A father is every child’s first role model. Although to express your gratitude towards your father on a particular day every year seems pointless, Father’s Day is celebrated in many countries across the world. However, many men are even unaware that such a day exists. Sunday POST brings to you the stories of a few men who, despite all odds, have been a perfect role model for their children.
Hemant Ojha, a junior scientist at the National Aeronautic Space Administration (NASA) in the US, owes his success to his father, Arjun Ojha, a daily wage earner from Raichanda village in Dharmasala, Jajpur. Arjun had to support 14 family members but never compromised with his son’s academics. A stonecutter by profession, Arjun would often struggle to make ends meet but he was determined to give Hemant a secure and stable future.
“Whatever I am today is because of my father. As a child I saw how he struggled to support such a big family. But he never gave me room to complain. I could understand the pain he was going through to feed us but was helpless. The only thing I could do was to achieve something in life and make him happy,” says Hemant.
Arjun’s dreams were realised the day Hemant received his letter of appointment from Jim Bridenstine, Administrator, NASA, to join as a junior scientist. “I had always aspired to become a scientist but was unsure if my dreams would be fulfilled because of our poor financial condition. My father always tried his best to ensure that I could continue my studies,” adds Hemant, who completed his matriculation from the school in his village and followed it up with BSc honours in Applied Mathematics from Ravenshaw University.
Later, he did his PhD in Applied Mathematics from IIT, Madras. “The journey from matriculation to PhD was tough. Higher education comes at a cost and I had to buy expensive books. I felt guilty asking for money to buy books, but my father never complained. He fulfilled all my needs. His only dream was to see me successful and for that he was ready to do anything. The most important lesson I learnt from him is to continue working hard without complaining despite all odds,” says Hemant.
“After my Plus II, my father’s financial condition deteriorated. He was left with no choice but to sell a piece of land for my sister’s marriage. I had almost decided to give up studies, but he wanted me to continue with my education at all costs. He sold another piece of land and my mother’s ornaments to send me to the US. My elder brothers too gave up their education so that my education could be funded. My father lost so much but never deprived me of anything,” adds Hemant.
Today, Arjun is a proud father. He is happy that his hard work bore fruit and he has succeeded in fulfilling his son’s dreams. “I have only done my job as a father. It was a proud moment for me when he was chosen by NASA. Tears rolled down my cheeks when he was felicitated in front of the entire village. I have seen bad days and I did not want my son to lead a similar life,” says Arjun humbly.
Arjun is a perfect father but shies away from taking any credit. “I don’t know if I have been successful as a father, but my son had to struggle a lot to realise his dreams. He used to take tuitions and at times arrange money to pay the fees. No one can steal the credit away from my son,” he says.
Then there is the story of Guman Charan Jena, who is a hero in the eyes of his 13-year-old son Satyajeet Jena, one of the top 15 contestants of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L’il Champs in 2017. Guman owns an orchestra band at Tura in Anandpur, Keonjhar. Like Arjun, Guman too had to support a large family. He had always wanted to be a singer but had to bury his dreams. “They say a father is the backbone of every family. My father has been more than that. He sacrificed everything only to see me successful in life. He will always be my hero,” says Satyajeet.
Guman wanted to see his children fulfil his dreams. Initially, he roped in his daughter into his band. Later, he spotted his son’s talent and included him in the band. Satyajeet and his elder sister would accompany Guman to different events. “I realised that my father was struggling to support the family, but his focus was on grooming us. I became the lead singer in the band. At times, we would travel long distances and wait outside the venue for hours. I would often tell my father that we won’t be allowed to perform but he would not give up. He would somehow convince the clients and arrange for my performance. He used to say, ‘I have my hopes pinned on you.’ One day, we were waiting outside a venue and the organiser denied us permission saying that if we perform it would be a loss of image for him. For the first time, I saw tears in my father’s eyes. He was hurt and decided to groom me for Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L’il Champs,” says Satyajeet.
For the next few months, Guman made sure that his son focused on his riyaaz. “We had to stay in Mumbai for six months during the shooting of the show. Money was a constraint, more so because he was staying with me and there was no one to run the business in our village. But my father never looked worried. Instead he was happy with my progress on the show,” Satyajeet adds.
Satyajeet’s journey on the show came to an abrupt end after his doctor advised him to quit because of a throat problem. Although Satyajeet wanted to continue only to fulfil his father’s dreams, Guman was more concerned about his son’s health. “He said, ‘My son is more important to me than fame. I can’t lose my son’,” says Satyajeet.
“I knew my son had it in him but couldn’t put his health at stake. Fame and money are all material things. I never compared my children with others. I always used to tell them: ‘You have it in you. So, if you try, you will succeed.’ I am proud of my son today. There were times when I couldn’t buy clothes for them, but they never complained. Today, when people ask why my son quit the show, I tell them that his aim was to showcase his talent. Winning the competition was never his aim, or mine,” says a proud Guman.
Our third story is set in the Santi Palli slum in Bhubaneswar. Till a few days ago, not too many people knew Sarbeswar Maharana, a carpenter with elementary education. Today, he is the proud father of Subhashree Maharana, who secured the second rank in the Odisha Board examination 2019 in the Plus II science stream. Subhashree credits her success to Sarbeswar.
In Shanti Palli, where most families pull their children out of school midway, Sarbeswar ensured that his daughter continued with her education. Sarbeswar met with an accident six years ago and since then has struggled to walk. “We have seen tough times and our troubles are still not over. My father was diagnosed with a liver ailment a few years ago and we couldn’t arrange money for his surgery. My mother and I often felt helpless, but there was always a smile on my father’s face. His never-give-up attitude became a motivating factor for me. Shortly thereafter, he met with an accident and fractured his legs, but he didn’t sit idle. I thought of quitting my education, but he would not allow it at any cost. His determination to fight back made him a hero in my eyes,” says Subhashree.
Unfortunately, Sarbeswar met with another accident a few days before Subhashree was to appear for her Plus II examinations. It was a major accident and Sarbeswar was semi paralysed. “He is a strong-willed man. He isn’t among those who give up easily. Although he was confined to bed, he would try and work sitting there. I have learnt a lot from my father, most importantly never to give up. Today, I am happy that I didn’t quit studies,” says Subhashree, who aspires to be a doctor.
Sarbeswar may not have been able to help his daughter a lot financially but certainly he has been the biggest driving force in her life. “My relatives and neighbours would often tell me that I was wasting money on my daughter’s education and should stop her from going to school. I turned a deaf ear to them. I am not very educated and know what poverty is. I didn’t want my daughter to go through it. I am happy that she wants to be a doctor. I wish she helps the poor and needy like us, who cannot afford to pay for their treatment and surgery. I haven’t been able to do much for my daughter except for motivating her,” says Sarbeswar.
Our last story is of a father, who turned friend, philosopher and guide to his son. Chakradhar Mohanty is a tabla player in a small-time jatra group ‘Jatra Dunia’ in Nimapada, Puri. Chakradhar always wanted to be in showbiz but couldn’t make it big. However, when he saw the spark in his son, Rituraj Mohanty, who would often croon popular film songs, he decided to nurture his talent.
Chakradhar’s relentless efforts paid off. Rituraj went on to win the singing reality show India’s Raw Star-2011 and since then has sung in several Odia and Hindi films. “I heard from my aunt that my father wanted me to become a playback singer after he spotted my talent. However, he never forced anything on me. When he realised that I too aspire to become a singer, he started grooming me, not through rigorous training but by becoming my friend and motivator. He would be happy even if I performed at school functions. Since he is a musician, he taught me the basics. He has been my best friend and greatest inspiration,” says Rituraj.
However, Rituraj’s journey to stardom wasn’t a cakewalk, either for him or for his father. Chakradhar wasn’t very well to do. “I wanted to join Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya in Bhubaneswar for extensive training in singing, but money was a constraint,” Rituraj says. “However, my father arranged the money only to see me fulfil my dreams. Those were difficult days and I would often feel guilty that I was a burden on my father. But he would always laugh it off.”
Rituraj’s worries were far from over even after passing out from Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya. However, Chakradhar always stood by him. “I was struggling to get a break in singing. To make things worse, I met with an accident. My father took care of me for a month. One day, I expressed my desire to try my luck in Mumbai. He was worried about sending me to a new city but didn’t discourage me. This time, he had to sell my mother’s jewellery to arrange Rs 3,000. He never let me know his problems. I am sure he is happy today. When my name was announced as the winner of the show, he came up to me and started clapping and didn’t stop for a long time,” he says.
Chakradhar, however, says that his son had the necessary talent and doesn’t want to share the credit. “It is said that lucky are those parents who people know because of their children, and I am one of them. I have tried to be a friend more than a father. He shares everything with me. I keep encouraging him because I don’t want him to give up singing. When he was in Mumbai and couldn’t contact us for three months, we would be worried, but I knew my son was focusing on his career. Ultimately, he made me proud,” he says.
There are many such inspiring stories about fathers who have been role models for their children. Sunday POST salutes all those dads this Father’s Day.
BRATATI BARAL, OP