My North Star : My father - Babuji

Bauji belonged to Sialkot, Pakistan. He was a tall, handsome man of principle. He was an illiterate. While I could never find out the reasons behind his lack of education, I never had the courage to ask him either. Bauji had one brother and six sisters, with one of the sisters being younger than him. Three of his sisters died at a young age. His elder brother, Shree Shadi Lal Jain, had the opportunity to attend school, but he was neither sharp nor energetic.

When Bauji was just 10 years old, his father, Lala Tek Chand Jain (my grandfather), passed away. Our grandfather had been a moneylender. To support the family, Bauji's's maternal uncle, Shree Brij Lal Jain   brought the entire family to Amritsar. There, our grandmother handed over the reins of the money lending business to the nearest relative, Shree Kanshi Ram Jain, who was the father of Shri Ram Lal Jain, a very influential and prosperous businessman. Shri Brij Lal Jain also enjoyed a very good reputation in society and the business circle. He entrusted the responsibility of providing business training to Bauji to one of his relatives. Despite being illiterate, Bauji performed his job with such perfection that he earned a job right under his trainer for Rs 11 per month.

Our grandmother died before I was born. Babu ji told us that she was a dedicated mother who had no time for shopping. The business shops remained open until midnight and hence Bauji worked till very late. Our grandmother would prepare food, pack it in a tiffin box and wait for hours to feed her son dinner. In those times, having breakfast was not part of daily routines. People had lunch in the morning before going to the shop and dinner at night, with milk before sleeping. This was the general dietery routine of a middle-class person.

Bauji was a very hardworking and honest man. He furthered his business skills from a businessman named Shri Bhagwan Das, who was the father of Shri Panna Lal. He employed Bauji to help out in his business. Bauji's honesty in every field earned him quick respect from his employer. In due course, the employer offered Bauji a 25% partnership in his business without any investment from Bauji. This was unheard off.

Bauji had two sons from his first wife, Mr. Ajit Jain and Pawan Jain. Unfortunately, his first wife died of tuberculosis, and Bauji tried his best, spending most of the inherited money on her medical expenses. He spent the rest of his inheritance to bring up his siblings and get his sisters married into very reputed Jain families. The first sister was married in Jammu to Shri Ram Lal Jain. The second sister was married to Shri Shadi Lal Jain in Bombay. The third sister married Shri Hira Lal Jain in Sialkot.