DARLING DARLING

There was a Malayalam movie by the name "Darling Darling". This post has nothing to do with the movie. Anyway it is not a title for a title.

On this years Teacher's day I received a phone call and without giving me any time to say 'hello' the girl on the line started talking incessantly without telling me who she was. Ninety-five  percent of the feminine voice I hear over the phone are from the same girl telling me the same old things like " the subscriber you have dialed is busy", etc. Suddenly most people have become very busy. And this girl was talking as if she has all the time in the world and nothing to do. When the talk went on and on and on with an overflow of powerful words of praise and sincere words of gratitude I started doubting whether she was talking to the right person. When she stopped for a breath I slipped in and politely asked who she was. "Oh Sir, you didn't get me? I am Valyomana"  I felt amused for a variety of reasons. First, I was hearing her voice after some 26-27 years (except for a short phone call some time back). Another thing, I had never seen or heard Valyomana without Kochomana !

                                                          

The Omanas were identical twins. They were my PG students of the 1984 batch. Valyomana as her name suggests was a tad taller than Kochomana who was a full five feet ! They were from Kumaranallore near Kottayam. From LKG to PhD they were together.

After they left the CMS college, Kochomana was back here for a week for the "One week with a scientist" programme funded by the central DST.  12 students were selected from various South Indian Universities.  They had the opportunity to spend one week  in the CMS college campus, interacting and discussing Physics with Prof E.C.G Sudarshan. Prof Srinivasa Rao of IMSc Chennai also was there for the programme. On the first day there was a self introduction session. When Kochomana's turn came, Prof Sudarshan rose from his chair and said, "She is Kochomana which means the 'Little ..... ". At that moment I felt butterflies in my stomach. I wondered, how will Prof Sudarshan translate "Omana"? Even as all these things happened to me in a flash, Prof Sudarshan completed: "she is Kochomana meaning 'The Little Darling' ".( He translated the name so that students from out side Kerala understood the meaning)

                                                         
Yes, where ever they went they were the darlings of one and all. The two remain very dear to my heart even after all these years.