As I have mentioned in my autobiography, membership in Round Table India, a youth organization with similar objectives like Rotary opened up a whole new world to me when I was 26. I joined Bombay West Round table no.6 in Bombay(1968-71), later shifted to Delhi Round table no.5 (71-74), and finally landed at Madras West Round Table no.10 in 1974. Truly an All-India Tabler. I took to the Round table like a duck to water. Over the next 16 years, I not only got actively involved with the activities of the Assn at the national level but also got the Distinguished Service Award from the association, one of the first two-floor tablers to win this coveted recognition, for my role in helping with the Round Table House project, a dream project of Bob Chandran of CBE.
As
an active member of MWRT 10, I made some close friends whose friendship I
continue to enjoy even today- thanks to 41 Club no 7, a club of predominantly
ex-members of Table 10. One of the most active 41 clubs in India, the club
ensures that the `hinges of friendship we made during Round table days,
never rust`- which is the basic objective of 41 Clubs of India an association
of ex-tablers across India. We meet regularly every month. The meetings are hosted by members in public facilities or their homes. Club members
contribute a small sum as their share of the expenditure.
It
is a meet-and-greet fellowship opportunity and a fun evening where
members spend time going down memory lane. Over the years we have
lost some important members to old age-related health issues. However, we
continue to invite the spouses of such members as special invitees to our
get-togethers.
The
Feb.,23, dinner was hosted by a group of five special invitees ( Sangeeth
Chopra, Gita Mehtras, Venu Kesu, Hema Krishnan, and Usha Sudhir) at the
spacious residence of Sangeeth Chopra, the charming spouse of the ever-popular
(late)Inder Chopra ably supported by the son (Rahul) and daughter in law (Anu)
of Venu Kesu. The evening had the touch of ladies in the way it was
meticulously planned and executed. Floral decorations with small `Diyas` in the center were placed on all the tables. A live band was singing
retro film songs in Tamil & Hindi. A special bar counter with a variety of
spirits was there to raise the spirits of members.
The
meeting also witnessed Rani Ananth spouse of C.S Ananth, briefly
describing her life story and Gopi sharing a recent medical emergency he faced.
There were mandatory birthday & wedding anniversary greetings by President
Ganesh Kini who also briefly outlined the recent activities conducted at the
Area Meet. As a token of appreciation, the hosts were also presented with
special gifts. Some members took over the mike from the band and belted out songs they knew. There was also some dancing by the ladies.
A
well-known caterer was in attendance serving a variety of delicious starters –
both veg. and nonveg. They were so delicious that most of the members made a
meal of the starters that they could not do justice to the main dinner fare
offered later, as it happens in many such dinners. I was so full of the
starters that my stomach could accommodate only some `Thayir Sadam` and
the desert!
The
highlight of the evening was the participation of some children of the members
who were also 41ers in some other clubs in the city. There was a
record attendance of over 40 thoroughly enjoying the well-organized dinner
meet. Thanks, Sangeeth and team for a memorable evening! Truly `Hinges of
Friendship` among ex-tablers never rust!
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