"Lala, the leveler"
Having known Russi Lala well in 1960s and 1970s, I found your tribute to him ("Lala, the leveler,"
Parsiana, January 21, 2013) very touching. At that time he was editing Himmat weekly in which I wrote humorous pieces like The Rickshawwallas of Nagpur and The Best of ‘Bandhs,’ among others. He was ever so encouraging and inspiring.
Lala once gave me a 350-page book, We Nehrus by Krishna Nehru Hatheesingh, to review in 300 words in a week’s time. When I asked how I could review a 350-page book in 300 words, he replied, "If you think you are a writer, you can do it!" He was in many ways my guru.
Thanks to him I had the pleasure of talking with Rajmohan Gandhi at Moral Rearmament meetings in Bombay.
I continued writing for him after I settled in Sydney. I consider myself blessed that I knew this noble, philanthropic man.
KERSI MEHER-HOMJI
Sydney, Australia
kersi5@bigpond.com
The "In Memoriam" article on Russi M. Lala ("Lala, the leveler," Parsiana, January 21, 2013) was inspiring, reflecting a lifetime of largeheartedness and charity worthy of emulation.
The Moral Rearmament movement had captured many young minds during my college years. It comes as news to me that it is still functioning as Initiatives of Change. Thank you for informing readers that Lala was instrumental in forming the center in Panchgani, for I was enthusiastic about the performances I had seen, like Space is so Startling, Sing it Asia and a third one whose name I cannot recall.
Below the Panchgani plateau where the Billimoria School was situated, with Sydney Point on the opposite side, the three-phase project was coming up. In 1963-64, when the first phase had been completed, a zealous young Australian lady showed me around. The fact that it still survives shows that it was a very worthwhile project.
RASHID G. KHOSRAVI