"The Evenings Are Boring Without Bacchus"

Why this sudden decision to stop drinking?

My doctors advised me to stop. Good things in life are meant to bring happiness. What is the fun in drinking if it becomes a cause for suffering? It isn't more important than my health.

But why are you so candid about your pursuits for pleasure?

I don't want to portray a false image of being sanctimonious.

Have you given it up in the past?

I was forced to when I was jailed for two years during the Emergency. Otherwise it's been intermittent abstinence. I've never said I'd give it up for ever. Maybe for a month. Once I'd stopped for a year again under a doctor's advice.

So for how long is it this time?

I have said a month from the day of Dasara. An Ayurvedic doctor advised me to give it up for a couple of months.

Are dry days tough?

For a few days in the beginning, it is very compelling to reach for a bottle. But after a couple of days, if one sticks to the decision, it isn't difficult. This time around, the evenings are very boring (laughs) as one is used to it and talking to friends and spending time in a lively way.

What kind of difference does alcohol make to your gatherings?

Even without alcohol, we start a discussion or an argument and we can rise to the same level. But for less serious occasions like a cultural programme or listening to music or an analysis, alcohol helps. We are livelier.

So you're watching television now?

Yes, TV and music. I have a good collection of classical music, both Hindustani and Carnatic.

But isn't a taste for the finer things in life incongruous with a socialist background?

I don't think so. We are clear: if something is bad for the person or the country, he must give it up. Because of our society's hypocrisy and since all our gods and role-models are portrayed as saintly, we are expected to emulate them which is not possible. Bertrand Russell in his analysis of liberalism very clearly says liberalism in humans started from liquor. The two are compatible as they lead to softness and less of cruelty.

What is your idea of temperance or restraint?

Restraint is the ideal way of con -trolling oneself. But in my case it was an excessive habit I enjoyed for a long time and also suffered because of not knowing when to stop. Now I have realised that I should not exceed a certain limit which is not permissible to my age and my health. A man who knows how much to drink is the best man.

How much was excessive?

My friends were fun-loving and nobody knew who served, who drank, or how many bottles were emptied.

But you also had friends like George Fernandes who never drank.

That is one man who has never had a drink. And that is why of late he is mentally a little weak (laughs). He is going against the very principles for which he fought for by aligning with the BJP.

How did your family take to your drinking?

My father was a teetotaller. I was the first generation to drink. He came to know, felt bad, advised me to give it up and then gave up on me. My wife knows everything (pauses, laughs)...well, not everything. I have told her about the things I have done and she has stood by me.