Srinivas does a Zakir

After the "Two Rajas", almost like a hat-trick, it was G.R. Srinivas ~ renown to his later friends as Shandilya prefixed by Srinivas or just plain~ who stood at the doorstep without a hint. Him coming all the way from half way round the earth and then 90 miles from Bangalore, as he does most of the time, is just plain thrill. (Doffing my hat at this sustained affection). As I said earlier, Zakir does this - suddenly coming in at the most unexpected time of the year - also without flashing a clue beforehand - and showing himself in person.

Srinivas has been one of my very earliest friends and classmates. Our contacts had been disconnected as I had lost his whereabouts many years back. His NY Greeting card to my familiar address renewed it after his Delhi days after a gap of many years. E-mails replaced our 'snail mail' correspondence after that and I feel good continuity has been maintained. He will agree that he is a reluctant responder. But that does not matter and I've never minded it, because it is his heart that matters and that is what brings him from thousands of miles away. This time it was a nice surprise! Somehow he seemed to 'know' I'd be at home.

Visits by the two "Rajas"

End of December means vacation time for most of us as that is the right time to laze off using some saved up leave at work. Climate too in Mysore is at its salubrious best during that time with a little bit of that pleasant nip in the cool air. The two Rajas knew that was the best time to return to their old city in which they grew up and studied.

One Raja calls me to inform that he was touring Mysore 'next week' with his family (of four). Sounds as if he was traveling a thousand miles! He has flown or traveled thousands of miles in directions other than Mysore in the few years gone by. It was time for him to show his children the Mysore he had seen. He was returning after many years!

From where? Only from Bangalore! Just 90 miles away. The children were now grown up. Time had flown past and his son was standing taller than him and he had not shown Mysore to them! That is how time has escaped right below the nose of Rajaram. His job responsibility had made Mysore a far off destination! All said and done he made it after probably umpteen cancellations at the n'th moments.

(The clock up there has been stopped deliberately)

The other Raja has visited Mysore on a few occasions in the past. His surprise call when he was already on the outskirts was a real thrill. He was coming from erstwhile Madras. He does not e-mail often or almost 'not at all', but uses the telephone as a rule and preference! He is somewhat like Zakir who comes all the way from a small country called Brunei and stands in front of my door like a bolt from the blue! This Raja came with family (of 3) the old neighbour and school senior Srinivas and nephews too. How I wish Rajagopal had timed his visit with the other Raja! They were only Sundays apart. You can see that CKC-days look still bubbling in Gopi (this is what we call him) as if to remind his classmates his 6th std days when Sr.Prudentia had nicknamed (wrongly) as 'Cunning Fox'. Nobody knows the reason. May be during an English lesson that a fox was featured we do not recollect. Gopi has failed miserably to live up to his nickname.

Srinivas in red and Gopi in spotless white flank me in this picture. White has become Gopi's favourite in recent times (just my observation).

It is mutual visits like these that keep the fire of the old friendship burning. Old classmate-friends are unique and so different than other friendships.

A visit to Jothindra's

Many of you may not be familiar with him as he left CKC mid way and joined another school. But we were sitting next to each other at Sarada Vilas High School, I think in the 9th. We had been in touch even after his education, because the cricket link was still in tact. We used to play tennis-ball-cricket quite a lot and practised together for some time and he belonged to the rival team. This is the same boy in the 1965 class group picture standing second from right, top row.

His job has taken him to Udupi presently. After a long gap, he bumped in again this time through the net because one of my blogs bumped him accidentally!! I hope he will have something to say in the comment box below.... I want him to say because he is also getting into blogosphere in recent times with many articles and he has many memories.

It was my good fortune to visit him at his home yesterday because I knew he was in town for a short stop over. The visit is now documented in the foreground of some Cassia flowers.

Gopi and Merlyn's visits

Gopi [Rajgopal] called me in September that he is coming to Mysore on a business trip - for a day. He is living in Chennai for 19 years [hope memory is right]. That was an oppportunity to meet a couple of friends and enemies - yes enemies. I was one in our 7th and 8th classes. But it was fun in those days! I can neither recall why our good friendship soured nor the circumstances it got sweetened thereafter. While in 7th an incident happened [see my blog on memories] which I am not repeating here. Back to his visit now.

We had breakfast at home. Mysore's Bajjanna Lane is where he lived. That also gave him the opportunity to visit his old house opposite Keerthi Typing Institute and Mari Gudi. His old tiled house was as it was when he left many years ago. He was happy to enter that house now and to know that his own friend who is renovating their old house close by was living there temporarily. He went down memory lane in Bajjanna Lane! We soon bid goodbye after we visited another old closer neighbour of his.

Come November, Meera called to inform the arrival of Merlyn from Poona. After the expected teleconfirmation of schedules Merlyn arrived home with her CKC-studied brother. She spent about half an hour with my family and then it was time to go to Meera's house closeby.

I took Merlyn to Nandini's house also, since it was very close. Nandini is an English Teacher and you can see one of her young pupils here.

Meera and Merlyn were meeting each other for the first time in 30 years and they are indeed expressive here in this picture. Merlyn's brother returned after his shopping stint - he had gone from our house and returned to Meera's.

Back in August, another schoolmate - not our classmate - visited us. Sriranjini from Sydney, Australia. She had seen one of my blogs on the web and since I had mentioned CKC, she got interested to know who this is. After exchange of e-mails, we had become friends - her memory of those days is quite amazing even though she was in the "B" Section [kannada], same academic years.

We must make it a point to visit old mates at least to say hello, at least once in a while. It keeps us going!

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Some of us meet

Meeting old mates is always a joy and a much looked forward programme. Another old mate Shantala invited us for her daughter Padma's wedding in Bangalore on 30th August, 2007. Some of us could make it on the eve of 30th, that is on 29th since most of us found this convenient. I had been to Bangalore that day to be there for my daughter's CET Engineering seat selection (she retained what was chosen earlier since no openings in 'better' colleges came that day, Vidya Vikas College, Mysore, Civil Engg.). The next morning we had to get the admission done since it was a very auspicious day. It was done by 1 pm as scheduled after we rushed back on 30th. Coming back, it happened to be an enjoyable evening as it gave the opportunity to meet, esp. to a few who were seeing each other after decades. The fun in trying to identify the face from memory is quite something even for the beholder!

Here are some of the pictures that were taken from my small camera:

http://picasaweb.google.com/dinakar58/CKCGroup

Rupa [Machaiah], Rohini, Mrs. and Mr.A.R.Rajaram, [Dr.] H.R.Ravi, V.G.Jaishree and 'us' met.