“You take the bed, I’ll sleep on the floor”. That was my first introduction to Vinay Sheel Oberoi ( Mooli). It was July 1977 and I needed somewhere to stay as I wrote the UPSC exams. Jubilee Hall, Delhi University had tightened rules and I had to vacate the room allotted to me since I had completed an MA at Delhi School of Economics a few months earlier. Mooli was a year after at DSE and so had a room. Without hesitation he invited me to stay with him. The exam was gruelling, Delhi was uncomfortably hot, and the room too small, but Mooli’s big heart made everything else irrelevant. He would stay away for most of the day, returning only to sleep (on the floor!) so that I could have the quiet needed. And the little time that we had for conversation revealed the amazingly creative mind that he had and his inimitable sense of humour.
I joined the IPS, and he the IAS in the next year. By happy coincidence not only were we in the same cadre, Assam-Meghalaya, but for a brief time in the same area (Barpeta sub-division). Those were difficult days with Barpeta an epicentre of the mass agitation against foreigners. Mooli with his unique sense of humour and genuine concern for the public did the impossible – he carried out unpopular government directives but won the hearts of the public. Nandini, his sweetheart from D’School provided the leavening with her grace and charm lightening Mooli’s impatience to get things done and reining in the ‘Moolerisms’ when his irresistible urge to pun went over-the-top! And amidst the tension and turmoil they would slip away to the Manas Tiger Reserve, sometimes taking me along or visiting friends from Delhi or elsewhere. 5 years in Barpeta would have been considered a punishment by most – Mooli remembered those years as among the most fulfilling chapters in his career.
Over the years it was always stimulating to spend time with him; there was always some new project on the anvil. He produced a movie in Arunachal Pradesh, arranged for the best Italian designers to help local shoemakers achieve global benchmarks and market access, provided textbooks to far-flung colleges in Upper Assam. With Mooli there was never a dull moment. When he headed the Bamboo Mission, India’s future rested on this plant! –and he extensively toured interior parts of the North-East and other parts of India promoting its plantation and commercial opportunities. And in whatever he did, he layered passion with a depth of knowledge that caught even domain experts off-guard. If ever there was a polymath, it was he. And to his friends he was generous and hospitable – his open house was referred to as the “Oberoi Intercontinental”! We shared stories about successes and disappointments in our very different career paths.
While he was a go-getter always on the look-out for innovative ideas and creative solutions, he never hesitated to give an honest opinion to power centres when he felt their desires were not in the public interest. I recall one occasion where his frankness triggered a transfer from the prestigious post of Principal Secretary Finance in Assam to heading the department of Agricultural Statistics! Yet far from being resentful, he thought of ways in those pre‘big-data’ days, to make agricultural data more relevant to policy. And he generated fierce loyalty in those who worked for him – partly because he was never a typically hierarchical boss, but also because of his concern for everyone down to the peon, and his ability to defuse tense times with his unique sense of humour. He remained a mentor to those who worked with him and they continued to seek his guidance and help even after he had moved on.
The true measure of a leader is treatment of subordinates. In this, Mooli was a colossus. I feel blessed to have shared the friendship of an exceptional personality for over 4 decades. He was more than a friend, he was a brother. Nandini, Naintara, Naira are family and I look forward to continuing the bonds forged with love and caring over so many years. Let us remember the joy that he brought into all who knew him, and the difference he made to the lives he touched. Au revoir, mon Ami, Mooli.