Amour on Rein
On that vijayadasami, during October, the lane leading to the office of the Integral Architects Pvt. Ltd., in Himayatnagar, was lined up with assorted vehicles of those who came to grace the inaugural function.
While Roopa, in her grey Binny silk sari, was at the entrance welcoming the invitees with her bewitching smile, Raja Rao in brown corduroys and white T-shirt was ensuring that all were seated, as they entered. Handling the refreshments were Aslam, the drafter and Narasaiah, the daftari. As if to capture the moment for the posterity, Sathyam was busy clicking away with his new Canon, but suckling Saroja, Sandhya in her Gadwal sari was bogged down in the anteroom for long.
However, as the muhurtham for the inauguration approached, Raja Rao went up to Sandhya to fetch her for the vighneswara pooja. Sensing that she was putting Saroja to sleep on the divan, he signaled her to make it quick. When Sandhya came out the couple performed the pooja with Roopa in attendance and after the prasadam was distributed in the gathering, Raja Rao took the floor.
While thanking those present for gracing the occasion, he wished those who didn’t turn up till then, would be joining soon. Reading out their resume, he introduced his partners, in turn. He was sandwiched, he said in jest, between Sandhya, the malikin at the house and Roopa, the boss at the office. That is why, he claimed, Integral Architects could be expected to be equally competent in handling homes as well as offices. In Aslam, he said, he found a competent drafter and that Narasaiah was courtesy personified. He hoped that their young team would come up to the expectations of their esteemed clientele.
At the auspicious time, Ranga Reddy was accorded the honor to unveil the name-plate, symbolizing the inauguration of the enterprise. When requested, Subba Reddy gladly put the drafting table to use, as a mark of the commencement of work. Ranga Reddy, in his address, recalled how he was impressed with Raja Rao when they first met. He said it was owing to his confidence in Raja Rao that he turned a realtor. He hoped that his Build Well Ltd. and Integral Architects would combine to contribute to the growth of Hyderabad. Subba Reddy, who followed him, said that he was a man of few words, and the two words he had for Raja Rao were - account transferred.
One by one, everyone left after refreshments, leaving the staff and Sathyam behind with the core group. While Roopa was assisting Aslam to move the drafting table by the window, Sandhya tried to pacify Saroja, who had woken up by then. In time, when Narasaiah began to clear the rubbish, Sathyam went to Mahaveer Studio with the exposed film rolls. Shortly thereafter, to Roopa’s delight, Tara showed up.