The 12th of December rolls round once again,
It’s been more than twenty years since he left,
It seems the pain should be less
Time is supposed to be a great healer,
But my wound does not heal, it bleeds afresh every day.
I tell people who ask, I am fine,
Am I really I wonder?
I recall his babyhood, the humdrum routine of growing up a Fauji brat,
His single-minded purpose in joining his father’s regiment
And then the darkness.
O people are kind, friends caring,
Women are made of a special material,
We do not break or shatter easily,
You see we are mothers,
My husband found escape in nullity,
I with a smiling face endure my karma.
Written by Mrs Shukla Bandopadhyay, Mother of Captain Anirban Bandopadhyay on her son’s birthday.
Anirban denotes the flame that never extinguishes. True to his name, Captain Anirban Bandopadhyay, keeps burning in the hearts of all. The Captain laid down his life on March 23, 2002, in Kupwara, Jammu and Kashmir. A bullet fired by the Mujahideen pierced his heart while he was trying to save his colleagues.
Nicknamed ‘Manik’, a precious treasure, Ms Shukla Bandopadhyay, his mother shares that as a child he was extremely sweet-natured. The tallest amongst his mates in the Gorkha regiment, he was easily identifiable. Ms Bandopadhyay also recalls the last time she saw him. Under the tricolour, was her son, sleeping peacefully, except for the bullet wound on his chest. In her words, “everyone has to go someday. But I am so proud that my son died with his boots on.”
The Captain’s father Colonel RN Bandopadhyay passed away in 2021 leaving behind his wife to preserve the legacy of their brave son. Time flies, the pain remains, and the loss is irreparable. But the hero remains young forever. The She Saga salutes the Captain and his brave mother.
Inputs from Adrija Sen
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