My Dad

The title of my speech is "My Dad". Ok! There is no surprise here. But the last time I jotted down something like this with the same title - "My Dad" was probably when I was in kindergarten. The difference being - this is hand written and it was in the form of a drawing. "Time kaise beet gaya pata he nahi chala" But I can proudly say one thing - the content has hardly changed - My dad is still my Hero.


The earliest memory I have of my dad is that of a person who is your friend in need. I mean he was the go-to person for all those little issues that seemed world war 3 to me then. The biggest freedom we had was that we could talk about anything without even a slightest hesitation. There were no topics off limits and our fierce discussions would go from politics to economics and from science to mathematics. BTW, our latest ongoing dining table discussion is about how to contain North Korea and how Inflation is the biggest enemy not Kim Jong Un. Huh! Donald Trump thinks he is solving world issues.

Anyhow, going back to the earlier times, my most cherished childhood memories with my dad involve playing table tennis when he used to give away that last point on deuce just to see me roar in joy, playing one sided cricket matches in which only I would get a chance to bat, waking up early in the morning for those adventurous walks in jungle turning out to be ONGC golf course, building up logical thinking with those never ending arguments, enjoying those long drives in rainy season and sun and how a little mischief can be so much fun.

I have never found him to be categorically strict. He is always the fun parent you can jump on and joke around with. But I wonder if you witness it in office or not - my dad cherishes being fair and you just can't argue with his logic or justice - never delayed never denied. He is like the Raja Vikramaditya of our house always doing the right thing.

Dad - Thank You! For you taught us how to be honest, kind, hard working and fun at the same time, not by giving boring moral lectures, but by living with the same qualities against test of time - all these years. Also, I would like to thank your decision of sticking with ONGC for so long. We hardly appreciate the stability of job, income and security that is quintessential for any person, house or country to flourish. Ask Pakistan about it.

I know we don't say this often - But we love you dad. On this new juncture, I wish you a very long, happy and healthy life. Don't worry too much about inflation, you will outsmart it. For you have always lived life king size and we will always love the way you are!