In Assam It Rains

In Assam it rains. No, not mere water droplets from above ,but Hospitality (with a capital H) from within the hearts of the PMDBA members. Yes, that is Pandu Maligaon District Bridge Association.

As we stepped forth from Gowhati station,
( who cares if it is now Guahati or Guwahati , for me ,  it is always Gowhati as Madras is Madras and Bombay is Bombay), Ranada 

(Jaydeep Bhatchaz) sent us a Uber cab to take us to our rest camp--and funny though it may sound but it is named Rest Camp Kalibari.
Not a five star place but clean and the room does not stink. Mosquito nets are new and the bedsheets are as clean as could be.
Besides, u can actually see the Halo of Devi Kamaksha in the evening from the terrace. Well, it could very well be some halogen light from her earthly abode ( I was not sure which) but believe me, it is something that counts-even if the counting starts after your soul leaves this abode and starts bargaining with the gatekeepers of heaven for your period of tenancy there.

A general view of the place where we stayed , played and ate

And then Acharjee babu came.

 A man of simplicity and infinite grace, he is vice president of this small association and  took  all the pain to familiarize us with the setup. Took us to the venue . Even arranged for a few board's practice with Dr. Barpujari, a cardiologist wth Jorhat Medical College. He came back with us so that we don't loose our way and even directed us to a hotel for our dinner.
( It was some Hotel! Ma Manasa Hotel caters for at least a few hundred hungry people every day . They give changes with mint notes and I got  a few one rupee note from them that is printed in 2016 and not a person I showed them has seen it before)

Play started next day and there I saw two youngstars who might be mistaken for volunteers--one is Gautam Roy and the other is Linclon , son of Sri Kanu Paul, President of PMDBA.  It is unbelievable what labour they put and they were all smiles .

It true they don't have to face unruly, difficult , arrogant & bad tempered players like we see in Bengal but this trivial face does not diminish a bit of their accomplishment .

Time to talk about the Director:

well, there is nothing to talk or say about Dr Sujit Chakravorty. No praising can do justice . I understand that he infuses the blood that runs into this association.

We, Bengalis, don't get to see a dignified Director very often. Even considering this fact I must say I never seen any director with more dignity and dedication .

                                          

                                        Linclon:    bénévole par excellance

I didnt get a picture of Gautam Roy , a mistake I lament.

Brothers Karmaz das

Pradip Das is a fine player. I saw him for the first time but heard about him from Debuda who was a classmate of his. Bridge runs in his family and his team included his younger and elder brother as well. He too knew me from BBO. It was sheer luck that he missed first prize in team event by a whisker. It is amazing, by the grace of her ( who else but lady Kamaksha)... you see... you see.. I told you before, isn't it.. we met at faraway Gowhati while we both stay and play in Calcutta

I am not going to close this write-up without mentioning the most remarkable player I met there. Priya Lal Majumder or ক্ষুদি দা is now eighty seven & plays faster than a thirty seven & better than most serious forty sevens . When he came to our table , he was the only person at the table without a  spec. He took  4/5 seconds to to bid 6NT on the first board  for an above average score & played a partial in spades at a speed & accuracy that left me speechless.                                  

Twice a week he practices at the club. Needs spec only when he reads newspaper. And I managed to get one of his famous quote from a contemporary player : " Don't Double me kid, I can make an overtrick even in a Grand Slam"