Reminiscences with family

From the albums

This photograph was taken in 1969 on the rooftop of Bombay Studio in 3rd Block, Jayanagar. All the family members from my father’s (Y K Ananda Rao) side had assembled in our newly built house ‘Narahari Krupa’ in 7th Block, Jayanagar. 

 It was one of those rare occasions when my three brothers and only sister, all stationed outside Bengaluru, had gathered in the city. That’s the reason this occasion was so special and full of fond moments. It dawned on us that it was the most appropriate time for a family photograph that now brings back wonderful memories of the good times spent together. 

My father had secured three degrees and when we asked him why he had so many, his spontaneous response was that he made up for the deficiency in the family as none of his brothers had secured a degree. 

We lost our mother very early but luckily, my grandmother took on the responsibility of bringing us up. She used to wake us up early in the morning with a cup of coffee and used to make snacks like ‘chakkli’, ‘kodbale’, ‘rava laddoo’ and ‘kadabu’. These were stored in a basket hung from the roof and we would come running from school to enjoy these delicious homemade items. 

All the festivals were celebrated on a grand scale at our place and our cousins would join us as well. I also remember playing games like ‘goli’ (marbles), ‘chinni kolu’ and tennis ball cricket with my friends. 

The weddings in our family were memorable and on my wedding reception, a Kannada play titled ‘Varshikotsava’ was staged by Ravi artistes. It was so enjoyable that even the cooks stopped cooking for a while to watch it.

I used to take my children to Lalbagh and Cubbon Park during the weekends. The main attraction for them was the ‘poori sagu’ in the restaurant on top of Kempegowda tower in Lalbagh and dosa and hydrogen balloon in Cubbon Park. My eldest brother had twins, Madhavi and Jahnavi, and they would confuse visitors with their identical looks.

Our favourite restaurant during our student days was Vidyarthi Bhavan in Gandhi Bazaar. However, whenever we had more money, we would go to MTR near Lalbagh.

We used to go for music concerts along with one of our brothers-in-law who was a connoisseur of art and music. I can never forget the night that we spent watching the Karaga celebrations with him in the alleys of old Bangalore.

My brothers and I used to practice yoga regularly under T Krishnamachar, who was a very famous teacher.

My children would enjoy playing all outdoor games and I got them enrolled under a coach to learn lawn tennis. My eldest son had clinched the Karnataka state level sub-junior title in 1973.

I served in BMS College of Engineering for 10 years and at M S Ramaiah College of Engineering for 30 years. 

I retired as the principal and administrator of the college. From the photograph here, Y K Ananda Rao, Y A Raghavendra Rao, Sumitra, Y A Gopal Rao, Tungamma, C S Ramachandra and Y A Sridhar Rao are no more. I can never forget the pleasant time I spent with my dear father, sister and brothers and this article is a tribute to them.

(The author can be contacted at [e-mail])