The man that he was...
Kishore Desai was born on the 25th of July 1952 at Hyderabad in a middle class family. His father was working as a Director in Railways and commanded much respect from the society. He was an obedient son and a protective big brother to his three siblings. After finishing his graduation in Commerce from Badruka’s he was ordered to take up a job by his father, as additional money was needed to support the education of his younger brothers and sister. He sacrificed his dream to pursue further education for the greater good of the family. He took up a job in Kakatiya Cements for a short while and then joined State Bank of Hyderabad as a Cashier cum clerk.
He got married at the right age and soon after which the biggest challenge of his life began. His wife was cheated of her rightful share in her mom’s property. Righteous as he was, he took up the fight instead of settling for some amount of money offered to him to leave the premises. This legal fight was going to be a very long and an expensive one but he made it his purpose to fight for justice. One could wonder if he knew at the beginning of this legal case that this would go on for three decades and would cost him lakhs of rupees.
He had two kids who grew up unaware of the tough conditions at home. They were protected from the bad flavor a property dispute would bring and were given a wonderful and a happy childhood which they would reminisce all their lives. Money was always short but they were sent to the best schools and colleges and were even financed to do education abroad. It is still a miracle as to how he managed to pay the huge legal expenses and also run an efficient household and also manage to save some money with the salary of a clerk in a nationalized bank.
At work, he never took any promotions which were due to him as promotions came with a “transfer” option and he could not leave Hyderabad as the legal dispute tied him to the city. He was an “A” grade performer at work all his life yet remained a Cashier cum clerk for 20 years. He was given a stagnation promotion after 20 years to Special Assistant for the record “A” level performance.
The tensions from the challenges life threw at him never showed on him as he was jovial most of the time and loved to talk about absolutely everything especially about the success stories of his sons. He was a commoner’s man and had tons of people around him calling him “Saab” or “Ayya”. He was popular in his extended family as he was very helpful and dependable.
On the 22nd of January 2008 at the age of 56, he passed away - untimely yet peacefully. No gun salutes, no processions as he was an ordinary citizen. It was difficult for many to accept that this "highly active" and "energetic" man will rest forever.
His life has been a life of sacrifices. He sacrificed for the good of his siblings, his wife and his kids. Till the day he died, he still drove the peacock green Bajaj Chetak that he had bought 16 years ago. He wanted bigger and better things in life and always dreamed big but the situation tied his hands down every time and then he got used to being simple. No matter what all wishes and dreams he had to give up to deal with reality, never once did he falter to fulfill his responsibilities, no matter how giant they were. Just when his life was taking a swing for the good with his kids doing very well and the financial condition of the family hitting new highs, he passed away. This will be the biggest regret for his immediate family that he lived through the tough times and when all his hard work and efforts started to pay off he couldn’t be there to enjoy it.
He was an ordinary man with extraordinary character. He was a responsible son, caring brother, loving husband and a ideal father to a me - who managed to do so, so, so much with so very little.
Hats off to you Baba. I am what I am today just because of you. Thanks for teaching me the earth !!
May your soul rest in peace.
He got married at the right age and soon after which the biggest challenge of his life began. His wife was cheated of her rightful share in her mom’s property. Righteous as he was, he took up the fight instead of settling for some amount of money offered to him to leave the premises. This legal fight was going to be a very long and an expensive one but he made it his purpose to fight for justice. One could wonder if he knew at the beginning of this legal case that this would go on for three decades and would cost him lakhs of rupees.
He had two kids who grew up unaware of the tough conditions at home. They were protected from the bad flavor a property dispute would bring and were given a wonderful and a happy childhood which they would reminisce all their lives. Money was always short but they were sent to the best schools and colleges and were even financed to do education abroad. It is still a miracle as to how he managed to pay the huge legal expenses and also run an efficient household and also manage to save some money with the salary of a clerk in a nationalized bank.
At work, he never took any promotions which were due to him as promotions came with a “transfer” option and he could not leave Hyderabad as the legal dispute tied him to the city. He was an “A” grade performer at work all his life yet remained a Cashier cum clerk for 20 years. He was given a stagnation promotion after 20 years to Special Assistant for the record “A” level performance.
The tensions from the challenges life threw at him never showed on him as he was jovial most of the time and loved to talk about absolutely everything especially about the success stories of his sons. He was a commoner’s man and had tons of people around him calling him “Saab” or “Ayya”. He was popular in his extended family as he was very helpful and dependable.
On the 22nd of January 2008 at the age of 56, he passed away - untimely yet peacefully. No gun salutes, no processions as he was an ordinary citizen. It was difficult for many to accept that this "highly active" and "energetic" man will rest forever.
His life has been a life of sacrifices. He sacrificed for the good of his siblings, his wife and his kids. Till the day he died, he still drove the peacock green Bajaj Chetak that he had bought 16 years ago. He wanted bigger and better things in life and always dreamed big but the situation tied his hands down every time and then he got used to being simple. No matter what all wishes and dreams he had to give up to deal with reality, never once did he falter to fulfill his responsibilities, no matter how giant they were. Just when his life was taking a swing for the good with his kids doing very well and the financial condition of the family hitting new highs, he passed away. This will be the biggest regret for his immediate family that he lived through the tough times and when all his hard work and efforts started to pay off he couldn’t be there to enjoy it.
He was an ordinary man with extraordinary character. He was a responsible son, caring brother, loving husband and a ideal father to a me - who managed to do so, so, so much with so very little.
Hats off to you Baba. I am what I am today just because of you. Thanks for teaching me the earth !!
May your soul rest in peace.