On a breezy monsoon evening, we arrive at the residence of freedom fighter Dattatreya Balkrishna Tamhane earlier than the appointed time. Fresh after his noon siesta, Dattaji Tamhane—as he is lovingly called—is seated comfort-ably in his brother's grandson Rahul Nachane's modest two-bedroom apartment in Mumbai's suburban Mulund. At 4.30 p.m. sharp, his tea is served by his granddaughter-in-law Vrushali Nachane; he then beckons us to the dining area to share some of his unforgettable memories and experiences of the freedom movement. That Tamhane turned 100 this year makes this conversation all the more special for him—and us. Born on 13 April 1913 in Ratnagiri in a poor family, Tamhane belongs to the Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu community. Sixth among nine siblings, his father worked as a postmaster for the Imperial Government; he was a great admirer of Lokmanya Tilak and an avid reader of Kesari, the Marathi newspaper founded and run by Tilak. "I remember, as a five year-old, I went and listened to one of Tilak's inspirational speeches at my father's behest. In 1928, as a school student, I participated in protests against the Simon Commis-sion," the centenarian tells us with evident pride. After his father's untimely death at 40, the Tamhane family shifted to Thane to live with their maternal uncle. Tamhane matriculated in 1930— the same year the Salt Satyagraha and the mass freedom movement started. When he was in his second year of mechanical engineering at VJTI in Mumbai's central Dadar, he was inspired by the Indian freedom struggle; he quit his studies to become a full-time Congress worker in 1934. Tamhane participated in the Salt Satyagraha in Thane, where he suffered a blow on his head from the police and had to spend several days in the lock-up. Through these testing times, his elder brother Ganesh Tamhane was his pillar of strength, giving him shelter and unconditional support.