09 June,2021 05:14 AM IST | Mumbai | Hemal Ashar
Speakers at the virtual meet included Ejaz Ahmed Aslam and Guru Yogi Shivan
When the DDP group in the travel and hospitality space, decided to hold a virtual meet on Monday morning called âHonouring the departed souls: a prayer meeting to pay homage to the travel and hospitality heroes we lost', they did not know that the numbers of colleagues lost during the Covid-19 outbreak and few to other illnesses would climb over 100.
Managing Director SanJeet
Director Devika Jeet said, "We reached out across the country and though we had learnt about the tragedies, many very personal losses through the outbreak, we were shocked to see the number reach almost 140 when organising this memorial service. While all of us have grieved personally, we wanted to come together not just as an industry but as a family to say our goodbyes."
Jeet said they did have a message or two saying grieving is "personal." Yet, she added, "The response overwhelmingly was favourable and a clutch of associations thought this was an apt forum to give expression to their thoughts and the void these persons have left with their passing. The departed were different things to different people. Some were mentors, to others they were friends and to some they were co-workers and associates. What cut across those differences were that they left their mark in various ways. We wanted to highlight the role they played in the workspace too, many of them illumining a path for those in the industry."
Managing Director SanJeet started the virtual prayer meet. He said, "Two years ago, none of us could imagine that something like Covid-19 would invade our space and change our life in such a dramatic and distressing way. We have lost some of our family members. The industry is shedding silent tears. Stalwarts with exceptional experience and some young ones, with so many hopes and dreams are no more with us. We feel the pain of their loss and at the same time, are privileged that they touched our lives." SanJeet's lines from shayar Bashir Badr resonated with all, "Musafir hai hum bhi, musafir ho tum bhi, kisi mod pe phir mulaakat hogi." (We are all travellers and we will meet once again at some place).
Spiritual leaders sent messages of hope, coping and wisdom. Ejaz Ahmed Aslam spoke narrating the lines of poet Rabindranath Tagore, "Every child that comes into this world and opens his eyes, brings a message that God has still not become disappointed with human beings. May God give us the courage, knowledge, wisdom and strength to fight this pandemic and prepare for our everlasting life in heaven."
Guru Yogi Shivan said, "The departed souls, our beloveds must be existing in a different plane of consciousness." The Yogi stressed it is vital to control "one's mind to get protection from the situation." From the spiritual treasure trove, Veer Bhupinder Singh said, "Many say this (outbreak period) is a punishment given by God. Some say, it is created by us." Singh said the pandemic is an equaliser, touching everybody's life, regardless of status.
The words were followed by a devotional song in the background with a picture of each person who left the world, with two lines citing their workplace and designation in either of the two industries that are inextricably linked. After that, leaders of some travel and some hospitality associations spoke with sentiments ranging from personal loss that compounds the dark times these industries are facing, to continuing legacies these individuals have left behind. Some wove the take-the-vaccine message into their tributes, while others stuck out for unity as an industry in this trying period, as the Shraddhanjali with its haunting bhajans and visuals of a diya glowing in the dark, stayed long after the one-hour memorial closed.
