PALAKKAD: He will be flying in a chopper for the first time. And that too for attending the wedding of his grandson in Bengaluru. However, what has 90-year-old KN Lakshminarayanan most excited is the fact that his grandson Santhosh Narayanan, who used to cling on to his fingers as a child, insisted that they be present at his wedding despite the COVID pandemic.
Lakshminarayanan and his wife KV Saraswathi, 85, from Kalpathy, will embark on the chopper ride from the Indira Gandhi Stadium ground in Palakkad on Saturday morning. Santhosh’s parents KLV Narayanan and Subha and maternal grandmother mother V Vasantha will accompany them.
“It’s my first chopper ride and I’m thrilled. Santhosh has been my pet as he spent his childhood days with me when I was working with the Railways. It’s a great feeling to be present during the most auspicious moment of his life,” said Lakshminarayanan, one of the active organisers of the annual Kalpathy car festival and the author of the book, ‘Cauvery to Nila: A History of the Tamil Agraharams of Palakkad.’ The grandparents were not sure about attending the wedding initially.
They knew travelling by road or train at their age was risky. However, Santhosh’s wedding with Swetha on Sunday could not be postponed as he has landed a job in London after getting his doctorate there and has to return in three months. It was then that Santhosh decided to arrange a chopper to bring his parents and grandparents to Bengaluru. They will return in 48 hours.