My Father KK

My Father KK

We will always remember him for his 3 Ss --
Straightforwardness, Simplicity and Soft spoken approach.

We all lose a few loved ones to death in our lifetime. I too have. The most painful of course was the death of my best and childhood friend Sachin – with whom I grew up – in the year 2006. But the most defining has to be the passing away of your parent, because of whom we inherit this world.

The past week has been flooded with memories of my father Mr KK Subramanian, who passed away on April 18. He was a soft spoken and hard working individual who passed on simple but very essential behavioural prescriptions to both his sons. “Never tell a lie,” he would say. So simple, yet in the context of today's world it seems like a re-discovered truth.

Having studied in the Tamil medium in school, I always found his English impeccable. He developed it over time and served as an inspiration to us brothers to pick up nuances of the English language. He had a wonderful music sense too and was very fond of carnatic music. I too love singing and have a talent to spot similarity of ragas when listening to different songs. Some effect of the genes I suppose.

When I reflect on my father's personality, one thing stands out – his simplicity and loyalty. He was not the one to invite any kind of complexity into his life – his sons are filling that gap of course. Like an individual bred on typical middle class values, he served one government organisation for 30 years and built his career accordingly. He wanted both his sons to emulate this approach, but we were made of different mettle and continue to experiment with our careers even twenty years after we started working. Like many fathers in our country, I am sure he was not amused with this `current generation` style of living.

One of the aspects I feel my father missed out on developing was his creative side. He used to make sketches occasionally and I found him to be very good at that. Maybe somewhere he was trapped into the focused way of living and not giving vent to his creative potential, which might have required sacrificing the beaten path a little.

While he went through the normal struggles and frustrations of life, he was blessed that he could travel the world. In his lifetime, he visited some amazing places like Rome, Geneva London, Hong Kong, and Osaka, besides having put in a professional stint in Africa. Having worked for Air India for three decades, he loved being air borne and taking us all too.

In the last few years, my father suffered a lot with his health and his last few months were immensely painful. In death, he found deliverance from both suffering and bondage. April 18 however would forever remain a solemn day in our life.

We will always remember my father for his 3 Ss -- Straightforwardness, Simplicity and Soft spoken approach. My brother and I are grateful for whatever he did for us. Though he may not have always agreed with our ways, till his last breath he stood by us.

Thank You Appa. May You Remain In Eternal Bliss. Will Miss You Always!