Donga Ramudu and Jikki

My father had the Donga Ramudu album at home, and it had the lovely song "Chigurakulalo Chilakamma" by Ghantasala and Jikki. It is a marvelous rendition by these two great singers, and a favorite of all of us.

Carrying the cycle

One of the tough memories of my childhood- we used to live on the 2nd floor (1st floor in India) and my father had to take his bicycle down the steps every morning. The worst part was having to bring the cycle up the more than twenty steep steps every evening, after having biked for more than an hour. It must have been so painful and difficult.

Joining IIT

My dad came with me to the interview at IIT Madras. After my admission, he took me to the bank and opened a checking account for me. My dad loved coffee, just like I do.

Bhakta Tukaram

Another movie that my father liked a lot was Bhakta Tukaram. He bought the record and always enjoyed listening to the songs. Two songs in particular that were his favorites- Ghana Gana Sundara by Ghantasala, and Shyama Sundara by Ramakrishna. I also enjoy those songs.

My father always used to talk about how Mukesh would songs with the word Allah. I am currently playing a song from Hariyali aur Raasta, where Mukesh sings "Allah jane khya hoga aage." The song is a sheer masterpiece by SJ.

dance

Mom was telling us about the dance program my sister and katyayini did at Ravindra Bharathi- one item was the Tillana. I also remember the dance program and the preparation. My sister had a beautiful dance dress made in Madras.

Keen Interest, in all languages

My father had an album collection that spanned many languages. He grew up in Nellore and spoke Telugu, but developed a great appreciation for Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam, Bengali, Marathi and other languages.
My brother has inherited the same interests, and he has an amazing repertoire of langauge skills and appreciation. Today he sent me some Bengali songs, including some private compositions of Salil Choudary, and a song sung by Raj Kapoor. I had not even know that he had sung a song.

I am simply awe-struck by the talent of my brother. It is the world's loss that he has not yet realized his full potential.

Coffee--tastes much better when shared

One of my great memories of father is seeing him share coffee with his colleagues. My dad would take a flask filled with coffee to work, and would pour out a cup for his colleagues and visitors. He would also give me a cup when I went to visit him in his office. My father had a big, kind, and generous heart- the driving force behind his life of giving.