A story is not just a work of fiction which has a beginning and an end. Stories are works of the written art that are often inspired by real day to day circumstances and stay with the reader much after its end on paper. Udai bhaiya’s stories are such. Stories that make you feel the world is not a bad place after all. It’s actually beautiful!
‘Mithratha (friendship)’ read the first chapter in his book, a book that put out his heart for all to see. Udai bhaiya’s journey in his auto that ran on gift economy lets him meet people everyday just as any other auto driver does. But the only difference is that Udai bhaiya’s relationship with them is a different one, one that grows even into a friendship that is cherished for many years to come. In Mithratha, Udai bhaiya speaks of 2 girls who travelled in his auto with their mother. These three women faced a lot of problems at home due to the father who was an alcoholic. As Udai bhaiya spoke to them during the journey, they narrated tales of the problems they faced at home due to their father’s alcoholism. Moved by their pain, Udai bhaiya promised them that from then he was like family and they could approach him for any help that needed be it any time of the day or night! Once when the three women were going to a wedding, they called Udai bhaiya to ask if he could drop them off. Udai bhaiya said that he could and took them to the party hall. When they reached, the three women told him to come to the wedding with them Udai bhaiya was taken aback by their gesture and said that it would not be appropriate for him to go. It was then that the three women said that he himself had promised them that he was now a part of their family and hence he had every right to accompany them as a member of their family at the wedding. This was a friendship that was from the heart, he wrote in Mithratha.
‘The will to give’ read the second chapter in his book. During one occasion when Udai bhaiya took his passengers shopping on SG Road, he was approached by a young boy who had shoe polish and a brush in his hands. ‘Can I clean your shoes Sir?’ he asked Udai bhaiya to which he said yes. As the boy polished his shoes, bhaiya started making conversation with the young boy and was moved by the circumstances that he was faced with at such a young age. After he was done polishing his shoes, Udai bhaiya paid the young boy for his services and asked him, ‘Would you like to wear a jersey instead of that shirt you are wearing now?’ ‘Yes!’ the boy’s reply was quick and his eyes shone as Udai bhaiya reached into his auto to find a bright red jersey for the boy to wear. It was with a will to give that Udai bhaiya gave away this small present. He watched as the child put on his jersey over his dirty shirt. His world, though for just that short while, had been coloured.
‘Tyag (Sacrifice)’ read the third chapter in his book. Nipun Bhaiya, the founder of Charity Focus is a man who is respected and loved unconditionally by everyone related to Manav Sadhna and by his volunteers from all around the globe. His simplicity and cheer is infectious and just one conversation with him opens the heart to all the positivity and joy that the world has to offer. Nipun Bhaiya is loved by our Udai bhaiya too. On Nipun bhaiya’s birthday, Udai bhaiya decided to gift him something different. If it is one thing that Udai bhaiya has learnt from Nipun bhaiya, it is the sense of sacrifice. So on his birthday, Udai bhaiya decided to give up eating his favourite food, Jalebis. Udai bhaiya before giving up eating his favourite food, distributed jalebis amongst the poor and then after they had eaten to their hearts content, stopped eating them himself. Tyag and the importance of being able to give up things that one holds so close to the heart is one lesson that Udai bhaiya shares with all through his diary.
‘Manavta (Being Humane)’ read the fourth chapter in his book. As Udai bhaiya drove his auto around the streets of Amdavad, he saw a young boy waiting on the road. When asked why he was waiting the young boy told him that he needed a ride home. Udai bhaiya readily offered his services and the young boy hopped into the auto. On being inside the auto, the boy was taken aback when he saw everything that the auto had to offer, from the books to the fan and the reading light, everything was just so colourful, just so different. ‘The boy was so happy when he saw everything, he played around with some things in the auto and asked me what each of the boxes had’, recollects Udai bhaiya. On reaching his house, the boy asked Udai bhaiya how much he would have to pay him. Udai bhaiya reached out for chocolate box and handed him a bar of chocolate. ‘It is free for you.’ Said Udai bhaiya and drove away smiling.
‘Akshayapatra’ read the fifth chapter in his book. Akshayapatra is the vessel which never gets empty. The more you give, the more you get from it. Doubled with joy! Jyotsana Parmar, our everyday hero, came up with the most beautiful way of sharing with those in need. The idea was a simple one. One plastic bottle with a small cut portion big enough to let a coin through it. All those who had the bottle were to drop a coin into it every day. When the bottle was full, the person could choose how he wanted to use the money to help bring a smile on someone’s face. Udai bhaiya’s experience with the Akshayapatra is one that inspires and brings to every reader’s face a smile. Udai bhaiya’s bottle that he filled ever so religiously stood waiting one day to burst open and bring happiness to many. And that is what it did. With Udai bhaiya using the money to shop for ingredients that went into making Pulav, the money went into good use. So with two huge vessels full of mouth watering Pulav, Udai bhaiya rode off on his auto distributing it to hungry beggars on the way. The satisfaction that he saw on the faces of all those who ate the food he served was moving and something he would never forget, he told me recollecting the experience.
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