My Musings

THE FLIGHT 16 Sep 2007 Sunday. Vijaya and I woke up by 5AM, took bath, were ready by 6-45. Arvind took us to the Meenambakkam airport in his car. We were quite thrilled and I was a bit tense also. This was our first flight, you know. Checked in, got the Security formality completed, sat in the lounge. Many flights were being announced continuosly. To think that barely a decade ago, there was just one airliner in India !Our GoIndiGo flight was announced at 0815 - at Gate 1. Gates 1 to 4 are in GF and 5-8 are in FF in Chennai. An AC bus took us to the waiting aircraft. carried our suitcase and bag as Cabin baggage only. We entered the aircraft - a A320 airbus - with a child's eagerness! We took ourseats 7A & 7B and after a few seconds' fighting with it we could fasten our seat belts!! The flight took off at 0850 and it was smooth and noiseless. The last time I had travelled in an aircraft was during Sep 1969 (to Rome / Beograd), and I remember all passengers were give...

THE AFFIDAVIT For those who did not read newspapers in the past two days — Day before yesterday, on 12th, the Archeological Survey of India (ASI), submitted an affidavit (a written declaration upon oath made before an authorized official.) to the Supreme Court. The ASI Director told the SC, in effect, that, “we don’t believe that Shri Rama existed; we don’t believe in Ram or Ramayana. There is no incontrovertble proof anywhere.” This submission by Govt of India stunned many, but as usual, all the main stream newspapers did not bother to comment or protest. I get two newspapers - DC chose to publish a watered down version in page 6 or 7, but Express totally ignored it !! With elections in Gujarat coming up in 2 - 3 months, Sonia Gandhi sensed the imminent danger - and took the Govt to task. The damage-control machinery swung to action, the Law Minister telling, “it was not Law ministry who drafted this, but the Culture ministry.” A new supplementary draft was hurriedly prepare...

KOMALA'S This is a restaurant that has opened its branch (second in Chennai) in Mylapore recently. Located in Ramakrishna Mutt Road, very near Luz signal (P Orr & Sons complex), this opened a couple of weeks ago. Pleasing and very quiet peaceful ambiance, air-conditioned comfort, very neat interior. Serves pure South and North Indian (and some Chinese also) Vegetarian food. Dosais are the popular items and there are a dozen or more varieties of dosais served here. Tasty also. Cost-wise, could I say "reasonable"? If you would consider a plain dosai for Rs 21.00, a masala dosai at Rs 35.00, a Onion Rava Masala at Rs 35.00, Sambhar / Rasam Vadai at Rs. 28.00, it is "reasonable". Would you? As ardent explorers of Mylapore and its ambiance, I and Vijaya have already visited this eatery twice. Yesterday I had an urge to eat Dahi Vada but unfortunately they hadn't prepared it. I wasn't ready to settle for Sambhar / rasam Vadai, which they offered instead. T...

Visit to Hosur 27 July 2007. We went to Bangalore during 25 July to 4 August 2007. In between we went to Hosur to see Savithri. On Friday, 27 July 2007, we two left BLR by 09-30 AM. We took a bus to Hosur from Madiwala. At Hosur we took an auto to Savithri's house. Savithri is fine and busy, as usual. She had prepared lunch for us - keerai, Pudalangai koottu, Kuzhambu, Rasam etc. Evening at 5-30 PM, Savithri took Vijaya for some Sloka function in a neighbour's house. I was reading a Sujata novel in the house. On their return and after dinner, we three were talking till 11.30PM 28 July 2007, Saturday :: Got up at 7 and after just coffee, we left Savithri's house by 8 AM. We were lucky to get a bus immediately and we were in Ashok's house by 9-15 AM our earlier visit on 27 March 2007 here . rajappa 11 AM 29 July 2007

Sridhar Subramaniam. Sridhar passed away suddenly on 21 June 2007 at Chennai. He was the only son of Indira, eldest sister of Vijaya. He was 45 (born 24 April 1962) The phone call came at 7PM that evening. Most unexpected and thus most unbelievable and shocking. We were numbed and stunned. First we relayed this saddest news to Ashok and Arvind (Arvind was in Delhi, about to leave for Bangalore from there.), and Krithika who was in AshokNagar. Arun, Gayathri and Sowmi were with us at Karpagam Avenue. Then we informed Bombay. Vijaya and I then rushed to Malar Hospital, Adyar where Sridhar had been admitted earlier in the day because of chest pain. The pain came at 1 in the morning and he was taken to Malar; it was a mild attack, so the doctors said. He was “all right” by 12 noon and he even joked and talked normally. But it was just a minor reprive; there was a massive heart attack by 2-30PM from which Sridhar couldn’t come out of. He passed away at 6-45 PM, 21 June 2007, Thursday. When ...

ON BECOMING A THATHA. When I was born in August 1941, I became a SON to my parents and a THAMBI to all my elder brothers and sisters. When I started getting younger brothers and sisters, I became an ANNA to them. When my brothers and sisters got married, I became various relations to different people. When Rama was born in 1957, I got a new relationship - i became CHITHTHAPPA. With Uma coming, I became a MAMA. My marriage was in 1971 and I became a HUSBAND. When ARUN entered our lives, I was a APPA. Sudha was born to Sugavanam, and I was a PERIYAPPA. From Vijaya's side, I became ATHIMBER also. My next promotion came when Santosh was born - he started calling me THATHA. Many followed to call me THATHA. When Arun married, I became MAMANAR. I became a direct THATHA on 17 May 2006 when Sowmya was born. And again on 17 June 2006 when Aditi was born. Same individual, but a series of new relationships. A natural corollary of Life. I am glad to be called by different relations by differen...

Telegrams Saar, Telegram .... till a decade ago, these two words were the most dreaded ones even during the daytime. Imagine one's plight if the knock comes after dark. Those days, a telegram meant a carrier of death news only. Everyone was "scared" to receive a telegram as it portended bad news. However that was the only quick way to communicate those days. Normal telegrams, meaning those carrying normal news like someone's arrival, were not delivered after the sunset - the black telegrams, carrying death news, were accorded XXX priority and were delivered 24 hours. Telegrams, invented by Samuel Morse (1791 - 1872), carried also the news about arrivals (though there is the standing joke that the person would in fact actually arrive before the telegram was delivered !), and interviews. Even in mid 1990s I remember ARUN receiving his offer of employment, and ASHOK receiving his selection to MCA course at Hyd Univ through telegrams only.Apart from such normal and XXX te...