Against all odds

Just behind the VIP block of Writers8217; Buildings, at a far corner of the verandah, she has her small food stall where she sells goodies for the babus of the state secretariat.

Life may not have been kind to Tulsi Jyoti, but that hasn8217;t diminished her love for music or her desire to help others. Sabyasachi Bandopadhyay meets the feisty woman

Just behind the VIP block of Writers8217; Buildings, at a far corner of the verandah, she has her small food stall where she sells goodies for the babus of the state secretariat. Sometimes her customers can hear her crooning a popular song while at other times she is seen using the table in front of her as a tabla.

Meet Tulsi Jyoti, a resident of Chetla, whose world came crashing down about 15 years ago when her husband, Bimal Chandra Jyoti, lost his job and later his sanity following the closure of the Metal Box factory at Taratala. Tulsi, who has two children, had no other option but to set up a stall at Writers8217; Buildings to eke out a living.

8220;I used to teach music to quite a few students while my husband worked at the factory. Those were happy times for me because I had a brother who used to compose songs and sing them. There was a kind of festive mood in our house almost all the time. Then came the bolt from the blue and everything changed,8217;8217; the woman, in her mid-40s, reminisces.

Tulsi first learnt music from her brother Somu Dutta and later from her cousin Pratap Kumar Mandal who in turn learnt music from such stalwarts as Sudhirlal Chakraborty and Shyamal Mitra.

8220;I learnt music for 14 years and later started teaching it. But after my husband lost his sanity, I had to do something to eke out a living. I heard about Writers8217; Buildings and people said setting up a shop there was equal to discovering a gold mine. But I found out that it was all a myth. Now for the whole day I remain busy at Writers8217; and I find very little time for my musical pursuits,8217;8217; the feisty woman said.

But she always helps others who have talent and have a strong desire to excel in life. One such person was Raghunath Dolui, who is an expert in mimicry and an employee at the finance department at Writers8217; Buildings.

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8220;Owing to his lack of training in music, particularly the ragas and raginis, Dolui could not establish himself as a complete artiste in mimicry. I told him that he would have to learn music and I trained him whenever I found time. Now he has learnt the ragas and raginis and is a much better artiste,8217;8217; Tulsi said.

And Raghunath acknowledges the help he got from didi.

8220;Without her help, I could not better my performance. And not only music, I have seen she is an embodiment of courage and swagger. Whenever somebody is in distress she stands by him/her,8217;8217; Raghunath added.

Tulsi also helps the youngsters of her locality learn music. 8220;Sometimes young children who are learning music come to me for help and if I have time I help them when they are stuck. I never charge a penny for that,8217;8217; she says with a smile.