Contd from Part -1
Lunch at Jairam was marked by photo session by the ladies..the lionesses and the lion…
The evening of 04 Feb , indisputably was the high point of the trip.
Scene shifts to 6th cross road , rainbow nagar. To the den
Gnana who had been keeping a low profile during the earlier proposals for a Pondy trip , came into his own this time to be fully involved along with Jayakumar. Sathya chipped in with his planning, announcements and cash management.
Gnana’s house at Pondy, which had been uninhabited for years had to be done up for the event.
Full credits to Kumudini and Gnana for rising to the occasion . The house looked as if it had never been unoccupied.
His dream bar and studio or den , which would be anybody’s dream, was thrown open to the party.
What followed was a nice sing song session interrupted by friendly banterings.
There was good wine , good food and smiles all around, all under the benign gaze of Cleopatra with her pretty nose.
Couldn’t resist this Asterix comic frame!
I have tried to capture the mood in a few collages of images. Pondicherry has always been a spiritual refuge in more than one sense. Spirits were flowing; spirits were soaring !
SS Ilango was the star of the event with the nostalgic numbers that took you back by half a century… Are we that old really ?!
Venkat who never sang in the school never stopped singing that evening; he was well supported by Sandhya. Asokarajan as always was everything, singer , dancer and the stand up comedian though seated most of the time.
Venkateswaran , another prolific contributor to Smule was sorely missed.
There followed a lively bout of anthakshari .. what would be the Tamil word for that ! May be ORA the professional translator can help!
There were many videos , but I am posting one which I feel aptly captures the mood; the lyrics are apt ..
Atho antha paravai Pola vaazha vendum…
Birds are what they are; Free and light-hearted, chirping away all the time.
Could hear Bharathiyaar’s
விட்டு விடுதலை யாகிநிற் பாயிந்தச்
சிட்டுக் குருவியைப் போலே
After dinner there was this unplanned move to the flaming dragons.. unplanned for most of us.
About that in the next post..
Thank you Murali for that excellent write-up!
That reference to Bharathiar’s poetry_ only you could have thought of that!
Very well written.
Well planned to misfit Kumar.
Or is it he is fit, but unfit for this occasion with the ‘bar’ open.
The name Venkat is nostalgic, with his love in busstand, with another Venkat too an admirer of his mischief in young days.
Excellent writing. Appropriate reference to Cleopatra and Asterix (a favorite for many of us) and Bharathiyar is only few can think of. Thanks Murali for capturing the events. 👍
Nostalgic