Laxmibai was not politically active those days, but was surely thinking of the freedom struggle, since her brothers, the Korlekars, were freedom fighters. One brother was a lawyer, who defended freedom fighters in courts. Decades later, she also participated in people’s movement.

Most of Papa’s cousins, the Korlekars, were communists in their leanings and one of them went on to become a renowned Communist leader of India—Tara Reddy.

In this background, there was little wonder that Papa and his elder brother, our Appakaka, were also drawn to the freedom struggle.

While Appakaka was firebrand, Papa took the Gandhian path of non-violence, though he did play the role of the messenger and handed over the necessary material to members of their group, who had planned to attack the Dal bunglow in Uran. But for that he followed non-violence and the path of honesty, which was to play a major role in his latter life.

After doing his schooling in Uran, he moved to Mumbai for his college education, but he too had a dental problem and the treatment turned out to be expensive, eating into the money he had earned and saved for taking admission in the science stream in the college. Unable to pay the fees for the science stream, he took admission in the arts stream in the prestigious Ruparel College. 

Though he could not join a science graduation course thirst for learning science, drove him to libraries for self-study. Those were the days, where there was no internet and obviously no Google.

He was a member of the British Council and the American Library in Mumbai and the Connemara public library in Madras, as it was known those days.

His special interests were astronomy and medicine. He gathered tremendous knowledge on astronomy, general science and even medicine. He could speak about stars, galaxies and constellations with comfort.

While in Madras, he saw a twinkling object, resembling a star moving. This was seen for several nights. He wrote to NASA seeking information. NASA wrote back to say that it could be a satellite.

One day, while travelling to office on a public transport in Madras, he got talking to a co-passenger on some medical subject. Impressed by Papa’s knowledge of medicine, the co-passenger took him to be a doctor and asked him to which hospital he was attached.

Papa had a scientific temperament and was against superstition. He rejected the myths regarding eclipse. He used to encourage his sons and others to see the moon on Ganesh Chaturthi, to prove that one is not accused of theft by doing so.

If it was not for our aatyabai, his elder sister and her husband Raghukaka Pradhan, it would have been difficult for Papa to be in Mumbai to complete his graduation. Though they had a small rented place in Bombay Glass Work building in Matunga, both of them had a large heart and they took care of Papa by providing him meals.

Papa was drawn to the freedom struggle and participated in the Quit India Movement too. Years, later, when he was invited by a Vile Parle college to interact with the students on India’s freedom struggle, in his reply to a question, he said that he had done nothing great, as nearly every Indian was part of the freedom struggle.

It was during those days that Papa the Vasant, which means spring, met Kusum meaning flower, Kulkarni and these two freedom fighters got entangled in the bonds of love. Over a period of time, they decided to get married, but not before India became free. Finally, they got married nearly two years after India attained freedom. The delay was because Papa wanted to get proper job. But it was her faith in Papa that he would keep his word that she agreed to wait.

On May 13, 1950 they got married at the Laxminarayan Hall, Dadar and Kusum Kulkarni became Pushpalata Mokashi. The flower had blossomed in the Spring of each other’s love, to become our beloved mother, Bai. Appakaka and Ashakaki also got married on the same day at the same venue.

Bai got to be known as Bai, she was a school teacher and our Babymaushi was her student in the school. Papa too was attached to a school for a while as a warden and later joined the Post and Telegraph department in the clerical post. He soon joined the External Affairs Ministry’s Passport office.

Bai Papa’s happiness knew no bounds when on November 8, 1950 their first son Sandesh was born, in Vile Parle.

The second son, abhay was born on May 3, 1957.

Bai and Papa stayed Vasant Bhuvan, in Vile Parle, after their marriage.

Soon papa was transferred to Madras.

 Among the first things he did on reaching Madras, was to pick up Balaji Publications’ Learn Tamil in 30 Days. He firmly believed that he should know the local language wherever he is posted.

While in Madras, Shailesh was born in Mehta Hospital on December 9, 1959.

He had a scientific temperament and was rational. So he was against superstitions. He rejected the superstitions connected with eclipses or he would make his sons and others around to see the moon on ganesh Chaturthi, to prove that the person seeing the moon that day will not be accused of theft.

Papa was transferred to Mumbai and a few years later to Madras once again.

While in Madras, Bai and Papa had won the hearts of the local Maharashtrian community, many of whom relished the amazing food that Bai cooked. People often dropped in and stayed over for dinner, which was a challenge for Bai and Papa, given the meagre financial resources.

Both had come up the hard way and Papa recalled how, during his college days, he would often satisfy his hunger during lunch time, by drinking water.

His job in the passport office, was a great opportunity to earn the extra money, as may offered money as bribes, even when bribes were not sought.  Papa was not the one to fall a prey to such temptations. He was lucky that his life partner was equally principled and carried similar values.

A few incidents of his honesty must be mentioned here. One day, at the end of office hours, as he was clearing the table, he found a fifty rupee note on his table and realised that it was left by somebody as a bribe. He soon went to the office head and told him about the money, trying to hand over the money the boss. The boss, refused to take it and said that since it was left for Papa, he should keep it. Papa and no choice, but to keep the money with him. But he was not the one to use the money for himself. Any other person in a similar situation may have deposited the money in a temple or given to a beggar. But on the first Sunday after the incident, Papa went to the Shradhanand Ashram, gave that money to the ashram and kept the receipt with him.

On another occasion, a deliver person refused to take back a huge basket of fruits sent during Diwali by an organisation, though Bai insisted that she cannot accept it. Finally, the agitated delivery man left the basket at the door and walked away.

Papa was told about the incident after dinner. He asked to see the basket. He looked at it and said it should not be opened till he said so.

Three days later, on a Sunday afternoon, after returning from office, he ordered that the basket should be opened. He regularly went to the office on Sundays, to clear the workload. That Sunday, he went to the wholesaler who had sent the fruits and made the payment for it.  Initially, the wholesaler thought that he had come to complain that a small basket was sent to him, but was short of fainting, when he saw Papa’s ethical stand.

In Madras, Papa used to get Marathi books from the Connemara public library.

Papa got us admission in the best school in Madras, the Madras Christian College School and dada went to the school and later to its college.

After being brought back to Mumbai from Madras, Papa was transferred to Chandigarh, he did not wish to tell aaji about Chandigarh, so mentioned that he is being posted in Delhi. Strangely, the transfer was reworked and he was posted in Delhi. Aaji died the day he took charge in Delhi and he could not attend her funeral.

He was posted back to Mumbai from Delhi. But a couple of years later he was transferred to Calcutta. In Calcutta he picked by Balaji Publication’s Learn Bengali in 30 Days.

A major development while in Calcutta was Bas operation for the removal of a large tumour. Luckily, Sandesh, the eldest son was in Calcutta at that time and he was a great to Papa and Bai in a strange land.

Once again Papa was posted in Mumbai, about two years before his superannuation. This was the time when a new member joined the family. Sandesh got married to Vandana. It was a big day for the family. For Papa and Bai, Vandana was more of a daughter than a daughter-in-law and so it was for the other two daughters-in-law, Sujata, Shailesh’s wife who joined the family first, followed by Saroj, abhay’s wife.

Papa’s honesty in an organisation, where there were allegations of corruption, had reached the high offices in Delhi. When a Congress leader from Vile Parle had requested Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, to ask her office to give him a letter to get a passport without hassle, she told him that no such letter was required. Meet Mr Mokashi in that office, she told him. The External Affairs Ministry was with her at that time.

In recognition of his honesty, dedication and sincerity, Papa was honoured by his appointment as the first Protector of Emigrants in the country.

He was requested by the then Union Labour Secretary to shift to Labour Ministry, as that post was under Labour Ministry. With a few months left for retirement, he refused to leave External Affairs Ministry. Finally, the government of India relented and he was appointed Protector of Emigrants and ex-officio Passport Officer, his salary continued to come from the External Affairs Ministry. He was the only officer ever, to hold both the posts simultaneously.

Skilled, unskilled workers and non-graduates had to obtain an immigration clearance from the office of the Protector of Emigrants, to go abroad for jobs. Thousands of masons, carpenters and others went to the Gulf for lucrative jobs. Agents, who got them jobs, made crores of rupees as their fees. Many tried to bribe Papa in different ways, including offering expensive gifts, cash and even gold coins. Many, including those who had tried to bribe Papa, later spoke to his son abhay, who was in public life, about Papa’s honesty.

There are numerous cases of Papa helping people get passports or immigration clearance. He always followed the maxim: Work is Worship and always went beyond the call of duty to help people. 

It was an irony that though he helped thousands of people go abroad, he did not ever leave the soils of India.

He did not like to be called retired. To him a new phase of life starts after the end of work in an office.

In his new phase of life, he devoted himself to his hobby of writing, gave time to the activities of the CKP Mandal Vile Parle and was active in Sobati, a senior citizen’s organisation.

He used to go for night sky watching with a group from Vile Parle. At 60, he joined a class to learn to play the harmonium. Without any formal training, he used to play the flute. He joined a computer class when he was around 75 years of age and scored better grades than the younger classmates. Chitralekha, a Gujarati magazine wrote about this achievement of his.

He was a short story writer and was a regular contributor to Marathi magazines, especially the Diwali issues and often won prizes for his writing. Nirnay, a collection of his short stories was published in the presence of eminent Marathi writer Girija Keer and Jayant Salgaonkar, the founder of Kalnirnay calendar.

Papa lived a contended life and carried with him the good wishes of those who were helped by him and that helped him be in good health. A renowned cardiologist, after seen his test reports, when Papa was in his eighties, has stated that his heart was that of a person in twenties.

Another big day for Papa was the birth of Shourya, his great grandson and son of Sonal and Gaurav. 

Papa’s life journey ended on March 27, 2019.                

Papa has left behind a legacy of honesty, thirst for knowledge, dedication to work and sincerity in it. In that sense he was a multi-faceted yogi.