Being a prime minister is a lonely job and Narendra Modi will be lonelier without his mother

The love of a mother is unique and irreplaceable. The passing of Heeraben Modi at the age of 100, is a testament to a life lived with quiet dignity and simplicity. In the years that we have become acquainted with Heeraben Modi, we have witnessed the determination and unchanging persona of a mother who has raised a great Indian, a man who will be written into the history books and be remembered for a long time to come. In the meeting with Mark Zuckerberg at the Facebook Headquarters a few years ago, the prime minister’s voice broke when he recalled his mother washing dishes in the neighbourhood to raise her children. The man known for his powerful oratory could not conquer the quiver in his voice when he spoke of this memory. It was gratitude that overwhelmed him and the resilience of a mother, raising her young. A mother can do that to you. Make you aware in the most unexpected of times of the bare-faced and selfless humanity behind bearing a child and raising it. Motherhood. In the last three decades of her life, Heeraben witnessed the meteoric rise of her middle son, a son she had given up to national service all those decades ago. A son who in the early years of his nomadic life had chosen a life of difficult circumstances instead of comfortable domesticity. It must have not been easy to watch him struggle, and struggle he did. Moving from location to location, living in an extension of a temple, riding a bicycle when fortunate to have one, else walking great distances. A life of planned struggle. The story goes that when Narendra Modi was a boy, Heeraben opened the door to an ascetic and fed him some food. He looked at the horoscopes of her children and said that Narendra would either be an ascetic or a king. He turned out to be a bit of both. But it would be no easy journey, and only in the second half of his sixth decade would he ascend to the power that we now associate with him. For a pracharak who has given up all worldly relationships, the mother remains the one link to a life of emotional attachment. She grounds him and also reminds him of all that he has given up. She is the reason for his existence, and also a reminder of the price he has had to pay for a life of detachment. A few years ago, the images of Prime Minister Modi pushing his mother around in a wheelchair as she took a view of his garden warmed one’s heart. Earlier this month, he met his mother when in Gujarat and the two sat in front of the TV, in companionable silence. Every meeting between mother and son has been one of relatable normalcy. In her last years, Heeraben Modi brought alive a touching personal aspect of the man who we know as Prime Minister Modi. This is a profound personal loss, in the cutthroat world of politics, abuse and incessant judgment, the uncomplicated love of a mother must have been a refuge. His compelling work ethic already has him chairing video conferences in the afternoon following her last rites. Will he take time to grieve? In the moments he will snatch between meetings and travels, Narendra the son will emerge, it will be impossible that he won’t. We have all had a brief glimpse of the strong emotion he feels for his mother, passing, ephemeral, in a comment here or there but an unrelenting presence. The prime minister is not one to be revealing on matters of personal emotion but Heeraben humanised him in a way that little else does. Being the prime minister of a country is a lonely job. Without his mother, it will be a lonelier one. The author is a bestselling novelist and an award-winning screenwriter. Views expressed are personal. Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News, India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.