A letter to Dad on his retirement
By: Chandana Kanchanapally
Tags: Retirement, Banking, Love, Daughters, Dads

Congratulations Nanna on retirement from your service to Reserve Bank of India(RBI). Apart from the monetary benefits, your job at RBI has given our family so much that it always remains special to me, my sister and amma. Your job earned you respect, confidence, admiration among the extended family and the financial capability to invest in things that matter to you. You made really good friendships that we know are going to last a long time. Most importantly, through your job you gave us, your little girls, an opportunity to dream of a meaningful career, and a bright future.:)

When I set out to write about Nanna, so many memories flood my mind but one thing I distinctly remember is, as a kid when I went to a new school for the first time. At the end of the day, I would just look for Nanna’s face in the huge crowd and think ‘Ahh okay I am safe’. Even now when I am lost in whatever I am doing, the same smiling face comes to my mind.

Nanna’s love for travel and exploration is boundless. As a child, I used to be given project work during summer and winter breaks in school. I clearly remember that I would never be able to finish any of them because we would NEVER be home for the holidays. That was how often we traveled around the country and yet, every single trip was very well planned and organized. Only after being an adult do I understand how much of an effort it takes to make a vacation successful, and I now wonder how Nanna can do it so effortlessly. We feel part of the RBI family when it comes to staying in most of the RBI holiday homes! From Kulu-Manali to Kodaikanal, you name it, we stayed in it. :)

Everyone who knows Nanna, also knows how tech-savvy he is. It amazes me that he is the one to bring up tech news always in our conversations. I call my dad at the end of a long day to just talk. After an exchange of how are you and what are you up to, he starts off in an inquisitive tone ‘So, what do you think of this latest announcement by XYZ company’, and then we go on. At his age, where most of my friends’ dads are struggling to post pictures on FB/Whatsapp, Nanna understands enough to talk about the impact of the latest technology.

The creative side of Nanna is something I admire a lot. Be it organizing music events or participating in singing competitions or hosting/compering events, Nanna has never said no to an opportunity to be on the stage. And I think everyone will agree with me on this, having seen him contribute towards Telugu/Hindi Samiti in so many different ways.

Coming to work, it never came from him, but I was told by so many of his colleagues about his utmost sincerity and strive for perfection. One instance to show this was when nanna asked me to help him with a document formatting for work. I have done it to an extent I thought was perfect and sent it to him. To my surprise, he got it all re-done because my perception of perfection was far below his. I am still trying to adopt such immense dedication in all that I do Nanna!

Nanna was once a part of the D.A.D department at work. Till date, I do not know what its abbreviation is or what gets done in that department, but as a child, I would think, even the workplace knew how good a dad nanna is, that they put him in the D.A.D department.

From the time we were born, I think Nanna exactly had all the formulas on how to be a great father, especially a great father to two girl children. Nanna has never made us less masculine by discouraging us from being strong while we pursued difficult education, nor did he make us less feminine by repressing the gentleness in us. Also, in the times when people believed in “spare the rod, spoil the child” kind of parenting, nanna and amma have adopted a unique and progressive style of childcare. It would probably sound implausible, but there was not a single instance when nanna whipped or even scolded us for anything we did. He has given us all the freedom to lead our lives the way we want to, while always being there to support us.

Lastly, I think if I somehow manage to learn to be at least 10% of who my dad is, I am confident that I can reach great heights in my career, family life and more. I wholeheartedly wish Nanna will make the most of his retirement. May life give him all the strength to explore all the unexplored places, learn all the unknown things, read all the unread books, pursue all the things he wanted to and continue influencing and motivating not just amma/my sister or me, but the whole family, his sisters, colleagues, well-wishers and everyone around him.

With Love,

Your daughters