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who has written a moving account of what he went through while at school when his father was taken a prisoner of war by the Chinese in 1962. Then on to the long awaited visit to Kikar Lodge. One thing has to be said right away. Goby, Tara and their son Amarinder pulled out all the stops. Our wish was their command. The class of '63 was treated like royalty. We arrived in time for drinks around a bonfire when the Kobad issue came to the fore. A few felt that as an avowed Naxalite advocating violence against the State, he would have to pay the price for his convictions. Most were of the view that since the State had not been able to sustain a single charge against him during the last four years which Kobad has spent in jail, it should release him, especially since his health is failing; under considerations of age he is entitled to special dispensation. During the course of the Kobad conversation, Chuck circulated his second book. We all felt that it had quality and hence he has been given the task of compiling the views that were presented around the bonfire on Maoism and the nature of the State, and share it with us within a month; while Amitava has been asked to comment on the class book with a little help from Tapati. Sorry, I stand corrected: with a lot of help from Tapati. In the morning some of us took a walk with Goby leading us through a dry river bed even as we were exposed to the flora and fauna of the area. We did not come across a single Kikar tree. Later in the morning others went out on a motorcycle tour around the lodge and from what I heard not a few drove the vehicle straight into the ditch and had to be rescued. Before lunch we assembled around the swimming pool and Sheel took the lead to plunge in. Not to be outdone others followed. There was a lot of thrashing about, whether they were doing the crawl, or the butterfly stroke; I could make out that they were not even up to the bronze badge standard. A lot of energy was on display, but no skill. My worry was that so much water was being displaced by their wild thrashing that none would be left for a swim. Fortunately the Old Boys tired fast and settled quietly on the side of the pool. I got the chance to do a few quick lengths, underwater, and then sat with a tall glass of beer contemplating the wonders of nature all around us. The piece de resistance of our adventures at Kikar Lodge was the Flying Fox [aka Zip Line]. The tigers among us were flexing their muscles to demonstrate their daring. When the tour operator asked us to sign a form absolving the agency of responsibility in case of an accident, several slipped away, their stripes vanishing. Six of us were left, including a lady: Pria Vari Sen never skipped a beat as we went up to the highest point on the hill. The thrill of whizzing down, overlooking the forest as we did so, the wind whipping across our face was something else. Not all of us cut fine figures; the sport was new to us. Sumeet was the only one to make perfect landings. He was the flying fox among us. After all he has had plenty of practice in the sport. He has been at it in Costa Rica. On our last evening, we were treated to an energetic performance by a bhangra troupe. Later we joined its members on the stage and in some of their gyrations, at least one among us, out - did even the bhangra professionals. The Kikar Lodge stay will live with us. All in all, a most memorable fiftieth celebration. Seated (L-R); Anu Chaudhry, Mrs. Dar, Tapati Bose, Priya Sen, AN. Dar, Gurdial Singh,Nalni Jayal, Sheela Sahi, Renu Sanwal, Anuradha Pande, Padmini Narayanan, Mamta Jayal, Shivani Kaul, Arati Agarwal, Suman Harsh Vardhan, Sheel Sharma. Standing (L-R); Sumanjit Chaudhry, Alok Chandola, Anu Kohli, Amitava Bose, Sumeet Pasricha, Harsh Vardhan, Sudhir Sahi, Ani! Agarwal, Pramila Sharma, Ramji Narayanan, Gautam Vohra, Gobinder Singh Chopra, Neeta Sood, Harijivan Singh Malik, Ashok Chakravarti, Lalit Pande, Kanak Singh, Harish Sood, Alok Dhar Jayal, Vijay Singal, Haripal Singh, Daman Raj Singh. 20l Rose Bowl January 2014

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