பூந்தோட்டத்தில் ஹோய் காதல் கண்ணம்மா

When we were young, it was always an excitement to visit Madras (Chennai now.)  The big city. 

People knew things.  Even the young people my age seem to know the world more than I did.

A few homes had fridges with cold yogurt.  

And there was the beach!

Madras was certainly not the bubble in which we lived.

My favorite uncle/aunt's home was in a neighborhood that was home to a few movie people too.  One of them was SPB (S.P. Balasubramanyam.)  We were told that once in a while he could be seen on the "terrace" of his home from where he would wave out to his adoring fans.

I never saw him during any of my visits.

I read in the news today that SPB passed away.  A life that was accelerated towards death by Covid19.

SPB's light and cheery delivery of melodic songs appealed a lot to the angst-filled teenage heart of mine.  Even the songs from well before my teenage years, like his his first one ever:

Into the teens, his songs encouraged my young and naive heart, and also comforted it when sad.  Of the plenty, here are two for reasons that completely escape a conscious recollection of my own past; all I know is that these songs are deeply embedded in my heart--one in Tamil, and the other in Hindi:

Thanks for the memories, SPB.