Vijay Sabharwal

Eighteen years back, a friend who was a movie producer arranged a week-long tour by singer Kumar Sanu to Malaysia and invited me along. On the first night, dinner was at a fine restaurant. The ambience was great, and a young man was singing ghazals and songs for the entertainment of the diners.

During a break, the young singer sought permission to join us. After a while, with all five of us at the table enjoying a few good laughs, he turned to me and politely enquired about my hometown. Knowing well that he was from Pakistan and concluding therefore that he may not be very familiar with the interiors of India, I replied that I was from Delhi. ‘Proper Delhi?’ he asked. I said I was from a small town called Kurukshetra that was about 160 km north of Delhi. I sensed that he had something more on his mind. A little later, he again enquired if I had been born in Kurukshetra, to which I replied in the negative and explained that I was, in fact, born at Eminabad, now a part of Pakistan.

His face radiated with happiness. ‘Oh, mein eho hi toh ab tak jan na chah raha tha!’ I was puzzled by his response. With great excitement, he informed me that he was from Kamoke, a town close to Eminabad. He explained that there were some aspects of my speech that reminded him of his hometown, which was why he was keen to establish the common linkage.

Surprised, I asked how it was possible when I was two years old when my parents shifted from Eminabad following the Partition; ever since, I was used to talking in Hindi, with a mix of Punjabi. He cited several words uttered by me and said those were typical of the Punjabi-speaking people around Eminabad.

A newfound kinship was established through this shared bond. He described how my birthplace had transformed since the Partition. I let him know that my family had a thriving business and industrial establishment at Kamoke Mandi. He offered to show me around the area if I were to visit my birthplace.

Over the next six days, the singer made it a point to meet us at least once a day, and would regularly bring up our shared bond. Clearly, that language is a shared bond and can help in tracing one’s origin is a humbling revelation. We are all products of our natural surroundings and environment — the more we are allowed to explore beyond man-made borders, the more we are likely to find common ground. This is even more important now, in the time of Covid, when we are being pushed to isolation and distant lives.