By Mukta Passi
The Partition left an indelible mark on the history of many families of the subcontinent. My Nani's family was one of them. All the bloodshed and mayhem that ensued during the partition left all of her 5 brothers dead. My great grandmother, (lovingly known as Badi Nani), then took the decision to leave the family's ancestral home in Rawalpindi to save her two daughters. Thankfully their neighbours came to the rescue and helped them change their identities to board a train to India. The women of the neighbouring families gave them their burkhas and men escorted them to the station.
After coming to India they stayed in a refugee camp in Delhi for many years. A distant relative duped them and ran away with all the valuables that they had hurriedly packed before leaving, under the pretense of keeping them safe.
These three women made a life for themselves from there. My Badi Naani started working as domestic help and brought her two daughters up. After some years my Nani and her sister got married. Badi Naani started living with my Nani's family and things began to look up for all of them. My Nana Ji owned a restaurant and earned well, however their happy days didn't last long as he passed away after 8 years of marriage by succumbing to Tuberculosis. They lost everything again and as though this was not enough; after a few years of shouldering all the loss and suffering due to my Nana Ji' s death, Nani got diagnosed with Cancer. My mother, her eldest daughter, took her to chemotherapy and as luck would have it, Nani responded well to the treatment and recovered.
My Nani ensured that all her four kids secure an education and Badi Nani was her constant pillar of support. My Mother went on to secure a government job and made my Nani proud.
As I look back on my lineage, my heart swells with pride at the indomitable spirit of these women who didn't just survive a gory partition, death and suffering, but thrived with all their might.
My Nani left us in the year 2011 at the age of 73. I fondly remember her as a soft spoken, kind hearted woman with a courageous heart that never gave up. Her most remarkable trait was her tender spirit. She didn't allow any of life's hardships to make her go bitter, cold and indifferent. I never once heard her say anything unsavoury about anyone.
I often wonder about the price our ancestors paid for witnessing the traumatic break up of their communities! How deep does this trauma run and manifest in the attitudes and ideas of my generation? I wonder is this the reason why I respond very strongly to propagation of bigotry of any kind! I know the pain and suffering caused due to blind hatred that scars the lives of many generations.
By Mukta Passi
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