Bhaskar Das: The eternal sunlit mind who inspired us to keep learning the new

Bhaskar'da- BD- an illuminated sunlit mind is no more. I got to know of this terrible eventuality when Anurag reached out.

My memories of BD span decades. I remember first meeting him during our campaigns on ONGC- late Teena had got him into our meeting- where he allowed a layout involving the masthead. We were hungry and greedy and wanted to do more on the front page. He taught me a lesson in drawing a line- more money will not allow more elbow room-  respecting a media brand that was built across millions of readers was sacrosanct. 

As I scrolled my chats with BD... I saw that it was BD who informed me that Teena was no more. His innate humanity.

BD was to me way beyond the editorial house he represented. He was vivacious, quick, witty, colourful, knowledge articulate and die-hard young. 

Beyond the professional requirements - we developed this habit of  exchanging scribbles and ideas and music. He would invite me to his wife's performances, and I would share some of my daughter's singing.  And sometimes these free flowing discussions or an adda- it will be wildly meandering across life and its meaning and its vicissitudes.

The last I spoke to BD was on 6th November 2024. In fact I had sent him a message for "life advice". The call lasted 29 minutes as per my phone records. The conversation spread across his 3rd PhD, his 73rd orbital around the Sun, his chemotherapies and his deep interest in a wide spectrum of marketing.

He left me with a deep resonance of learning the New- the curiously young mind. 

This 8th May - on his birthday I will remember his thank you message as usual quoting a Rabindranath couplet- Oh the New, Let us keep meeting every year.

Thank you BD. Will keep learning the new.