William Durant

The kindness of people in India never ceases to astonish me. Today, once again, my 85-year-old father in Bengaluru, who has been particularly difficult after his brain injury, insisted on going out to Xerox some document, visit the bank, and get some printout on stamp paper. He asked me to hire a driver for his car. My sister, the attendant, and I accompanied him dutifully, knowing well that any attempt to explain how these errands could be handled over the phone would only lead to an emotional meltdown.

But this time, we took a different approach. We decided not to intervene—not to offer help, not to reason, not to invite reprimand. We would simply let him carry out his missions on his own, in his own way. Secretly, we hoped he might encounter a bit of resistance from the outside world and perhaps learn a lesson when bank staff or vendors refused to indulge his impatience. Like Thomson and Thompson of Tintin fame, my sister and I sat in the background, nervously anticipating a series of explosions, while the attendant trailed behind my father like a shadow.

But Ram Ram the people of India, with their deep wells of patience and respect for elders! Even when my father barged into the Chief Manager’s room at the bank and presented his list of demands, no one rebuked him. They listened, tried to understand, and genuinely attempted to help. At the xerox shop, when he waved his phone and declared he needed a copy of a document, the vendor asked him to email or WhatsApp it. Watching from the car, my sister and I were stunned when the vendor patiently guided my father through the process of sending the file. He even offered him a chair and showed no irritation, despite repeated pestering.

At another location, when my father began hustling ahead without waiting for instructions, the lady there simply said, “Sir, please don’t start scanning before even knowing how much you have to pay. Hang on, Sir.” Her tone was kind, not curt.

And so, my father returned home with a sense of accomplishment No one scolded him. No one dismissed him. No one even frowned. Perhaps these strangers saw their own father or grandfather in him. I recalled the words of William Durant:

“India will teach us the tolerance and gentleness of a mature mind, the understanding spirit, and a unifying, pacifying love for all human beings.” https://x.com/singhsahana/status/1945858055469699131