Fusion Celebration

This is a tribute to all Appas, Babas, Daddys, Pappas, and to many such names we address our Father. On the third Sunday of June we celebrate this exceptional man in our lives with Fathers Day. Celebrated worldwide to recognise the contribution that fathers and father figures make to the lives of their children, many countries observe this day on a variety of dates. This day felicitates fatherhood and male parenting. Dipti.P talks to celebs about their fondest memories of their dads! Saba Ali Khan, Jewellery designer and daughter of Sharmila Tagore and Late Nawab Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi

Fond Memoirs on Fathers Day

Mahek Chahal, Model and Actor
My fondest memory of my father was ironically the last time I saw him before he passed away due to cancer. All his life, my father Tejinder Singh Chahal, had lived a very quiet and simple life. He was quite reserved in his demeanour and a man of few words. I am just like him in that respect. Both my father and I, showed our love through actions rather than mere words or physical gestures. Right before he passed away, my father came to me in our house in Norway and for the first time we spoke, really spoke. He explained to me that even though he might not have been the hugs and kisses kind of a guy, he loved me with all his heart. I told him about my life and he told me about his and we connected like never before. He hugged me and I lay my head on his lap as I used to as a child. He blessed me. I cried and he held me. It was the most amazing experience I had ever experienced with my father. I miss him every day and will love him forever.

Fusion Celebration

Saba Ali Khan has not many words to say on this Fathers Day but shared with us her precious memories in a series of pictures of her father Nawab Pataudi with the ensuing few words. I am sharing with you a series of memories which I grew up seeing or sharing with Abba. The old pictures depict his journey from his childhood to cricket days - The MAN, The NAWAB, The GENTLEMAN and MY FATHER. I miss him. We watched the IPL together and shared many moments together. These are just a few...., Saba reminisces.

had not come to India and we had no access to best brands. Before I was merely 10 years old, I had access to top brands from food to clothes, fashion, and gadgets bought from the best cities of the world. Oh yes! I am truly grateful to him for having me exposed to all these at a tender age. On hind sight I realise that this was his way of bribing me for I would fall sick every time he would embark on his voyages which would last for 7 months at a stretch and he would be circling the globe from Tokyo Toronto, London and so on. I used to cry my guts out when he would be off. As a matter of fact I used to miss him a lot. Gosh! I still get into tears thinking about it! Then

Lieutenant (Retd) Rita Gangwani, Life Skills, Image and Personality Grooming Expert

My childhood photo celebrating my 2nd birthday. I was sitting on his lap as he cut the cake for me.

This picture was taken by me and is a favourite of mine as he looks down at his phone.

Bhavna Pani, Model and Actor

What I loved about my dad was that he always kept me grounded. No matter how successful I had become, he never allowed it to go into my head. Thats the best characteristic about him. My fondest childhood memory of him was that he was very protective of me. I always had curly golden hair and light eyes and because of that people used to compliment him saying that your kid was just so beautiful! And there you go My head shaven completely bald! He believed that this would protect me from all the evil eyes. So until a certain age I never had long hair. Then one more memory which I cherish and laugh at when I remember is that of a Holi. When I was very young around 5-6 years old and it was a Holi day. My father after playing Holi (covered in colours) came running towards me to give me a hug and being the young child I was, I thought it was someone else and started howling and ran to my mom and everybody around laughed. Recently I lost him to God. The one thing I miss every day is him!

Aamer Zakir, International Grooming Expert

I have a very special bond with my dad. Since childhood, I would automatically know, when my dad was about to return home from work. He had no fixed time, it could be 6pm or 10.30pm - I would just know. I could sense him from far away. My mom began to suspect that I had a sixth sense. But jokes apart, I was the first girl in my dads family after 37 years. I have always been the apple of his eye and his source of pride. I am the eldest child, so I am more like a son to him. He always treats me like a buddy and at the same time he is a very protective father!

I lost my mom when I was ten and so my dad was my whole world. What I remember most about my dad was his hands; he had the biggest hands I had ever seen. They were strong hands with gentleness in them when I needed him to hug me, the softness in them when he stroked my hair. I remember the tenderness in his hands as he held my kids when they were born. Even when his hands had to be used for punishing me, they were still filled with affection for me. My dads hands were strong when I needed them to be strong, gentle when I needed them to be gentle and firm when I needed guidance from them, but my dads hands were never without love. My fathers hands were big but I believe, his heart was equally as big for he had lot of love for his family. We were never a wealthy family in terms of money but we had abundant love towards each other that money could never buy. My dad was my hero, a man among men. Miss you DAD!

Salloli Kumar, Fashion Entrepreneur

I am a sailors daughter and I cant imagine anything better than that. For me my father had always been a person who came home for holidays when he was not globe-trotting on his voyages. Like throughout the early 80s, he would get baby food from abroad for me considering that one must realise that economic liberalisation

his coming home with the goodies and the best of the best gift of seeing him again were such strong childhood memories. I was the only child till my sister came along nearly 7 years later, so you can imagine, how loved and pampered I was. In 2009, he got a kind of very serious all of a sudden and he developed brain stroke and it was extremely serious. He underwent 3 brain surgeries in a period of 3 months. It indeed was the worst trial of my life. However, God was kind and my dad overcame this. What was really amusing about the veteran sailor was that he wanted to start his sailing immediately! So there he set off to Trinidad and Tobago in 5 month time of his recovery. So thats my dad the old sea traveller. He does not need to work anymore. God has been kind that my father has been an excellent provider to his family. But he just cant sit at one place for long and he needs to go back even now to sea travelling to exotic places. I think of my dad as SINDBAD, The SAILOR.
June 2012 |

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| June 2012

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