Once upon a time, there lived a beautiful and the most richest personality in Pune from Maharashtra named as 'The Golden Gal'. She was a firm believer in her God. She respected her family traditions and was quite hardworking. I am talking about 'SHAKUNTALA CHOUGULE'..... who had adopted me as her own granddaughter. Unfortunately, we lost her on 26th of January in 2017. It was indeed an unbearable loss for me.....
Her life began...by placing her in the role of being the daughter of a wealthy landlord. She grew up with all the comforts and riches in life. Her house was filled with obedient servants and all respected her father a lot. She grew up amidst the presence of a joint family. Royalty surrounded her wherever she went....
As she grew up, she had to step into the new platform of matrimony. Her father gave her in marriage to an already married man whose first wife was in an ailing condition. Shakuntala had to shift herself amidst the many compromises and adjustments that life had thrown at her. But, she managed to balance her mind and took up the family businesses. She looked after the cattle and sold milk on a regular basis. Then, she started handling the other business that was all about selling wood to those who required it for making furniture, cooking caterers and bakeries and for other industrial purposes. She looked after the entire house and completed all her tasks so dutifully. Stitching clothes too was something of her own interest!
My Shakuntala Devi was quite a religious person and never missed performing the devotional rituals even until her death. She was a mother of two boys and two girls. She was a highly respected woman. Her adorable charm includes her wrapping up in her traditional Kashta and sarees. She loved to wear traditional jewellery too. Above all, her inner personality was a glorified crown of humanity...
She used to live nearby The Indian Christian Cemetery but she was not at all afraid of anything as she was a very strong lady. She visited the graveyard in order to gather some fodder for her domestic cattle. At time, she even washed her clothes along with the other ladies over there. She wasn't afraid of the dead. On certain occasions, she used to even breastfeed her little children over there.
She was a God-fearing woman and used to go on pilgrimage. She loved visiting temples from the South. She was an ardent follower and used to keep all her fasts even in her last days. Her morning poojas were never missed. She also attended Bhajans especially on Tuesdays. Apart from this, she was a huge fan of Jesus Christ and respected His teachings. Above all, Humanity was framed within her personality and this had helped her to be a good person to a greater extent....
My relation with her began when we stayed in her house for almost three years as tenants. But, she became my grandmother and adopted me as her own granddaughter. We had a beautiful relationship inspite of not being blood-related with each other. I was given the freedom to be in charge of the entire house. I learned the art of cooking from her and she taught me to perform all the household chores. I was quite pampered as her own! In the same way, she loved my mother a lot and highly respected her. She treated both of us as her own...
Granny and I spoke the regional language which was Marathi in a much comfortable level. She always loved to narrate the incidents of her life. I was given the privilege to sit beside her. I was constantly at her beck and call! She couldn't pronounce my name as Jolsna and so she preferred calling me as 'Josna'. I used to call her as 'Aaji' which means 'Grandmother'. Her elderly love can never ever be forgotten.... She was indeed precious to me ♡
This 'Golden Girl' hailed from a very rich background but that didn't make her life that easier after marriage. She had to hard work a lot in order to balance her family life. In the middle of everything, a tragedy had ripped her away at an unexpected hour. She lost her beloved husband and her two precious sons in a tragic car accident at the same time. It was a huge loss for her. She couldn't accept it and she was paralyzed on one side of her body. She was survived by two daughters and two daughter-in-laws. An immediate brain surgery was done which brought her back to a normal state but she had to walk with the support of a walking stick. She quit her work and placed her elder daughter-in-law in charge of the family businesses. She took voluntary retirement from all her family businesses and decided to stay at home relaxing herself as she was quite disappointed on losing both her husband and children....
Aaji was somehow balancing herself amidst the tragedic losses. She was trying to find her lost happiness in us and this cemented our relation with her... On the other hand, she was desperate to love her family members too. But, sadly her daughters and her daughters-in-law didn't give sufficient time to make her happy. They visited her but didn't give her that much care and attention that she yearned for... They just came and sat for few seconds or maybe half an hour and then went away minding their own businesses. This broke her heart and she was shattered from within....
The elder daughter-in-law brought her food for lunch while the younger daughter-in-law used to send her food for dinner. But, she could somehow feel that all were doing their duties towards her just for the namesake of formalities. Love and affection were missing in one way or the other..... She never complained about it but bore it all silently in the innermost corners of her mind. She observed everyone and fished out their intentions just like a smart lady detective! Some needed her signature on property papers while others eyed on her jewellery. She hated feigned sympathy and simply continued to live with a forgiving heart. She was humble and so lovable....
She had the hope of living further along with the love, care and affection provided by her family members but that didn't happen as expected... She wasn't a rich lady anymore. She was served cold food in the initial stage. She got proper treatment only after we began staying in that house with her. I have seen tears rolling down her cheeks as she used to recite all her inner feelings in front of me... She was surrounded by an ocean of relatives but none was willing to take care of her. It was such a sorry state of her life especially in this olden age. The daughters-in-law used to fight with each other unnecessarily holding grudges regarding the money spent on grandma. I was quite shocked to witness all this....
Aaji lost her will power when her younger daughter-in-law decided to sell the house to other people. At first, 'Aaji' was made to believe that only the front hall was to be given on rent to them. But, slowly... her bathroom and toilet were also sold out to them. Thus, grandma didn't have a proper facility for her own privacy. This was one of the main reasons why she was so heartbroken. As a result, she became bedridden for almost one and a half year.
Such was the sorry condition of this rich lady who had built this house with her own hands... She had misunderstood the fact that everyone would be there for her in her last days. She depended on others for her own peace and happiness. At the same time, The younger daughter-in-law had planned to keep Aaji in an Old age Home like an orphan but she couldn't do it as the other relatives stood against her. This further affected the mental state of grandma and she gave up the hope of living in this world. In short, she died in a mercy killing manner....abandoned by her own people.
God heard her prayers and took her away..... We lost her Forever but can never ever forget those golden moments with her..... ♡
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{ This has been penned by Me keeping in mind those mesmerizing days when Aaji and I used to spend our time together especially her story telling sessions sharing all her elderly experiences with me! She was like a God Mother to me.. I was blessed with opportunities to serve her hot cups of Tea along with plates of her all time favourite garam garam pakoras! Her elderly blessings are one of the greater achievements of my life......♡
"LOVE YOU GRANNY...MISS YOU..." ♡ )
[ LOVINGLY DEDICATED TO MY MOST BELOVED AAJI- LATE.MRS. SHAKUNTALA CHOUGULE....
"OUR GOLDEN GIRL"..... ♡ )
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( P.S. - Please do not abandon your parents especially in their old age and never ever sell their house in front of their own eyes. Let them pass away peacefully at their appointed time. We must never be the reason for their death.... PARENTS are the ultimate source of our blessings. GOD has commanded us to Respect Them Forever €
-(JOLSNA )
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