Babasaheb played the violin, I danced: childhood memories at 86
Jinal Shah Posted online: Monday , Dec 07, 2009 at 0423 hrs
Mumbai : What Vanaspati Durgat, 86, does not know about the Indian
Constitution, she makes up for with her knowledge about the man
responsible for it. She knows, for instance, how much Babasaheb
Ambedkar loved the violin and what Ramabai's favorite paan was.
Durgat had worked at Rajgriha, Ambedkar's house in Dadar, from the age
of 12. She remembers him as a very composed man.
"He barely spoke to me. But he always asked me, 'How are you?' He
patted me on my cheek and head before leaving home," she said at her
10 ft-by-20 ft house in Matunga Labour Camp on Sunday, the leader's
death anniversary.
Durgat said she used to dance as Babasaheb played the violin. "In
those days he was learning the violin in his gallery. I really liked
the music so one day I started dancing to the tune. Ramabai found it
amusing and ever since then it became a habit," said Durgat.
She recalled how her family had started to work at Rajgriha: "My
parents were from a small village in Haryana, but shifted to Mumbai
for a better living. They did odd jobs in British homes before they
were thrown out. Due to construction work happening in and around the
Dadar area then, they managed to do some work for 50 paise at
Rajgriha, under Babasaheb Ambedkar's nephew Mukund. The owner arrived
once in a blue moon to check on the progress. Unaware who he was, my
father asked a co-worker. Because he was illiterate, he failed to
connect with the name."
Later, Durgat's parents were hired for housework at Rs 3 and
one-and-a-half rupees.
"It was routine to see Babasaheb walk in with his bag in the evenings
and meet the crowd who waited for him with their problems," said
Durgat. "I stayed with Ramabai most of the time. She had a habit of
chewing paan and kept a silver case. Seeing her chew, even I asked her
for a paan but she refused, saying, 'Pori tu lahan aahe aajun. Sagde
data kidhul jaat' (You are too young. All your teeth will fall out)."
Durgat could not read or write but was mesmerised by babasaheb's
collection of books.
"When I took to cleaning up the house, the most difficult was his
bookshelf. It had thick books," she said.
It has been a few years now since Durgat retired from work. Her elder
daughter-in-law has replaced her. "Three generations of my family have
worked at Rajgriha," said Durgat.
Durgat's eyes turned moist as she described the day his body was
brought home from Delhi.
"Thousands of people thronged his house to pay tribute to such a great
leader. Many lost their political leader but for me I knew him as my
Baba," said Durgat.
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