Dhirubhai's birthday: Ambani reunion hope shatters?

Chorwad/Ahmedabad: Family members of late Dhirubhai Ambani have gathered in his home town, Chorwad, for the first time after 1995, when Dhirubhai himself had come here and celebrated his birthday.

Ambani family members have assembled at Chorwad to dedicate a memorial to Dhirubhai on December 28, his 80th birth anniversary.

The late industrialist’s wife Kokilaben, his daughters Dipti Salgaonkar and Neena Kothari and his sons Mukesh and Anil with their wives Nita and Tina, and all other family members have assembled at their ancestral house in Chorwad.

There was hope all around that their meeting at Chorwad, their father’s birthplace, may lead to a coming together of the two warring brothers. The optimism was such that the shares of Anil Ambani group of companies gained in the trading session on Tuesday.

On the ground, however, the brothers did not give any hint of a reunion. Both arrived separately with their wives and kids. Both participated in a religious ceremony separately. There were glimpses of them together but that was purely coincidental. Kokilaben Ambani arrived on Monday with her daughters Dipti and Neena. 

Anil Ambani arrived in a chartered helicopter on Tuesday at around 9:30 am, with his wife Tina and kids. He drove off to the house which has been renamed as Dhirubahi no Delo. It was the place where his father spent his childhood. It is this place which has been converted into a memorial and will be inaugurated by Ramesh Oza, the religious leader to whom the whole family is very close. Anil Ambani and his wife, Tina, took part in a havan (a religious ceremony for house warming) in the morning session. Mukesh Ambani, the elder brother, reached Chorwad at around 1:45 pm in the afternoon with his wife and kids. He too drove straight to the place and participated in the havan in the afternoon session, a source in the Reliance Industries said. "The two brothers were together in the house for more than two hours.
They took part in a religious ceremony in two sessions separately. I cannot give any other information," the source said. Outside the Delo (house), local people had gathered to have a glimpse of the two brothers and family members. Whenever a member of the family stepped out of the house, there were shouts of "Anilbhai" or "Mukeshbhai" but the person turned out to be somebody else. Nobody responded or waved to the crowd.

In the evening, all were surprised to see Mukesh and Anil in traditional 'kurta pyjama' while going for a religious ceremony at the temple of Goddess Chorwadi (Bhavani Ma). In the evening, too, the two brothers stepped out of the house but left for the temple in different cars. The family enjoyed Kathiawadi food. "For breakfast, 80 varieties of food were served to the family, including Ganthia and Jalebi," a source said. He added that some 120 varieties of food would be served during lunch and dinner, including five types of sweets.The local people of Chor wad performed 'ras garba' when the family went to offer pooja at the temple.

Interestingly, the family members enjoyed the garba.

On Wednesday, Rameshbhai Oza will inaugurate the Dhirubahi H Ambani Memorial at 9:30 am.

The family has gathered at this place after 16 years. When Dhirubhai celebrated his birthday in 1995, he invited all residents of Chorwad to a cooked meal. This time, dinner is reserved for only a few invitees. In 1995, Mukesh and Anil were working with their father but now they are doing business separately.