Ruskin Bond, has been one of those few names, whose entire life speaks of a bond of Human with his immediate Nature.
On his birthday, we hope we reminisce the very ideals of Nature he upheld as well imbibed in others through his lovely books and his spirit of Eco-criticism that fosters a sustainable revolution within Youth. The beloved author turns 87 today.
There is not a piece of his ethereal writing that does not boast of Nature: the Doon Valley, the Garhwal hills, mulberry, rhododendron, barbets, ladybirds, cicadas, crickets humming the music of life.
Splendid are the vast lands of Deodars in “Our Trees Still Grow in Dehra”, Oak or Horse Chestnut in “My trees in the Himalayas”, “Growing up with the trees” or simply “The World of Trees”.
His books can simply make us time travel, much to the days being enchanted by Nature, Not just trees or birds, mountains or Rivers, islands or the infamous Leopard that continued the story from where Rusty runs away from Home.
In his “From the Cradle of Nature”, Mr. Bond illustrates stories centered on the gifts of nature and fury as experienced in the hilly Himalayan foothills of India.
His experiences from the coveted yet mysterious hills, are enough to teach the man to preach Nature. Even the names of his books feel so incomplete without a tinge of Nature in it.
His association with Penguin publications, aptly depicts his bias or better, his inclination to Nature.
But being close to Nature’s soul in entirety, He wrote about materialistic treasures in human life, the very cities Man built to sabotage his Nature through: “Time stops at Shamli”, “The Night train at Deoli” or “the Delhi is not far”.
The smells and chatter of hill bazaars, forgotten railway stations and small towns fallen off the map are too given due space.
His book named “Landour Days“ manages to portray an accurate image of the author’s life in his beloved mountains.
Unsurprisingly, Mr. Bond chose to live so far from the rustling cities over sleepy yet awakened little Landour Older Mussourie with his adopted family which also includes cats, monkeys and the whistling thrush that sings outside his window.
“It has always been my observation that I have written better when I am in the lap of nature. People have been my stories, animals have been my stories and when I run out of people and animals, I make stories out of ghosts. But there is an element of nature all through.”
“Nature has been really kind to me. So, I think I can give back to nature by celebrating it. I am not an activist but I can celebrate it in my writings,” he said before sinking back to his thoughts.
He was born in Kasauli, Himachal Pradesh but eventually grew up in Jamnagar, Dehradun, New Delhi and Shimla. As a young man, he spent four years in the Channel Islands and London before returning to India in 1955.
In 1992 he received the Sahitya Akademi award for English writing, for his short stories collection, “Our Trees Still Grow in Dehra”, by the Sahitya Akademi, India’s National Academy of Letters in India, before being conferred Padma Shri in 1999, and the Padma Bhushan in 2014.
It all began with “The Room on the Roof” his first book written when he was 17. He received the John Llewellyn Rhys Memorial Prize in 1957 for this work.
Bond recalled someone asking him about the source of ideas for his stories. “Well, if you like people and find them interesting, you won’t run out of stories. If you like birds and animals and flowers and trees and the world around you, you won’t run out of ideas. Stories and ideas for them are swirling around you if you keep your eyes and ears open”.
Lockdown has changed it all. “I am not a pessimist, so I will not say that life will end in 50 years but I am an optimist, so I will say life may end in 150 years,” said an emotional Bond, whose writings reflect his love for nature.
Every year till 2019, Mr. Bond used to spend his birthday in the evening at his favourite bookstore, Cambridge in Mussoorie, with hundreds of children and adults to cut a cake.
When asked about his experience during the early lockdown: “Well, I have always worked from home as a writer, so no complaints”, (chuckles too).
“I still wake up at the crack of dawn, see the magic of light spreading over the hills, chirp with the crow who sits on the window sill and manage to put in 500 words of writing between snoozes.”
Mr Bond even likes to make fun of his name; we have got it right: the famous fictional spy and Hollywood hero James Bond. “Oh, I get all the fun sitting on a chair, while he has to do all the running around”.
Ruskin Bond has just not been a plain writer. He came out as a critique against greedy Men, in his ‘Dust on the Mountains‘ raising the issue of indiscriminate exploitation of nature. He expects an ethical point of view for better future.
We wish a great, blessed Birthday to the one who taught peace in times of war, who taught to love unconditionally amidst the crisis.
Stay safe and healthy, Mr. Bond! We hope you to keep us infatuated with Nature.