Mum’s the Word

‘‘This is the place where I want to be. I don’t want to venture out of home when I am in India. I work so hard playing differ...

Jeev Milkha Singh
31, golfer, at home in Chandigarh

ON an unusually hot Sunday afternoon in Melbourne recently, a golf reporter, impressed by Jeev Milkha Singh’s sporting lineage, asked him: ‘‘Why don’t you sport long locks, just like your father Milkha Singh?’’ Used to such queries from foreign journos, the 31-year-old ace golfer from Chandigarh responded promptly: ‘‘I used to wear my hair long, but cut them after leaving home. I just don’t have any time now. It’s quite tough maintaining your hair when your mum’s not there to do it for you.’’

There is some truth in that. Jeev virtually lives out of suitcases these days, checking in and out of hotels all over the globe, returning home only for a day or two after six or seven months only to head back again.

And when he is in Chandigarh, you’ll seldom find Kaka out of House No. 725 in Sector 8 — the home of the Flying Sikh.

‘‘This is the place where I want to be. I don’t want to venture out of home when I am in India. I work so hard playing different tours all around the world and when I am at home, I want to be spoiled, have no routine and just relax,’’ putts the golfer.

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The morning cup of tea with his parents and paranthas for breakfast and makki di roti and sarson da saag during lunch is what Jeev relishes the most. ‘‘No bread, no fried eggs. If I am at home, the food has to be home cooked and I’ll have whatever I want to. No restrictions. I don’t get this feeling somewhere else. Having lunch with the family in the lawns, enjoying the sunshine and above all, one’s roots is a superb feeling,’’ he says.

Jeev also enjoys playing with his four dogs — Bruno (a Golden Retriever), Tiffany (a white Labrador), Bruno (a Golden Labrador) and Rebbeca (a black Labrador). ‘‘I miss them badly. They can’t speak but you’ve got to see the way they greet me whenever I return after a long time.’’

No afternoon naps for Jeev and he usually heads for his computer room after lunch. ‘‘I spend a lot of time on the computer, keeping in touch with what’s happening in the golfing circles worldwide. If I get bored then I just watch a movie on my laptop.’’

And evening is ghazal time. ‘‘Oh, I love ghazals. We usually sit together in the evening and listen to the ghazals of Pankaj Udhas and Jagjit Singh. Even dad and mom like it. I know I am here for a short while but I want to enjoy every moment of it. It’s just grrrrrrrr..rr..eat to be at home.’’