Getting a watch is a dream of all children of Indian middle class. Though these days, it is demanded and conceded at a very early date, during our childhood, it was neither so early nor so easy.

Especially when the circumstances makes you relive that time, though for a few moments leaving a pretty long after-effect.

When did you have your first watch? The answer to this question will be very different from various readers. But if you take a ten year block from last 60 years (say), the average age will surely be less as less as time progressed. Perhaps, a kid today demands a watch when he passes out from upper KG (or equivalent) and gets one by class-IV or so. A reasonably real one not from Rs 35 at Karol Bagh or Chawri Bazar or Burma Market or one dollar at Fisherman Wharf at San Francisco or 2 Swedish Kroner at Stockholm flea market.

The immediate provocation of this recollection is when I saw one person wearing a watch which looked very similar to my first one. Well, it is quite sometime back. I was told that I will have my watch only after passing out from school and entering college. Well, in those days, this was mostly the first barrier you have to cross to have one of the official symbols of adulthood (which needs heavy external financing). Others like smoking an occasional smoke, a few shreds of moustaches / beard, more courageous looks at the girls around are the few less expensive ones, the last one being short time. Some of us used to get one at the time of ‘Upanayana’ or ‘upabeet dharan’ or simply ‘paite’ in Bengali. The flip side of course was a shaven head – choice was yours. Though I chose the latter, but due to many logistical problems, I had to settle for the school leaving. But, before that, I had of course usurped the better one of the two watches he had as I needed some for the preparation for the examination!

The watch I targeted was a HMT Pilot with black dial. To me it was the coolest (we used to call it hottest in those days!). It was very difficult to get that one and there was a long waiting list. There used to be some quota for the armed forces and through a chain of requests from my mamaji and so on, my father, with a lot of difficulty, managed to gift that to me within a few days of my entering college. (Those few days of course I continued with the usurped ones). The cost was not very high, but with the earning those days, it definitely needed some cost cutting in some other heads, but definitely not in the smile of my father when he saw my happiness.

So, I just requested the person to give me the watch for a couple of minutes. It was not the same watch but there was a resemblance, quite a good one. But I was not able to see the time. It was not due to my moistened eyes, though there was some secretion.

Actually I saw my father’s face there.