Last evening, I expected a state funeral in Doongerwadi. The Police Band performed ‘Abide with Me’ and the National Anthem. A 21-gun salute.
For the man who was being laid to rest in the Tower of Silence, the great Dr. Tehemton E. Udwadia was a worldwide hero in my opinion. He has impacted thousands of lives in his 60 years of surgery at Breach Candy Hospital, Hinduja, and the Parsi General Hospital.
Make it a million.
Add to that his position as Professor of Surgery at J. J. Hospital, where most of India’s outstanding young surgeons received their training. And you get a sense of how powerful Dr. Udwadia was. It’s no surprise that Narendra Modi expressed his condolences via Twitter.
Reiterating the excellence of the wonderful doctor. Telling all 85.7 million of his followers about Dr. Udwadia’s inventive passion that drove him to become India’s Father of Laparoscopic Surgery. A state funeral would have been fitting. Much to his chagrin.
Dr. Udwadia was a reserved guy in both life and work. He was working quietly. Always in white.
Even in his late 80s, he had a lively spring in his step. A glint in the eye. Looking like an Italian movie star. Or the Pope. But, he does not take his celebrity lightly. So he departed yesterday night without a fuss. I was at Doongerwadi because I knew Dr. Udwadia better than others.
If guys our age may define a strong devotion to one other as qualifying for Best Buddy status, his elder son Rushad, also an outstanding surgeon located in Vancouver, is my best friend.
So, via Rushad, I experienced the last month of misery that Dr. Udwadia through in the hospital as he tried to stay alive while connected to various life-sustaining systems.
I can’t tell you how many times we believed he was leaving.
Dr. Udwadia had the spirit of what he must have been like in his prime beneath his aged ill form since he always rebounded back powerfully. Rocky from the boxing movies.
When the physicians who were treating Dr. Udwadia tiptoed around him, he demanded a Bacardi and Tonic. Requesting that indoor golf equipment be sent so that he may practice a few putts. Wanting to be brought to Willingdon Gymkhana for Christmas celebrations.
But Rushad and I both understood that his time had come. It was merely a matter of time until that happened at 11:11 a.m. on Saturday. His three children were with him, saying Parsi prayers, holding his hand, and promising to love him forever.
I stood silently as Rushad, his brother Ashad, an orthopedic physician in Manchester, and sister Dinaz said their final goodbyes to Dr. Udwadia at Doongerwadi. They were holding back their tears. Caressing his face gently.
There was yet another catastrophe. Their mother Khorshed, Dr. Udwadia’s wife for 64 years, was unable to attend the funeral. She was in the hospital with a broken hip.
In the same room where Dr. Udwadia had passed away. Life is harsh in this manner.
I walked out into Doongerwadi after Dr. Udwadia’s lifeless remains were brought for final prayers into the chamber reserved for family and Parsis.
And saw the Dasturji ride up on a scooty for the funeral, the tails of his white cloak flying.
In this realm of death, I marvel at the bright, joyful vitality of the forest. Dr. Udwadia was being led to the Tower of Silence when I returned. Mourners form a polite line to pay their respects to him.
Rushad, Ashad, and Dinaz trailed behind the bier. I waited until they were no longer visible, but I wanted to be there to support my friend.
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