Last year I got a good chance to talk to my grandpa about his life journey.
He is getting old, in nineties now, and looked like he has lost a bit of passion to live.
I considered myself a bit successful in life, coming from middle class family background, working in a multinaitonal company and having visited one or two countries outside India. But, still nothing has given me satisfaction of having done something useful in life, having done good to
someone.
Coming to my grandpa, I was asking him what all he has done in life. He told how he struggled in life and how he successfully bought more land for agriculture, struggle to bring up his kids/family. I asked him if had taken part in freedom struggle, his eyes glowed and he was proud to say Yes.
Seems he and his comrades took part in burning down the Byadagi railway station!!!. I was dumbstuck on hearing this. I thought he might have involved in peaceful one or two agitation. He was ecstatic when he told 'we burned down railway station'. But his name was never mentioned
in the official freedom fighters list, because, his father-in-law(who had high level contacts with police, irony!) made sure his name was disappeared from the official police complaint. So there was nothing to prove, officially, that he took part in freedom struggle.
I thought I was a risk taker in life but will never be able to beat my grandpa. I was asking myself 'What have I done in life till today?'. Answer was Zero, big 0 compared to him. Do I have satisfaciton with my job? Hell NO.
There is one thing where I can beat my grandpa and that is, I can read London Underground Map ;)...
My grandpa took part in the process of freedom struggle, which ultimately ended in sending british out of India. And here I am, left India to work in United Kingdom and sitting and writing this blog in London. Irony!!!
