My first time in Paris was in 1962, when I went to the magical city for a day on my way to a youth festival in Berlin, recalls the celebrated writer, novelist and raconteur, Hasnat Abdul Hye.
Since I landed after midnight, the concierge at the place of my American friend refused to let me in, asking me to come back in the morning, said the veteran writer and then, with a twinkle in his eyes, added: “little did I know at that time that my nocturnal adventure in Paris was about to begin.”
On a rain drenched evening in early August, I went to meet the acclaimed writer who won the Ekushey Padak in 1994.
Looking suave in a beige fatua, white pyjamas, he was sipping green tea and as soon as I came, ordered chicken patties to be served.
Eat up, he urged and then, rose up to bring me hot water in an electric kettle and put up a record on his LP player.
Hye Sir is 90 but has the mind of a 19-year-old and insists on bringing tea/coffee for his guests.
Who said the mind become slow with age?
He is still sharp as a machete.
Hasnat Abdul Hye vividly remembers his first time in the capital of France and since his latest book is called ‘Paris e koekbaar’ (Several times in Paris), it was only apt to talk about the trips which left, according to him, ‘lasting impressions’ on the mind.
On the streets of Paris in 1962, a lady came towards me and said something which sounded like ‘Louvre’ and I told her that I plan to visit the famous museum the following day, recounts the writer.
However, what she had said was actually ‘love’ and I instantly realised she was willing to provide some amour, chuckled Hasnat Hye, saying: “I invited her for coffee and we ended up at Café de Fleur where I met a retired teacher who told me that the café was a regular haunt of Ernest Hemingway, Jean Paul Satre and Albert Camus.
The whole allure of the Lost Generation seemed to dawn on me, said the writer wistfully.
“The teacher at the café took me to the Arc de Triomphe and we caught a glimpse of the city – glittering, sensational, almost like a fairy tale.”
The next day, the writer along with his American friend, went to the Louvre with the sole purpose of seeing two works of art – Monalisa by Vinci and Liberty Leading the People by Eugene Delacroix.
Speaking about Monalisa, Hasnat Abdul Hye Sir wore a look of disappointment.
It’s one of the most spoken about and written about pieces of art but when one goes in front of it, the relatively small size of it works is a thrill killer, opined the writer.
“However, Liberty Leading the People is a brilliant piece of work, capturing the complex emotions of the masses which led them to rise up for their rights in the July Revolution of 1830.”
At a café, Hasnat Abdul Hye also heard a famous song of the time – ‘Je ne regrette rien’, a number by Edit Piaff, and can still sing a few lines.
Exactly forty years later, I found myself in Paris again and interestingly, the driver from the Bangladesh embassy, who also worked as a protocol, told me and my son that he would take us to ‘Monirer Maa’, which left us puzzled.
Monirer Maa!!
Actually, the place is called Monmartre, which provides a panoramic view of the city, said Hasnat Hye with a laugh.
As a young Deputy Secretary of the government of Bangladesh, Abdul Hye went to Paris in 1972
On that occasion, a lady working at the airport was kind enough to take him to the famous George V café.
In my first trip to Paris, most shops and brands were French but over the decades, this changed, allowing many international brands, remembers Hasnat Hye.
The revered writer, who is going strong and hopes the almighty will permit him to write some more still harbours a desire to revisit the city which has so many memories for him.
As I prepared to leave, he sang a few lines from the film Last time I saw Paris, starring Liz Taylor and Van Johnson: “The last time I saw Paris, her heart was warm and gay; I heard the laughter of her heart in every street café.”
