He was a voracious reader. He would always be the first to read a new book. He would love to discuss and argue about books at length. He knew more about critical appreciation than you could even dream of and so invariably won the argument when he discussed books. He read about existentialism, philosophy, literature, art, science and everything else that was interesting. Some of his favorite authors included Sartre, Ernest Hemingway, Mark Twain, Dostoevsky, Samuel Beckett, Herman Hesse, His Urdu /Kashmiri favorites included Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Ghalib, Nadim Sahib, Azad, Mehjoor and more. He was known for reading multiple books at a time about the same topic, tracking different plots concurrently. His favorite gift from any place in the world would be books from that place. He would often say “I want to get old with a good book in my hand.”

At home he was a born leader. He took care of his ailing father. He would teach and motivate children in the extended family. He had the skill of maintaining close ties with family and friends and was known for tracing relationships with everyone. He didn’t have any particular opinion on religion. He never visited a temple of his own accord, but would actively participate in religious functions and rituals. He did not persuade others to change their opinion on religion. He had a great voice for reciting poetry. He would often entertain family and friends by singing Urdu and Kashmiri poetry. In his later years in US he would sing Sai bajans at Sai babha gatherings.

After leaving the ancestral house at Rainawari, he built his own house in Karan Nagar. He actually drew out the design and architecture plans himself. In 1973 his 15 year old daughter Anjali died of cancer. A disease that was very rare in Srinagar at that time. This event was the beginning of a lifetime of tragedy for Bab. He never reconciled with this loss.

On the business front, Bab used to run his father’s business “Syren Radio” which was located in Lal Chowk, the heart of downtown Srinagar. Bab’s tremendous love for social contact turned the well established electronics shop into a popular meeting place. People would use Syren as a place to meet and socialize. Discussions on politics and literature were more prevalent than selling and buying. On weekends he would get together with his friends and play bridge followed by intense post game analysis and discussion. In later years he built a house in Barzulla and moved out from Karan Nagar.

In the fall of 1988 his daughter in US was diagnosed with cancer. Yet another tragic jolt for Bab. He and his wife moved to US to support their daughter and 2 small grand kids. Bab got uprooted from the serenity of Kashmir and relocated into a very foreign environment. He had to deal with a dreadful disease in the house. He missed his family and friends in India. The lack of coffee house discussions and camaraderie resulted in a huge hollow in his daily routine. He took refuge in reading, gardening and socializing with friends and Kashmiri’s at different functions and camps. His favorite haunts included Home Depot, New York Fabrics and Starbucks. He would visit Yosemite and the Sierras to be reminded of Kashmir. He loved the rough life of camping in a tent pitched in wilderness.

He continued to be a strong advocate of Kashmiri language and would persuade youngsters to speak the same. He was very pessimistic about the future of Kashmiri language since he did not see much of an adoption by the next generation. At a Kashmiri Camp in Tahoe after dinner, he managed to convince the group to speak and sing Kashmiri for the rest of the evening and everyone including those that didn’t speak the language had a great time.

He was never fastidious about dress. He did wear a Tux for a day when he had to escort his grand-daughter who was the Homecoming Princess in the High School. He did a great job wearing this formal outfit, drove in an open car around the stadium and had the patience to sit and watch a football game.

In 1998 his wife Usha died of cancer after many months of pain in a hospital bed. She was the third cancer patient in the family. This event resulted in a major separation from his lifetime partner. There was something missing in him after this tragedy. He made a couple trips to India to meet family and friends. On his last trip from India after landing in San Francisco, he said “for the first time this feels like home”.

In his later years in the US, he had a number of pneumonia attacks confirming the weakness in his lungs. He had stopped smoking but the damage to his lung was already done. In July 2009, he was diagnosed with lung cancer. His last few weeks were spent trying to reconcile with the death sentence that was proclaimed by his doctors when they stopped his treatment. He would often say “I have had my innings and it’s time for me to move on”.

When he came to US in 1988 to take care of his daughter diagnosed with cancer, he could have never imagined that eventually his wife and he himself would succumb to this dreadful disease.

Loss of a parent is traumatic. The security blanket that has been shielding you all your life is suddenly not there anymore and you’re left bare. Time is a great healer. We will simply have to learn to live with this loss. Hopefully comfort will be found in the rich legacy he has left behind by way of his vast knowledge that he imparted into all of us that were close to him. He was a dependable son, caring father, loving uncle and most of all he was and will always be remembered and remains the hero of the family. As his older brother Prof. Jagan Nath Durani aptly said. “we have lost a jewel in the family crown”.

Bab left for his heavenly abode on Dec 26th, 2009. He left in peace while he was at home with his children and all the grand children. .

Bab’s memory is captured in his website http://durani.homestead.com/Bab.html