| noorie 30.09.2013 10:24 |
I came across this blog entry about Freddie's Panchgani days. The blogger is just called 'Dancing Heart'. I tried to write a comment asking his permission to reproduce his article here, but the comment section does not seem to be working. So I really hope he does not mind. A very honest article, I think. link Scroll down to see the article. Or, read it below. FARROKH BULSARA TO FREDDIE MERCURY. Shortly after I started writing this Blog, I got a mail from a lady in Argentina, who said she was a great fan of Freddie Mercury. She wanted to know if I had any memories of him. I wrote back to say that I knew him very vaguely when he was Bulsara, a student in St. Peter’s, Panchgani. I was teaching in another school, but would often visit St. Peter’s where I, as a fairly recent ex-student, knew most of the seniors. I used to play table tennis with them, and must have played Bulsara a few times, as he was said to be quite good, though I don’t remember. Most certainly he was not the school champion, as has been written somewhere. That honour goes to Victory Rana, who was also a part of the school band of those days, ‘The Hectics’ in which Bulsara played the piano and also sang. Rana went on to become a General, and later, Chief of Staff in the Royal Nepal Army One evening in the sixties, Jack Timmins, who later became Principal of St. Peter’s said, “Do you remember Bulsara? He is now a pop singer in England. Sent me his first record”. It was a 33rpm long playing record, with a colourful cover. Naturally the music seemed strange to us. I suppose such things take time to get used to. Over the years, I would hear about him once in a while, but had no idea that he was so famous. Not until that November morning in 1991. I was listening to BBC World Service News with my morning shave. That is when I learned that Freddie Mercury was critically ill. To have something like that mentioned on BBC news, one really had to be very well known. The next morning, the first item on BBC news was the death of Freddie Mercury. Since I rarely listened to western music, I was blissfully unaware of the turmoil this St. Peter’s old boy had caused in the music scene. Then on a visit to Bangalore in 1996, I met a lady from the U.K., who was thrilled to know that I stayed in Panchgani. Lindsay Martin was doing the Indian section of the research for “The Definitive Biography of Freddie Mercury” on behalf of Lesley-Ann Jones, who was writing the book. Even after I explained that I had not known him much in school, she insisted on looking me up when she came to Panchgani for her research. She came a few days after I returned home. I took her to meet Rusi Irani, a former School Captain, who had been a few years my junior. Rusi felt that Janice Smith may know more, as she was much younger than us, and so, could have known Bulsara, especially since her mother had been the Art teacher, and used to take over whenever the school had no music teacher, being an accomplished pianist. Janice came up with a lot of information, and it has been acknowledged in the book, even though Janice’s name has been spelt as Janet. Rusi’s contribution has not been acknowledged unfortunately, even though, right at the end of our meeting with Lindsay, he came up with a suggestion that proved absolutely invaluable while telling the story of Freddie Mercury’s youth. Not only that, but also finally the location of the burial of Mercury’s ashes after his cremation. Rusi gave Lindsay the address and phone number of Gita Choksy, who, as Gita Bhuracha had been a schoolgirl in Kimmins School, and was from the same batch as Freddie. Rusi felt that maybe Gita could give some more information. Anyone reading this book, “ Freddie Mercury – The Definitive Biography”, by Lesley-Ann Jones, will realise that without Gita’s contribution, there would be hardly anything about Bulsara’s boyhood. Perhaps, due to this book, St. Peter’s School, Panchgani has become known to fans of Freddie Mercury. Many have made a pilgrimage to Panchgani, just to view the scene of their idol’s childhood. Naturally, undue advantage is also taken of this. After the school hall burned down in the beginning of the millennium, I was told about people in the school who claimed that one particular semi-burnt piano, was Freddie’s favourite piano. All sorts of people have given interviews to gullible reporters, using material gleaned from the book to show how well they knew him when he was a student – referring to him as ‘Bucky’, and talking about his unorthodox sexual preferences. I suppose all this is part of the price of fame. |
| master marathon runner 30.09.2013 12:50 |
Every now and then,we get an exceptional contribution on QZ, which is a breath of fresh air. Well done sir. |
| Ruperto Pesto - FER 30.09.2013 12:55 |
Very interesting and nice article, thank you for posting. |
| noorie 30.09.2013 21:27 |
master marathon runner wrote: Every now and then,we get an exceptional contribution on QZ, which is a breath of fresh air. Well done sir.Thanks so much. But I am not a Sir... I am a female. :) |
| master marathon runner 01.10.2013 12:32 |
Oh so sorry ! Haha! - well done madam! |
| master marathon runner 01.10.2013 12:33 |
Oh so sorry ! Haha! - well done madam! |
| noorie 01.10.2013 12:58 |
Well then, thank you, Sir. :) |
| ParisNair 02.10.2013 07:38 |
Many thanks for this, enjoyed this and other entries in that blog. I have been to Panchgani and enjoyed reading about the history of the place the way it is written. |
| dancing heart 24.12.2013 21:59 |
Thanks for reproducing my post about Freddie Mercury. |
| noorie 25.12.2013 00:14 |
dancing heart wrote: Thanks for reproducing my post about Freddie Mercury.Dancing Heart, I am so happy you approve. How did you come across your article at Queenzone? |
| ParisNair 25.12.2013 00:50 |
Dancing Heart - Sir, I am from Mumbai and have visited Panchgani a few times (last time was 2011 during the rains...had an amazing time). Thanks to noorie I started reading your blog and found it very very intesresting. It was interesting to know about the history of the commonly known places in the Mhabaleshwar-panchgani region, These places were known to me before but knowing the stories makes it more intetrestig and makes me want to visit them again. Thank you DH and Noorie :) |
| noorie 25.12.2013 13:08 |
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| dancing heart 27.12.2013 01:10 |
I came across your site purely by accident. Was just fooling around when I saw this. If you still wish to add your comment, please email it. I'll paste it on. |
| noorie 27.12.2013 11:00 |
DH, please check your pm. |
| dancing heart 18.01.2015 07:04 |
Hi Noorie, A bookwas recently published - "The Bason Years: A History of St. Peter's School, Panchgani, 1947-1974". The author is Brian Daniels, who was Freddie's classmate in school. There are two pages about Freddie and the school band of which he was a part. I have attached them. Don't know if they have both been loaded. If not, email me, and I will send them. Regards, Asif |
| noorie 18.01.2015 11:25 |
Sorry, the attachment just does not open. Could be I am doing something wrong...? But thanks for sharing. |
| The Real Wizard 18.01.2015 12:41 |
blog wrote: I used to play table tennis with them, and must have played Bulsara a few times, as he was said to be quite good, though I don’t remember. Most certainly he was not the school champion, as has been written somewhere.Apparently he was indeed quite good - there are stories about the table tennis wars he had on tour with one of the Thin Lizzy guys in 1977. |
| BETA215 18.01.2015 12:54 |
dancing heart, your .doc opens with only one image. Please, upload both images in his original format instead of Word, or at least both pages in Word. |
| The Real Wizard 18.01.2015 13:15 |
blog wrote: Naturally, undue advantage is also taken of this. After the school hall burned down in the beginning of the millennium, I was told about people in the school who claimed that one particular semi-burnt piano, was Freddie’s favourite piano. All sorts of people have given interviews to gullible reporters, using material gleaned from the book to show how well they knew him when he was a student – referring to him as ‘Bucky’, and talking about his unorthodox sexual preferences. I suppose all this is part of the price of fame.Indeed. The same thing happened on the island where Brian May did his photo shoot for the Another World album art. People have since defaced the lovely and unique tree. Nobody would know about it if it weren't for the album, but the problem is, it attracts all sorts of people - not just the ones who want to respect it. |