A Relaxing Morning and an Interview with Gerson da Cunha

Friday, November 30, 2018
Bombay

A Relaxing Morning and an Interview with Gerson da Cunha

     Namaste from Bombay!
     Most of my early morning hours were spent communicating with folks about the publication of my new book on Goa.  I had to inform the contributing essayists as well as my colleagues at NYU and a bunch of friends and well-wishers. It took longer than expected.  Next, I blogged and read my Twitter feed and then got on with my day.
     I also woke up with a distinct cold and immediately decided to take a Crocin Cold and Flu as I would like to nip it in the bud.  Knowing that I would not be able to see Dad and Russel this evening (as I had an interview scheduled), I decided to spend a part of the morning with them.
     So after my breakfast of muesli and hot tea (with lemon and honey--wish I had some ginger in the house), I called Dad to tell him I would be coming in the morning. He asked me to stay for lunch and I decided to take my leftovers along (as a new tiffin was delivered today: potato chips, Goan shrimp curry with white pumpkin and cauliflower with peas--all of my favorite things in the world!) in my Tupperware containers.
     By the way, I am still patting myself on the back at the foresight with which I selected to bring things with me to India. I carried only 6 Tupperware containers and wish I had brought the whole dozen (thanks Sylvia!). The only things I have not used yet are my lemon reamer, my microplane and my little whisk (as I do no cooking at all). Everything else is very much used on a daily basis--including the few things I picked up in China because I knew I would need to use them everyday!
    I showered and dressed and went off to Dad's where I spent the morning just chatting with him and Russel--both of them really appreciate the company and that gives me great pleasure.  Russel is now able to come out (with his walker) and sit in the living room and he does this for several hours--he is back in the swing of regular life in Dad's household again--thanks to the good Lord for His mercies.  We are very grateful for his progress although we are still measuring it in baby steps.
    While I was at Dad's, the postman rang the doorbell to deliver Dad's passport! Can you even believe it? It took less than 24 hours to have his passport delivered to his door! We are still marveling at the speed with which this was accomplished--without paying expediting fees or anything of the kind. Even in the States, it takes 2-3 weeks for a renewed passport to reach. It is things like this that take my breath away about India of the 21st century. You have to spend decades away from your home country to return to it and be swept away by the changes that have occurred in your absence. India is truly no longer a Third World country. That said, there is still poverty and the farmers of India are currently staging a huge protest in Bombay over their loss of livelihood and financial ruin from decades of neglect.
     We had lunch at 12. 30 pm--my leftovers plus some new items from today's tiffin--a real smorgasbord of food. I left at 1. 45 for my interview with Gerson da Cunha that was scheduled for 3.00 pm at his home in Churchgate.

An Interview with Gerson da Cunha:
     Like Roger Pereira, Gerson da Cunha lives in one of those sprawling apartments that seem to go on forever and forever opposite the Oval Maidan in Churchgate--prime real estate in Bombay. His building is called Fair Lawns and I was there on schedule at 3.00 pm--after taking a bus and a train to reach it.
     For the next two hours, I listened to an extremely enlightened man go through the annals of Theater Group with me. Now 89 and a victim of a stroke a couple of years ago that affected his sight in one eye and his movements, Gerson's mind is lucid and as clear as a bell. As he recalled his childhood in Mazagoan, his college years at St.Xavier's College, his devotion to his Goan heritage and East Indian history (he is Goan on his father's side and an East Indian on his mother's), his contribution to Advertising as head of Lintas for decades, his entry into Theater Group and the vast number of plays he did for the Bombay stage, I was simply astounded. Truly, with Farokh Mehta and now the late Alyque Padamsee, he forms the grand Triumvirate of English Language Theater doyens in  Bombay and I felt deeply privileged to meet him. In preparation for our talk, he had emailed me the first draft of a chapter he is writing for a book--an autobiography that traces his many contributions to the beloved city of Bombay that he loves. He worked for a while with UNICEF in Brazil as someone who promoted breast-feeding in the country and for his pains, was decorated with Brazilian government honors, a few years ago. Back in Bombay, he continued doing theater and advertising. I found him endlessly fascinating and before I knew it, it was 5.00 pm--two hours had just slipped away.  Gerson offered me a slice of banana bread and a cup of tea or coffee (but the declined the latter as a result of my caffeine-intolerance) and stuck to water instead.
     Back home on the train, even in the midst of peak hour rush, I had a seat and reached Bandra on a slow train relatively comfortably and took a bus home. I was able to meet Dad at his gate for the 7.00 pm Mass which we attended together.  After Mass, I nipped off into his house for just a few minutes to pick up my empty Tupperware and laundry and got back home for dinner and the watching of a new British sitcom called Peep Show (which is very popular, although I still have to get into it). I also ate an early dinner as my cold was blooming and I had been dozing myself all day with Crocin. I was asleep by 10.15 pm after what had been a more relaxing day.
     I certainly intend to get some rest and relaxation over the weekend as I nurse my cold--although I will have to transcribe two long interviews--with Sam Kerawala and Gerson da Cunha.
     Until tomorrow...