
Our Marriage
After nine months, we got married on 21 December 1956. Somdath was a very romantic and loving husband. We had built around us a wall of complete understanding, cooperation and trust. We lived like two good friends, each one respecting and giving space to the other to flourish in his own activities without treading on the path of the other. Our family life was a real blessing. Our home was an abode of love, peace and harmony. Somdath didn’t miss an occasion to offer me flowers and presents. Once in India, I picked a beautiful white saree with a red border which I liked. When I saw the price, I said it was too expensive and bought a cheaper one. On our 21st wedding anniversary, our daughter Sadhna, who had accompanied us to India, was in the secret and had wrapped presents in white and red which her dad offered me. There was the white saree with the red border, a ring with pearl and ruby and a rolled up white paper attached with a red ribbon, which Somdath opened and read a poem to me on the Taj Mahal. I cried of joy. That poem was the reply to my question to him, on our first visit to the Taj Mahal.
The Father
We have three children: Manjula, Sanjay and Sadhna. When our first child was born a friend asked Somdath: “Premier ou deuxième lot?” He replied, “premier lot”. We had a good laugh when they realised that, for Somdath, a girl is “premier lot”. Somdath has been a most loving and caring father. He never spoke a harsh word or scolded them; he was even too lenient with them sometimes. I was the one who enforced discipline. Dinner time was sacred, it was our daily happy hour. There was a lot of laughing, teasing, arguing, discussions on various topics. The father treated Sanjay as equal to him, discussed with him and asked his opinion on many issues. He encouraged him to be independent, to invite friends to play football at home. Sanjay was around ten, when he allowed him to go on his own to watch football at George V Stadium. As soon as they were 18, he arranged for the three children to learn driving. He was very friendly and caring with his daughters. They joined the School of Indian Music & Dance, at a time when dance for girls was taboo. The father was happy to see his daughters evolve on stage.
The Son
My mother-in-law was a very kind lady. Somdath would never argue or go against any of her decisions. Once I told her that her son wanted me to stop working. She just said “I will speak to him”. From that day, Somdath never asked me to stop working. He started encouraging me to do things that others couldn’t do for me, continue my studies, read, exercise, learn to drive.
The Brother
He was the youngest of four brothers. He reciprocated the love and care they bestowed upon him. His brother Jagraj was his father figure, who looked after him after the demise of his father. He also financed his studies abroad. We lived side by side to him. The relationship of the two brothers was like a loving father and a respectful son.
The Editorialist
I discovered the qualities of Somdath as a journalist when he wrote the editorials of Mauritius Times. His articles were very topical, forceful and fearless. He treated burning issues of the time on political, cultural and social problems. At the beginning, I was upset when he wrote till late on Wednesdays to hand over his copy the next day, to appear in the Friday morning paper. When on Fridays I saw my colleagues eagerly discussing the editorials, which dealt with political issues of the pre-independence days, I realised what a great job he was doing. Somdath always gave me his writings to read aloud and give him my views, as if I was capable of doing so. This allowed me to polish my English and learn a lot.
The Barrister
Somdath shared office with Shiv Beeharry Panray, the attorney. He used to take all his cases very seriously. He was so kind hearted that sometimes he would charge very little and take the case for free if the client was poor. When Sanjay came back from his studies, his father very proudly introduced his son to the elders of the legal profession.
The Politician
He had all the qualities of a politician. As a staunch supporter of the Labour Party, Somdath stood as candidate under its banner. He was very fluent in Hindi and a talented orator. He was very active in his constituency, where he grew up, and used to discuss about his plans to develop Montagne-Longue. He had somewhat neglected his constituency at the last moment, as he was in great demand to speak in Hindi at meetings of other candidates, for instance Guy Forget. After his defeat by a narrow margin at the general elections of 1959, he said he was happy that he had contributed to the success of his party, even if he didn’t win.
The Town Clerk
His nomination as Town Clerk of the Municipality of Port Louis was a new chapter in his life. I accompanied him in his one-year tour to France, Switzerland and England, where he studied the affairs of municipal administration. During the week days, Somdath observed office hours of the three countries where he had an attachment. We made many friends. During the weekends, we were tourists and visited Switzerland, Venice, Monaco and other places of interest. Upon his return, he set the Municipal Council on sound administrative grounds. He also wrote a book on Local Government in Mauritius. In whatever he undertook, Somdath put his mind and his heart. He had a very good memory. There were no half measures with him. With his character and his positive approach, he had the cooperation of his staff and the councillors. In the 20 years he spent at the Municipality, he worked hard and achieved to give Port Louis a new and respectful image and its ‘lettres de noblesse’.
The Writer
He was a prolific writer. He wrote many books, published 16, three were published after his demise and there are three still unpublished. I wonder how much more he would have written, had he a computer at that time. He used to write in the morning, before dinner and during weekends. As far as I remember, I have not seen him tear any draft. He used to write straightaway. He would only correct the printed draft before his approval for printing. Somdath’s love and passion for Hindi had no bounds. His creative writings were in Hindi. He did a lot for the promotion of Hindi. He even used to contribute articles in the Indian press.
The Poet
Somdath was a very sensitive man, imbued with a deep sense of justice. His poetry is about the beauty of nature, burning issues of society, poverty, love, mother, woman, death, just name it. His creative writing was in Hindi. He wrote a collection of four poetry books. He later selected 40 of his poems, which he translated in French. ‘The Creation of Mauritius’, which turned out to be a very famous poem, was projected in a ballet form in Mauritius and at the Universal Expo 67 in Montreal. Once, Kher Jagatsingh, Minister of Economic Planning, wrote to Somdath, who was in India, asking him to write a poem on Mrs Indira Gandhi, who would be on a State visit to Mauritius as Prime Minister. He replied that he only writes poetry when he has an inspiration. Upon his insistence, he had been brooding and finally he came up with an appropriate poem, which impressed Mrs Gandhi.
The Philosopher
Somdath was a great philosopher. He was always positive. No problem had ever upset him, like for example when he wasn’t elected. Later on he said “if I were elected, as a politician, I would never have had time to write and do all that I have done”. When the children were upset about something, he would tell them “Why get upset, may be something better awaits you ahead”. Or “Why worry, whatever happens, happens for the good. You will realise it later”. He was always relaxed and in a happy mood.
The Travel Companion
Both of us enjoyed travelling and we have been lucky to have done a lot of travelling together. We visited many countries. We were never bored and we were happy together. I don’t think travelling can be enjoyable if one has a nagging companion. I used to sleep till late, so by the time I woke up he had already read and written for 2 to 3 hours. We visited many countries and their places of interests, we enjoyed travelling by train, went to the cinema, to the theatre. I love window shopping and buying if affordable. So, Somdath used to leave me in a shopping mall and we would meet after he had spent time in a bookshop and bought a few books. Once in Chicago as planned, at 3 pm I was waiting at the gate of the shop where he had left me and he was also waiting at the same gate. It was getting late. I was very upset, Chicago being a dangerous place; I thought someone must have attacked him. Suddenly I saw Somdath coming. What a relief! The shop had the identical entrance on the other side of the building.
Once, our friend Kailash Ramdanee and his wife Uma joined us in Delhi. We took a taxi to Agra to watch the beauty of the Taj Mahal in the moonlight. We had a most enjoyable and romantic evening. On our way back we realised that the driver couldn’t drive, as he was drunk. Kailash asked him to stop and he took the wheel. At a point the driver rested his head on Kailash’s shoulders. When Kailash pushed him on his seat he grumbled and started again until he fell asleep. It was quite an ordeal that night for Kailash had to drive without an indian driving licence, without knowing the direction, with a drunkard and his bad breath by his side. It was difficult to explain how we reached Delhi, and were back safe in our hotel.
The Friend
Somdath had many friends out of whom five were close to him. Three were barristers, namely Anerood Jugnauth, Sewgobind Sharma, Deepchand Beeharry, one was an Attorney, Shiv Beeharry Panray, and one a pharmacist, Kailash Ramdanee. They all got married almost within one year. Gradually, all the wives became friends. We often used to get together over meals. Somdath was very faithful to his friends. He stood as brother for the wedding of one close friend. This relationship still stands good, even after Somdath’s demise.
The Man
He was a man of great culture and a very special human being. Somdath was as good at heart, as he was good-looking physically. He was not greedy, was always satisfied and happy with what he had and was very humble and soft spoken. He had the same respect for people of all walks of life ; a man who stood strongly by his principles. His life was well organised. He was a master of time management. He never wasted time. This perhaps explains how he came to do so many things and write so much. He was always clean-shaved and well-dressed, even at home and when he was not well. He was moderate in everything. He said he could eat twice as much for lunch or dinner but he controlled himself as what he ate was enough. He liked a drink, but I have never seen him drunk. He never bought a lottery ticket in his life.
He used to visit all elders of the family, he paid respect to his Hindi teacher. He visited his teacher Professor Basdeo Bissoondoyal almost once a week. When his books came out of print he would give him a first copy. He offered him fruits and flowers for his birthday.
CHANDRANEE BHUCKORY
