Masani’s one-man mission

Palanji Bapuji Masani, or Pahli, as he was popularly known among friends, passed away on October 20, 2007 at the age of 85.

Masani was not a sethia in terms of business or wealth; he was not an Anjuman akabar or member of high sounding committees. He was not a doctor of distinction or an architect of repute. He was a common man with an uncommon heart.

It was his mission and his pleasure to help people in need. He did not have money to assist them with. He did not own a car or even a scooter to go visit them. What he had was rarer to come by. He had the desire and he made the time and energy to ease a friend’s life. The old and the disabled, the widowed and the weak could count on Masani — to buy their medicines, send important letters by Registered AD, deposit their TISCO dividends in the bank, change a light bulb and most of all to have a cheerful chat on community and world affairs. Till the last, he was well read and well informed.

Masani never married. His constant and most faithful companion was his bicycle. Till the age of 83 it took him on all his errands of assistance to others and for his own work. He would cycle the 15 kilometers or more to the Agiary for every paidust, uthamna and important roz. In the last few years he needed to dismount from the bicycle at every incline in the road. It meant walking with his cycle for long distances but he never abandoned it. In return, the cycle kept him fit and spry!

One of five children, Masani was born in Navsari. His family moved to Nagpur when he was very young. In time he joined the Mecca of Parsi men in Nagpur — Jamsetji Tata’s flagship industry, the Empress Mills. Working in the Cotton Purchase Department, he rose to become cotton selector. He spent three years in Ahmedabad in his capacity as cotton selector before returning to Nagpur.

Masani lived with his sister Khorshed and sister-in-law Naju. "He was like a father to my brother Pervaze and to me,” said his cousin Khursheed Masani. She recalled how he looked after her through her long and painful fight with cancer a few years ago. "He would visit me every single day, rain or sun, cycling to the hospital or home. His presence was a light in my darkest hours,” said the now recovered Khursheed, emotion choking her voice.

The last two years of Masani’s life were hard for him and for those around him. In December 2005 he suffered a cerebral stroke. While recovering from surgery to remove the clot in his brain, he fell down and damaged his skull. Three operations and months in hospital later he was discharged. But he returned home a bedridden invalid with greatly reduced powers of speech and recognition. Khorshed and Naju, his niece Parveen (a doctor of repute in Bombay), cousin Khursheed and friends, rallied around to make his life as comfortable as possible. The end, when it came, was merciful.

Masani was not born to riches nor did he acquire them in his lifetime. But the goodwill and remembrance of every person he touched in his lifetime was worth much, much more. Rightly had Mark Twain observed: "Praise is well; blame is well; but affection is the final and most precious reward that a man can win.” And it was the affection of the community that Masani won.

DILNAVAZ E. BHAGWAGAR

Nagpur