Kolkata prays for a Mumbai corona patient

KOLKATA: It was an anxious day for Amitabh Bachchan fans in Kolkata even as they took part in yajnas and remained glued to the TV and internet to keep tabs on the megastar’s health updates. Their worries were compounded by the news that two other members of the Bachchan family — Aishwarya and her daughter Aaradhya — had tested positive, too. An afternoon health bulletin, which said that both Bachchan and his son Abhishek were stable with mild symptoms, however, soothed frayed nerves.
At Bondel Gate in south Kolkata, some of the megastar’s fans gathered at “Bachchan Dham” — a temple where an idol of Amitabh Bachchan is worshipped — to perform a “mahamrityunjay jap” to pray for his recovery. Yajnas were also conducted at Kalighat and Shyambazar by fan groups.

“He is our God, but today, we, the devotees are bowing to the Almighty to help him beat Covid. Several more fans wished to join the puja, but we reminded them of Big B’s message, in which he asked people to maintain social distance. I am sure our prayers will be answered,” said Sanjay Patodia, secretary, All Bengal Amitabh Bachchan Fans’ Association, which manages the temple.
But die-hard fans remained worried. “I haven’t slept at all last night and kept checking one online article after another to get the latest updates. With all the co-morbidities he has, I am extremely worried about him,” said Kushal Raj Gupta, who works with the railways.
When Pradeep Kumar Jaiswal heard that Big B has been rushed to the hospital after testing positive for Covid-19, he sent up a silent prayer for his quick recovery. Scenes from a nippy November morning also started playing out in front of his eyes when the matinee idol sat in front of him and nibbed on crunchy jalebis and puri sabzi prepared in his shop.
Jaiswal, 60, is the fourth-generation owner of Mohan Bhandar, a snacks and savouries outlet on SN Banerjee Road where Bachchan shot some of the scenes for ‘Piku’ in 2014.
“Even today, when I see the pictures, I can’t believe he had come to my shop and I had the honour of treating him to our delicacies,” said Jaiswal who, like his matinee idol, also hails from Allahabad.
“When I told him this, he enquired about how our ancestors came to Kolkata and where our home was in Allahabad,” Jaiswal added.
The entire Jaiswal family prayed for the good health of Shahenshah at the puja observed in their house on Sunday morning. “He has to entertain us for several more years,” one of them said.
A 23-year-old mixologist from Ballygunge, who claims to have seen ‘Agneepath’ and ‘Akhri Rasta’ at least 70 times, said he has lost his appetite and is itching to fly to Mumbai and sit outside the hospital gates to pray for the actor’s speedy recovery. “To me, he is an inspiration. I wasn’t even born when he was in his prime, but I have grown up watching his movies and started admiring him more and more as years went by. Even at this age, the kind of roles and experiments he does, he can outsmart any actor of our generation. He is a living legend and I am sure he has the superpower to overcome the virus and come out waving at his fans again,” said Rohit, who still cherishes the memory of meeting Bachchan at his Mumbai residence on his birthday in 2018.