remember that day clearly : I was in 8th grade in Baroda and my mom and I were alone at home. My dad had already moved to Nasik by then. My brother had left for college. My grandfather - my dad's dad, bedridden, senile and 89 years old lived with us. We woke up, my mom and I, and discovered that my grand-dad had passed on. Friends and relatives poured in, and as we waited for my dad to arrive from Nasik, my grandad's body lay in our drawing room- on a big block of ice. In between all the chaos, my mom remembered that I had a test in school- nothing too important, but a test nonetheless. "There is no reason for you to miss the test- just go to school." my mom admonished..and off I went -just for the test. That day, unbeknownst to her and me - my mom taught me that the show always must go on.
It was the year 2004 and we were attending a cousin's wedding in Bangalore - at the other end of the city from our home. My mom, a serial businesswoman -who has constantly dabbled in one business after the other - was at the time selling tupperware like products for an Indian company called 'Cutting Edge'. Cutting edge, had an absolutely unique product - one that exhibited their marvellous understanding of the Indian psyche - a 'toothpaste squeezer'. A little contraption that ensured you wasted no toothpaste- and it was priced at the princely sum of 50 Rs. My mother's margin - might have been 10 Rs on each of those at best. On that day, in October 2004 - she had an order of half a dozen toothpaste squeezers. The customer - an old friend - wanted it urgently the same day as she was travelling the next day. The only challenge was that the objects lay at our home - some 20 kms away. So off my mom went, in the afternoon -while everybody was taking a nap between ceremonies- 20kmX2, to fulfil an order that would earn her Rs. 60, because she had to put the customer first!. I have seen my restless mom do several businesses over the years - selling embroidered linen, Cutting edge products and more recently - sarees. I have always marvelled how, without reading a single management book ever, my mom figured the basic tenets of selling successfully - always always put the customer first.
For many years when I was young, my mom took tuition classes at home. That was her way of staying engaged without neglecting the household. She taught kids from ages 5 to 15, including many kids who were my classmates. She was so committed, she would just ask the kid that needed extra attention to come home straight from school and have lunch with us. Often the classes stretched from 3 in the after-noon to 9.00 pm and for the younger ones, she took a couple of hours in the morning. There would never be any corners cut, ever. She never watched the clock and never charged extra if a kid needed more time. She taught me then, what good work ethic looked like.
My mom never believed in charity. I have never seen her donate to causes bigger than her. But I have never seen somebody who takes better care of those that work for her. Radhamma, an old maid who is now too old to work, but has worked with my mom for close to 15 years, still comes home to a plateful of freshly cooked food everyday. Radhamma is picky and won't eat several things..but my mom always ensures that there is atleast one rasam made for Radhamma each day, if the menu does not have anything else that would satisfy her. If my mom travels alone, she instructs my dad to ensure Radhamma is fed. And Radhamma is just one- over the years, I have never seen anybody who works for my mom go without a meal- a breakfast, or a cup of tea. She once paid the driving school fees for the building car cleaner so he could become a driver - and he did. People who come to work for amma never leave-inspite of her acid tongue. They know beneath that rough exterior lies a golden heart. I try to do the same for the people that work for me - and now I know where I got that from.
My mother and I have had a difficult relationship over the years. We are both headstrong, opinionated, stubborn and restless. I have often tried -very consciously to not emulate her, but as I age, I know, I am now, more like her than ever. My restless energetic mom, got herself a smart phone a few months ago and after incessantly bugging me and her grand-daughter Dhwani Ravi- has figured how to use whatsapp and Facebook at age 68!. Thank you ma Sarasa Mani - I wouldn't be me if you weren't you.
It was the year 2004 and we were attending a cousin's wedding in Bangalore - at the other end of the city from our home. My mom, a serial businesswoman -who has constantly dabbled in one business after the other - was at the time selling tupperware like products for an Indian company called 'Cutting Edge'. Cutting edge, had an absolutely unique product - one that exhibited their marvellous understanding of the Indian psyche - a 'toothpaste squeezer'. A little contraption that ensured you wasted no toothpaste- and it was priced at the princely sum of 50 Rs. My mother's margin - might have been 10 Rs on each of those at best. On that day, in October 2004 - she had an order of half a dozen toothpaste squeezers. The customer - an old friend - wanted it urgently the same day as she was travelling the next day. The only challenge was that the objects lay at our home - some 20 kms away. So off my mom went, in the afternoon -while everybody was taking a nap between ceremonies- 20kmX2, to fulfil an order that would earn her Rs. 60, because she had to put the customer first!. I have seen my restless mom do several businesses over the years - selling embroidered linen, Cutting edge products and more recently - sarees. I have always marvelled how, without reading a single management book ever, my mom figured the basic tenets of selling successfully - always always put the customer first.
For many years when I was young, my mom took tuition classes at home. That was her way of staying engaged without neglecting the household. She taught kids from ages 5 to 15, including many kids who were my classmates. She was so committed, she would just ask the kid that needed extra attention to come home straight from school and have lunch with us. Often the classes stretched from 3 in the after-noon to 9.00 pm and for the younger ones, she took a couple of hours in the morning. There would never be any corners cut, ever. She never watched the clock and never charged extra if a kid needed more time. She taught me then, what good work ethic looked like.
My mom never believed in charity. I have never seen her donate to causes bigger than her. But I have never seen somebody who takes better care of those that work for her. Radhamma, an old maid who is now too old to work, but has worked with my mom for close to 15 years, still comes home to a plateful of freshly cooked food everyday. Radhamma is picky and won't eat several things..but my mom always ensures that there is atleast one rasam made for Radhamma each day, if the menu does not have anything else that would satisfy her. If my mom travels alone, she instructs my dad to ensure Radhamma is fed. And Radhamma is just one- over the years, I have never seen anybody who works for my mom go without a meal- a breakfast, or a cup of tea. She once paid the driving school fees for the building car cleaner so he could become a driver - and he did. People who come to work for amma never leave-inspite of her acid tongue. They know beneath that rough exterior lies a golden heart. I try to do the same for the people that work for me - and now I know where I got that from.
My mother and I have had a difficult relationship over the years. We are both headstrong, opinionated, stubborn and restless. I have often tried -very consciously to not emulate her, but as I age, I know, I am now, more like her than ever. My restless energetic mom, got herself a smart phone a few months ago and after incessantly bugging me and her grand-daughter Dhwani Ravi- has figured how to use whatsapp and Facebook at age 68!. Thank you ma Sarasa Mani - I wouldn't be me if you weren't you.
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