Good men must die, but death can not kill their names

LAST OF THE GANDHIANS BREATHED HER LAST BREATH.....

Shakuntala Chaudhary, age 90 years,living in a far fetched village in the midst of flood ridden Jhanjharpur and darbhanga, was fighting for her life...for just a few hours when god summoned her on 1st Feb,at 7 pm, to the place where she would be meeting her freedom fighter husband, jagdish Chaudhary who had been snatched from her life at a very young age of 40+

Shakuntala Chaudhary, a devout nationalist, Gandhian to the core of her heart and a freedom fighter, working closely with Ba, happened to be my maternal grandmother, my Nani, fondly called by us NANA or BA respectively.

Strongwilled, headstrong,honest, zealous, affectionate,stubborn,always smiling, beautiful inside-outside..and a Gandhian to the hilt would just be a few adjectives that I can mention here.

She was one of the first widows to re marry in Bihar, a fact that we are all proud of, because she married a strong man like my maternal grandpa.

Her last wish was to die where her dear husband was buried , just behind her, 'mudhouse' or 'Aangan' as we call it.Right there in the middle of golden,mustard fields, glowing in the morning sun of 3rd Feb, Nana was cremated with nearly all of her 35-40 kith n kin-her only daughter ( my mother), son in law( my father) four of her surviving sons(My Mamas), their wives and some 30 odd grand children and great grand children.What a legacy she has left!

Inspite of breathing her last in Patna, she was taken all the way to Pakadia, her native village, for cremation, right beside the cemetery or 'Saara' of her husband, our Nana Ji.

With heavy heart, and tearful glances, the entire village bid adieu to Nana on her last very peaceful journey, which she attained after fulfilling all her wishes of seeing her children and their children hail and happy.

A journey that will be remembered...and kept afresh in the hearts of all her children...so that the sacrifices she did for them, will be remembered and emulated in the times to come.

>>>>MORE ON NANA TO FOLLOW ABOUT HER CONTRIBUTION IN THE FREEDOM MOVEMENT SHORTLY