The Krishnamurthy siblings had a passion for friends and were more Bengali than Thamizh..They spoke the language with ease...fluently, with the correct diction and pronunciation.Even at this age their language skills would put any Bengali to shame.The young men were live wires...they made friends instantly and were much sought after for their company.They shared a common flair for humour & wit.A day in the Krishnamurthy family was never complete without an ADDA & a Bridge Round Table.The brothers were masters of the game and years later Chandru was to participate in national and international tournaments as well .The kitchen was always buzzing with Dosactivity & the Bong friends had made it their second home.Friends jumped in uninvited with potfuls of Rasogollas and yummy singadas(samosas).The vigilant Kannamani also ensured a constant supply of the Idli/dosa batter.The young multi linguistic sports fanatic Bahu was also an instant hit and Bhabhi Ma endeared to all.Bhoudi to some,Mashima to others the jovial Subbu Vijaya couple was soon to become the Universal Anna Manni to the entire Tambong fraternity as well.
Subbu was serving in the IRS and frequent postings in various positions proved to be a boon.The young man in service was lucky to have interacted with people from all streams and walks of life.....and maintains some of the contacts even today.Given the social networking today.where a constant interaction could perhaps be practically feasible with only a very few, inspite of a long list of friends...Subbu had a real live active circle of vibrant pals,who came along with happy families....and they celebrated festivals,wedding anniversaries & birthdays together.
A birthday party was a gala celebration. Lil Nayaki & her brother were pampered with the luxury of a bash no ordinary child could dream of these days.The guest list included some of the Bengali film & theatre stars some of whom would seek an appointment with the assessing income Tax Officer during the day & barge in for a tete-a-tete into the Iyer home in the evenings.Subbu's stint as the assessing officer in the Film Circle was a dream come true for Lil Nayaki & her kid brother .The weekends would be reserved for exclusive first shows & premieres...& the kid siblings would share space with some of the greats of the Bengali Film industry....Then there were the special invites for the film shoots as well.It was during these years that Subbu's family had the privilige of meeting the stars.A star struck nayaki watched the stars with admiration & alas !Subbu's network does not include them now.Its been nearly 3 decades since the family migrated to a city on the shores of the bay of bengal....and as Nayaki strolls down the Marina ,the typical piscean that she is....is lost yet again in fantasy land.The dreamy middle aged mother of two twenty year old girls would rather befriend a Ranbir Kapoor or a Surya today.....
