Remembering SPB

The passing away of S P Balasubramaniam is a great loss to film music lovers. A versatile, he sang in many languages. The greatest virtue however is that he was a great human being.

In our own little way as a mark of respect, our Moorthy Clan (a WhatsApp group consisting of the families of Aunty’s six sisters, brother, their children and families – say about 50) decided to observe SPB-week. There is already a frenzy sharing clippings of one’s favourite songs, his last appearance, his last song, and what have you.

I have nothing similar at hand to offer. But, as Shashi Kapoor said in Deewar, Mere Pas Maa hai. I shall pen some of what I have heard or seen about SPB.

My first and foremost impression about him is that he is an epitome of humility - full of sincerity; no doubt about it. This is not to suggest that he will be remembered more for this than the everlasting contribution he has made to film music. These seldom go hand in hand, but in his case they do in full measure. 

Hear his words of praise about Mohammad Rafi in a programme anchored by Sonu Nigam. How well he explains the nuances of Rafi Sahib’s unmatched renderings, with examples. 

Few would have failed to watch in their own WhatsApp groups SPB washing the feet of the Malayalam idol Yesusdas – in what I would consider the highest form of respect to the latter. SPB is reported to have said something like this, “I sing music, but Yesudas sir lives music”.

Yet another clipping that is doing rounds is the one where when on a pilgrimage to Sabarimala he was taken in a doli. See the humility with which he touches first the feet of all those who were to carry him to the shrine. Any one else in his place would have thought he was doing the men a favour by allowing them to carry him. 

Monopoly is the name of the game in film line. Every hero resists a new face to emerge; no music director wants someone else to usurp his place; nor does any singer want any other to enter his fiefdom. Amidst these Lakshmikant Pyarelal had SPB sing all songs in Ek Duje Ke Liye, not wantonly though. LV Prasad, the producer, stipulated that he would engage Laxmi-Pyare if they let SPB sing all the songs. All eager to add another famous banner to their kitty, they agreed. And SPB didn’t disappoint LP.

I learn SPB is on Guinness Book of Records for having recorded 17 songs in one single day. His voice fitted so well Salman Khan that not only did all of Maine Pyar Kiya songs top the chart, they helped Salman, then on his second film, to reach the top of the ladder. 

An engineer by qualification, a singer par excellence by occupation, and humane by deeds, SPB is a man of many parts. Not only just the music world, but all will lose a great human being.

Once again the words of Kannadasan, the foremost Tamil  lyricist, come to my mind: “Chave, un chavu eppo?” Translated in Hindi, “Yeh Moth, teri moth kab hogi”, or in English, “Oh, Death, when is your death due?” 

Sibling Rivalry (or, Bonding?)

 In WhatsApp I received this time a black and white photograph of a duo. It was of two brothers in whose sibling rivalry the international community benefited by two famous brands of shoes – Adidas and Puma.

With fake news equally on the rise, I rang up my brother in law who was a top executive in Adidas. “Yes Athimbar (Jija ji), this sibling rivalry is the folklore in the industry,” he confirmed.

 

Take Ambani brothers in India. Probably it was not in the best of relationship that the brothers parted ways. The younger even shifted his base to Delhi for some time, possibly in protest against the allocation of assets or sectors. Luckily, both brothers were brought up in a Matru Devo Bhava spirit, and hence her final word settled the issue.

 

The entertainment industry has thrived no less on the sibling rivalry theme. Deewar, starring Amitabh Bachchan and Shashi Kapoor, was a box office hit, not to speak of its all-time great dialogue, “Mere Paas Ma hai.” Karan Arjun helped Shah Rukh Khan scale greater heights. Bharatam is one of the top 20 Malayalam movies. Apoorva Sagodarargal, a 1949 Tamil movie, was such an instant hit that Gemini remade it in Hindi. Godfather II walked away with six awards at Oscar. Lion King, Walt Disney’s animation film, minted millions.

 

From reel life to real life, there is hardly a village or household which cannot share a sibling-rivalry story. In my neighbouring village they were two brothers. The elder made a lot of money under the table. And the younger? Just his monthly pay packet. Later, the elder smelt a possible enquiry against him. He immediately registered in his younger brother’s name a house that he had bought with ill-gotten money, on the understanding that the younger would return it when things settled down. No enquiry took place. He asked for his house back. “Which house?’ quipped the younger. “This is mine only.”

 

In another, it was a property dispute. The elder showed the younger a cheque for Rs 5000 (then a big sum) and told him that it would his if he signed the ancestral property transfer documents. The younger signed. The elder tore the cheque leaf, and showed the younger a 500-rupee note and said:  ‘take it or leave it’.

 

In my house, my immediate brother was elder to me by just 18 or so months. Our childhood was thus one of blow hot blow cold. We would fight practically for every item - pencil, eraser, notebook, the solitary tennis ball, or snatching a seat closest to the lantern for dinner...

 

As we grew, it became a show of one-upmanship. We bought from the wholesale market a dozen undergarments so that we could have six each - we were of the same build. He suggested that in each garment we write with marker our initials in a corner to avoid mix up. I wrote S on all my pieces, and asked him to write R in all of his. “No need. Anything without a sign is mine,” he said, and got away with a clean set of clothes.

 

Isn’t there a brighter side to all these? Yes. Why not? In the case of Ambanis, when the younger could not pay hundreds or thousands of crores that he owed to companies and faced possible imprisonment, the senior bailed him out.

 

In the ill-gotten wealth case after both seniors passed away the son of the younger brother offered to the senior’s son to return the house. The other gracefully said, “No need, both our families are happy the way we are. Let bygones be bygones.”

 

In the cheque-tearing case, he succumbed to cancer two years later, not before seeking forgiveness from his younger brother’s son when he visited him at the hospital.

 

In my case, both he and I had registered with a house building society for a plot of land. Years later the Secretary told my brother that he could allot a plot to just one of us, not both.  “Allot it to my brother,” said my brother.

 

Yes, sibling rivalry and bonding go hand in hand.

Seniors, in Our Own World

 Elderly people make up a third of Japan’s population – and it is reshaping the country, says a World Economic Forum report. I can’t vouch for the percentage of seniors’ population in SFV; nor guess if we contribute to the wellbeing of the complex. But I do know we are a formidable number, and are in our own world.

If you see a 6 feet tall, single-piece guy walking erect, you are right, it is my friend Kocheppan, of Ebony. A retired Flt. Lieutenant, he was a volleyball champion and coach. The Air Force stadium in Pune is named after him. Also, I had seen him coaching some volleyball enthusiasts in SFV

 

Another person who keeps his head high is Professor Venkatachalam, of Alder. He is a retired professor from IIT-Madras (Chemistry, with Electrochemistry as specialization), having published over 120 articles in peer journals. He was adjusted the best teacher consecutively for five years (scoring 99% in the evaluation). Cooking is his hobby. To be honest, we looked forward to more Rudram-Chamakam classes in his house, for we get to taste the Prasadam that he prepared himself.

 

During the morning walk have you observed a gentleman picking biscuit- or chocolate- wrappers lying in the complex and dropping them in the nearest dustbin? He is Krishna Murthy Aithal of 6243. By his habit I thought he would have been a civil engineer. Because as he walks he also re-adjusts the alignment of the bricks kept at strategic borders to prevent children riding bicycles into the grass area. “Sir are you by chance a senior?” I asked him, before including him in this piece. “Yes of course. And guess my age?” he asked. “Would 63 be close to the mark?” I asked him. “Add 10 more,” he said. “And, my father staying with me will hit 100 soon,” he added with pride.

 

L&T Krishnamoorthy, as we call him to distinguish from the host of Krishnamoorthys, is a man for all seasons. He organized a one-day trip outside Bangalore for seniors, with well-arranged lunch, snack packets, and what have you. Alas, his stay with his daughter was only for a few months; he has moved back to his own house nearby. But his heart is in SFV, and comes here at the slightest pretext.

 

Shri Rajashekar is a retired principal of a Pre-University College in Hosadurga taluk. Can you believe, he has written 17 educational books in Kannada meant for B.Ed and M.Ed students. He is one of the most unassuming persons you will come across. If this doesn’t help you to place him, he is the one who moves around in the morning calculated to draw the minimum of attention; and his slow steps are so hesitant as not to hurt the bricks on which he treads. With the Kannada class having met with an abrupt ending, he plays for me the role of a Kannada teacher, minus the accompanying cane, and I resort to English only when stranded.

 

To SFV Malayalees, Col Paddy of Oak, is the darling Uncle. To me, we are from the same village in Palakkad. Yet, when Aunty and I meet Col and Nalini on an evening stroll, honestly I  avoid a stop-by for a chat. Reason? He would share with us the long pleasant drive he and Nalini had to Kochi, Munnar, Trivandrum or other places. Back home, I face the music with Aunty to venture a similar trip. As for my record, the longest distance I have driven is from Delhi to Ghaziabad; or, in Bangalore, from SFV to Devanahalli.

 

I call Lakshminarayanan a walking encyclopaedia. Ask him if it will be Joe Biden, or Trump again. You can get his analysis. Why India’s GDP is at a low ebb, he has an answer. Or, is an end in sight for the China-India North Eastern military movements, or occasional skirmishes? Or back home, what are the ingredients of a herbal tea.

 

After a five-month gap, we seniors have resumed our Rudram-Chamakam class – but Online. Everyone having adjusted to a new lifestyle in the interim, I feared many would opt out. No, all are on board. Vishwanathan, of 3161, managed a smooth sail on day one. We hope to improve session after session.