The world is celebrating The Mother’s Day today . But can the love for one’s mother be restricted to just this one given day?? Yes because if we can celebrate the amazing relationship of Brother-Sister on Rakhi then why not celebrate this first relation/ bond that we form with our life giver.
I have been triply blessed to have three generations of mother who have showered love and affection on me unconditionally without fail. Starting from my mother to my Grand Mother and then to my Great Grand Mother. Words and emotions would always fall short of what they mean to me. I am miserable at displaying my love and affection to the people that matter and are dear to me and that’s a grudge I doubt can ever be rectified. So this is a small measure to cover my inadequacies!!

This Mother’s Day I want to Thank you Mummy for bringing me up the way you did. For keeping me grounded, covering up for my mistakes and being there for me always. We have had our showdowns but what is a relationship without this. I have never told you this but time and again people have complimented me about my upbringing and I have you to Thank for it. Coming from the background that we do, it was very easy to get things to our head but a good thrashing verbal or otherwise was enough to get whatever nonsense crept up in my head time and again. The strict upbringing that we abhorred while growing up  but now in hindsight realize that it was what made sure we never wavered from the family ideals. Hope I am able to provide the same upbringing to your Grandchildren who are now getting the same love (हमसे थोडा ज्यादा) from you and the same reprimands (हमारे comparison में कुछ भी नहीं).

Jiya that is how I and everyone addressed my Grandmother as, it means mother In Mewari. Someone who was known for her temper and who never suffered fools gladly, never once showed her anger irrespective of my foolish and stubborn temperament. A Cook par excellence, I had to name a dish and she would drop everything and made sure it was there: be it her Indian Cooking, her instant Ladoos and her cupcakes. One example that stands out was when she first visited me in Mayo College , I was howling and begging her to take me back with her to Udaipur and there she was all strong and admonished me for being such a weakling. The regular letters from her while I was in boarding was always a source of strength and inspiration for me. She passed away 18 years ago and till her very last days she wasn’t dependent on anyone, active and doing her own work!! My only regret is not spending the evening with her before the day she passed away.

Dadi: My Great Grandmother who lived past 100 years contented and with no regrets!! Remember snuggling into her bed and literally pushing her into the corner, her room was our hiding zone. Only thing out of bounds for us was her rosary and her Shrinathji. When I moved to Mumbai for my college, she often spoke about her days in Mumbai in the early 1900’s where she was staying when my grandfather was studying then in VJTI. Her fondness for Tomato Ketchup and Macaroni and her keeping aside a roti for our pet dog. Uncomplaining and showering unconditional love on us. Life was never smooth for her with the loss of her husband at a young age, death of her young daughter and then seeing the death of her only son. She faced life as it came!!
Thank You my life is incomplete without the love of these mothers and it can only be truly measured by their love, for they define me as person!!

This song from Taare Zammen Par captures the true emotions ……

मैं कभी बतलाता नहीं , पर अँधेरे से डरता हूँ मैं माँ,
यूँ तो मैं दिखाता नहीं, तेरी परवाह करता हूँ मैं माँ ,
तुझे सब है पता , है ना माँ 
तुझे सब है पता .... मेरी माँ