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ATM of knowledge

Ramachandra Rao tells J. R. SHRIDHARAN how important it is to live in the present

PHOTO: RAJU. V.

BANKING ON SELF-RELIANCE Indira is Rao's greatest strength.

As a student, he was busy mixing chemicals in the Andhra University laboratory at Visakhapatnam, but at the back of his mind, he had a yearning to be a banker.

After completing M.Sc (chemistry) in 1974, he appeared for the probationary officer's exam and joined Indian Bank.

After serving in the banking field for 32 years, he now occupies the hot seat of Deputy General Manager of Indian Bank, taking care of its 58 branches in Krishna, Guntur and Prakasam districts.

Meet A. Ramachandra Rao, a multi-faceted personality with a penchant for literature, music and sports.

Amidst the dim lights and soothing music at Aromas restaurant of Hotel D.V. Manor, Rao and his wife Indira shared some of their cherished moments of their long journey as partners. "She is my uncle's daughter. Ours is a love-cum-arranged marriage," said Rao with a chuckle, bringing a smile on the face of Indira, who, till then, was a silent spectator.

Dev Anand fan

Relishing the fruit punch, Indira gradually opened up, sharing her unbridled interest in playing veena and listening to music. "I learnt to play veena at Eluru. I like listening to songs, of melodious genre and devotional songs," she said.

Munching papad, Rao enthusiastically pitched in narrating how difficult it was to get the veena exponent Chittibabu to perform at Aurangabad. "It was a memorable moment watching Chittbabu perform live. Those days, he was a busy artiste," said Rao. He too likes to listen to music and songs rendered by K.L. Saigal, Kishore Kumar, Mukesh, Hemant Kumar and Talat Mehmud are on the top of his priority list.

Rao's job took the couple to places like Mumbai, Kolkata and Ernakulam. "At Mumbai, we freaked out watching Hindi films. I go bonkers about Dev Anand. In fact, I even sported Dev's famous `puff' hairdo. But not any more, as there is nothing left on my scalp," he said amidst peels of laughter.

Emerging from the shell, Indira confessed that she was an ardent fan of Rajesh Khanna in Bollywood and Krishna in Tollywood. "In fact, she has autographed photographs of her idols," Rao disclosed.

Relishing roti and mixed vegetable curry, Rao said he liked the professional attitude of Mumbaikars. "No gossiping, no wastage of time. They are goal-oriented."

According to him, the stay at Ernakulam was cosier, as the city was bereft of the frenzied pace of Mumbai. "She had language problem, but she managed," he said. Recollecting his stay at Kolkata, Rao graded Kolkattans as most affectionate people.

"They are very affectionate and friendly and they love their Ravindra sangeeth."

Voracious reader

He is a bookworm and prefers to spend spare time burying his head into his favourite books. "As I was travelling all over the country, I turned into a voracious reader and I like classical fiction," he said with a touch of nostalgia.

High on his favourite list of authors is Bernard Shaw's `Pygmalion', which, Rao said he had read over 50 times. "I also have high respect for the works of Wilbur Smith," recalled Rao.

Rao also played the role of a soothsayer predicting FIFA World Cup final. "Both Brazil and England are peaking at the right time. Both the teams stand a chance for the titanic clash," he opined.

The Rao-Indira couple has two sons - Vidayadhar and Karthik. "Vijju is in US pursuing a career in communications and Karthik is in his second year engineering in computers at Visakhapatnam," said Rao.

Signing off on a philosophical note, Rao said: "Never think of the past. Do not think about the future. Live for the present in the best possible manner."

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