ABSTRACT
On October 20, 2001 I met in Mumbai Bollywood star of yesteryear and currently a congress leader Raj Babbar (born June 23, 1952) at his home. He had been to Pakistan and visited the birth place of his parents, the hamlet of Jalalpur Jattan. Emotions exude from his countenance as he described to me the visit to his ancestral abode:
Yes, the success in Bollywood has been great for me, but at home my parents only talked about Jalalpur Jattan, which they left in 1947. So, although I was born in Agra, I always felt that I had a lost home in Jalalpur Jattan. Some years ago, I visited Pakistan to attend a Punjabi conference. The receptions at the airport and in the hotel were memorable. I felt that I was at home among my own people. I expressed a desire to visit my hometown and this was immediately arranged. The news spread quickly to Jalalpur Jattan. Some young men from there came to Lahore and escorted me to Jalalpur Jattan. They formed a caravan of motorcycles as we drove into that small town.
The townspeople received me very warmly. Many elders remembered my family and also the exact house where we lived. I was told that a mosque had been built in the courtyard of our old house and therefore they were not sure if I would like to go there. I said to them, ‘I would be very pleased to go there if you have no objection. Now I know the secret of my success. If people pray five times a day in the courtyard of my house then obviously their blessings help me become so successful.’ This pleased everybody and we quickly went on to see the old house. Quite frankly, the problem is not people. It is bad politics. We must do everything to remove misunderstandings.
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