My Father called him Kakumoni - The Crest Jewel among his Uncles. Barely seven years older than him, he was the youngest among my Grandfather's siblings. Charming, Handsome and having a noble bearing, Kakumoni was an extremely lovable person . But this lovable person had an extreme Life , leading it like "A candle in the Wind". Kakumoni was "Born Free" - Free like the wind.
This is a tale that dates back eighty years to a rich aristocratic family of Chittagong. The Head of the family was a very famous lawyer of his time. Jogen Chowdhury, or Jogen Ukil as he was fondly called, was not only
a famous lawyer of Chittagong court, he was also actively involved with the Indian Revolutionaries , aiding them in their fight against the Mighty British Raj. The only earning member of the family, he had to support a large number of relatives who led an ostentatious life at his expense. Jogen Ukil died at
a very early age leaving behind four Children , the eldest one not more than 15 years old, the youngest only fifteen months, and a unlettered wife who couldnt even count money . Sensing a golden opportunity , the parasitic relatives rushed for all that was up for grabs, by devious means they usurped the entire property of the good lawyer, leaving his immediate family destitute. My Grandfather, the eldest of the siblings , took up the responsibility of the Family . A Brilliant student, he obtained a free education at the local school and meager financial aid from some kind-hearted relatives . Post Graduation, he obtained a job in the railways and was married to my grandmother, the eldest daughter of another wealthy and respected Lawyer of Chittagong , Rai Bahadur Janada Ranjan Dutta Sharma. The family situation improved and my grandfather was able to send his younger brothers to school. It was here that Kakumoni's life took a drastic turn.
The little boy was a Born-Bohemian with a heart as broad and pure as the blue sky above, a mind as colorful as the rainbow and a personality that tolerated no bondage. Extremely courageous and self-respecting, he
couldnt brook injustice and slight. Kakumoni had spent much of his childhood among the open fields and broad rivers of rural Bengal, school life set admist an urban environ made him feel like a caged bird. He yearned to break the cage and fly away. At school he made acquaintance with a few boys of questionable character. Not good at concealing or hiding , he revealed his new found friendship to his brother and his wife. Alarmed, they warned him to sever his friendship . Kakumoni rebelled. He started being even more paly with this group. His Guardians rebuked him severely. He rebelled even more. There were a few among his relatives who started instigating him against his Eldest Brother and his wife. The simple hearted lad believed all that was said, his eternal bohemian nature popped up again, he started planning his escape. A good student, he now developed an intense distaste for education .
Matters came to a standoff one day; Scolded probably a bit more than normal, Kakumoni was Gone. Along with a few boys of his group, he went in and around Chittagong. Soon the scant finances they had were exhausted, the other boys returned to the safety of their homes, but Kakumoni cried, "How can I ever face Dada(Elder Brother) and Boudi(Sister-in-law). I can never return, and I will never return till I have become worthy of my family". He was hardly in his teens then. Now began Kakumoni's GREAT JOURNEY into the unknown. Befriending a few sea-faring boatmen, he started living and working with them. These kind hearted simple folk developed a liking for this charming young boy and took him under their tutelage. Dressed as a boatman's son, he sailed far and wide with them and one day he arrived at Teknaf . Bordering Myanmar, Teknaf is the last bit of land in the Southwestern corner of Bangladesh. Situated on the Eastern bank of the Beautiful Naf river as she flows languidly on her way to the ocean, it faces Akyab in Myanmar on its opposite shore. On an impulse, Kakumoni sailed into Akyab . Akyab was then a heavily forested region, home to fierce tribal groups. As luck would have it, while crossing a jungle, he was captured by one such tribe and taken a prisoner to be offered as a Human-sacrifice to their Goddess. The tribal chief was quite pleased to see such a perfect sacrificial object. Kakumoni was to be slaughtered at the altar of the Goddess on a dark moonless night. Here again providence helped him. The tribal king had a large harem, it turned out that one of his wives was a Bengali. She quickly got to hear about the young Bengali boy who was to be sacrificed. Her maternal instincts got better of her loyalty to her husband, at the dead of night, she set the boy free and helped him escape. Kakumoni arrived at Akyab town, here he started doing odd jobs to make a living. Sometimes a cleaner in a roadside eatery, sometimes an errand boy, occasionally a vegetable seller, he tried everything to eke out a living. He could never stay long at a place, he now turned towards Rangoon, the capital of Myanmar. At Rangoon he resumed his odd jobs, when his attractive bearing and bright looks caught notice of a Bengali Pharmacist from Chittagong. He took Kakumoni as his assistant and tutored him in the business of Pharmacy.
Kakumoni was a now a young man, a respected figure in Rangoon. He had married a local Bengali girl here, things were looking bright for the family, when all of a sudden they had to leave Rangoon for India. Myanmar was now under a military rule. The rulers were expelling non-Burmese from Myanmar. Overnight, Kakumoni became a pauper once again. But he could never accept defeat, he started his life all over again. He travelled to Calcutta, thence to Assam and finally to Itanagar, the capital of Arunachal Pradesh, where he would eventually setup his own Medical store; all the while the faithful wife accompanying him through his ordeals.
After all these years , he lived upto his promise of meeting his Dada and Boudi after becoming worthy of his family name . His family had long taken him to be lost, some even believed that he was dead, his sudden appearance after nearly a decade caused a stir. The Prodigal son was finally back, back as a young man, his innocence and childlike nature untarnished by the long harsh years in a Big Bad world. His large-heartedness would become a legend, there were instances when he would gift his wrist-watch to somebody who happened to admire it. All these years, he had seen the good, the bad and the grotesque. Yet he never lost his faith on MAN. He never lost hope. After all there was good all around, the good far outweighed the bad. And Kakumoni would vouch for the innate goodness in everyone till the end of his days - or was it that he could never see bad in anything or anyone? Well he is dead and gone, probably he alone would have known it. But he still lives on as a spot of sunlight in the lives of all who knew him, and was blessed to have lived with him.
This is a tale that dates back eighty years to a rich aristocratic family of Chittagong. The Head of the family was a very famous lawyer of his time. Jogen Chowdhury, or Jogen Ukil as he was fondly called, was not only
a famous lawyer of Chittagong court, he was also actively involved with the Indian Revolutionaries , aiding them in their fight against the Mighty British Raj. The only earning member of the family, he had to support a large number of relatives who led an ostentatious life at his expense. Jogen Ukil died at
a very early age leaving behind four Children , the eldest one not more than 15 years old, the youngest only fifteen months, and a unlettered wife who couldnt even count money . Sensing a golden opportunity , the parasitic relatives rushed for all that was up for grabs, by devious means they usurped the entire property of the good lawyer, leaving his immediate family destitute. My Grandfather, the eldest of the siblings , took up the responsibility of the Family . A Brilliant student, he obtained a free education at the local school and meager financial aid from some kind-hearted relatives . Post Graduation, he obtained a job in the railways and was married to my grandmother, the eldest daughter of another wealthy and respected Lawyer of Chittagong , Rai Bahadur Janada Ranjan Dutta Sharma. The family situation improved and my grandfather was able to send his younger brothers to school. It was here that Kakumoni's life took a drastic turn.
The little boy was a Born-Bohemian with a heart as broad and pure as the blue sky above, a mind as colorful as the rainbow and a personality that tolerated no bondage. Extremely courageous and self-respecting, he
couldnt brook injustice and slight. Kakumoni had spent much of his childhood among the open fields and broad rivers of rural Bengal, school life set admist an urban environ made him feel like a caged bird. He yearned to break the cage and fly away. At school he made acquaintance with a few boys of questionable character. Not good at concealing or hiding , he revealed his new found friendship to his brother and his wife. Alarmed, they warned him to sever his friendship . Kakumoni rebelled. He started being even more paly with this group. His Guardians rebuked him severely. He rebelled even more. There were a few among his relatives who started instigating him against his Eldest Brother and his wife. The simple hearted lad believed all that was said, his eternal bohemian nature popped up again, he started planning his escape. A good student, he now developed an intense distaste for education .
Matters came to a standoff one day; Scolded probably a bit more than normal, Kakumoni was Gone. Along with a few boys of his group, he went in and around Chittagong. Soon the scant finances they had were exhausted, the other boys returned to the safety of their homes, but Kakumoni cried, "How can I ever face Dada(Elder Brother) and Boudi(Sister-in-law). I can never return, and I will never return till I have become worthy of my family". He was hardly in his teens then. Now began Kakumoni's GREAT JOURNEY into the unknown. Befriending a few sea-faring boatmen, he started living and working with them. These kind hearted simple folk developed a liking for this charming young boy and took him under their tutelage. Dressed as a boatman's son, he sailed far and wide with them and one day he arrived at Teknaf . Bordering Myanmar, Teknaf is the last bit of land in the Southwestern corner of Bangladesh. Situated on the Eastern bank of the Beautiful Naf river as she flows languidly on her way to the ocean, it faces Akyab in Myanmar on its opposite shore. On an impulse, Kakumoni sailed into Akyab . Akyab was then a heavily forested region, home to fierce tribal groups. As luck would have it, while crossing a jungle, he was captured by one such tribe and taken a prisoner to be offered as a Human-sacrifice to their Goddess. The tribal chief was quite pleased to see such a perfect sacrificial object. Kakumoni was to be slaughtered at the altar of the Goddess on a dark moonless night. Here again providence helped him. The tribal king had a large harem, it turned out that one of his wives was a Bengali. She quickly got to hear about the young Bengali boy who was to be sacrificed. Her maternal instincts got better of her loyalty to her husband, at the dead of night, she set the boy free and helped him escape. Kakumoni arrived at Akyab town, here he started doing odd jobs to make a living. Sometimes a cleaner in a roadside eatery, sometimes an errand boy, occasionally a vegetable seller, he tried everything to eke out a living. He could never stay long at a place, he now turned towards Rangoon, the capital of Myanmar. At Rangoon he resumed his odd jobs, when his attractive bearing and bright looks caught notice of a Bengali Pharmacist from Chittagong. He took Kakumoni as his assistant and tutored him in the business of Pharmacy.
Kakumoni was a now a young man, a respected figure in Rangoon. He had married a local Bengali girl here, things were looking bright for the family, when all of a sudden they had to leave Rangoon for India. Myanmar was now under a military rule. The rulers were expelling non-Burmese from Myanmar. Overnight, Kakumoni became a pauper once again. But he could never accept defeat, he started his life all over again. He travelled to Calcutta, thence to Assam and finally to Itanagar, the capital of Arunachal Pradesh, where he would eventually setup his own Medical store; all the while the faithful wife accompanying him through his ordeals.
After all these years , he lived upto his promise of meeting his Dada and Boudi after becoming worthy of his family name . His family had long taken him to be lost, some even believed that he was dead, his sudden appearance after nearly a decade caused a stir. The Prodigal son was finally back, back as a young man, his innocence and childlike nature untarnished by the long harsh years in a Big Bad world. His large-heartedness would become a legend, there were instances when he would gift his wrist-watch to somebody who happened to admire it. All these years, he had seen the good, the bad and the grotesque. Yet he never lost his faith on MAN. He never lost hope. After all there was good all around, the good far outweighed the bad. And Kakumoni would vouch for the innate goodness in everyone till the end of his days - or was it that he could never see bad in anything or anyone? Well he is dead and gone, probably he alone would have known it. But he still lives on as a spot of sunlight in the lives of all who knew him, and was blessed to have lived with him.
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| Kakumoni |
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| Beautiful Naf river at Teknaf - It was from Teknaf that Kakumoni sailed towards Akyab in Myanmar |
Chittagong - Where Kakumoni grew up
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| Akyab - Myanmar |
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