Senthilathiban - I

  -- By Arulnambi K.

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Mr. K. Senthilathiban

Appa's approach to relationships, friendships and his positive attitude towards life and its many challenges were influenced greatly by some of the truly wonderful students he was blessed to have. His personality and his style of teaching and collaboration were such that he naturally attracted many good people to him. 

One such student was Mr. Senthilathiban. He first came to know Appa in 1979, so was one of his earliest students. Dr. Karunanidhi, Dr. Latha Pillai, and Mr. Senthil - this was the trio Thambi and I essentially saw more often at our home than other relatives or extended family. They were incredibly close to Appa, and grew to be some of Amma's favorites as well. They were family in every sense of the word. Amma named my son 'Adhiban", picking the name from the second part of Mr. Senthil's full name. She would say that she loved the name as an enthusiast of Tamil names. She was also very fond of Senthil, remarking that he was such a good person.

As Appa's academic and administrative career reached many peaks, his students were a constant fixture at our home. They would stop by sometimes just to chat about personal matters, or get guidance on a thesis or research paper,  or discuss an upcoming workshop or conference. Just growing up in that environment steeped in the sights and sounds of higher academia was exciting. And Mr. Senthil and the others were very much at the center of it. Their academic and professional lives were influenced by Appa's own special brand of education and training - less reliance on traditional classroom instruction and books, more hands-on activities - camps, seminars, conferences, and training programs by the dozen. Mr. Senthil himself was actively not just participating, but constantly challenged by Appa to involve himself directly in organizing, administering, mentoring and teaching. Then there were Appa's massive initiatives for the betterment of society at large. The psychologists were not confining themselves to their classrooms, offices and clinics, but reaching out and helping those in need. Those were challenging but exciting and invigorating times.

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Best Friends - L to R: Dr. Latha Pillai, Dr. S. Karunanidhi, Dr. Sriram Viswanathan, Mr. K. Senthilathiban

Later on, after Appa had passed away in 2015, I started to interact with Mr. Senthil more often. He would speak at length of those times working with Appa, projecting the happiness and excitement he still felt about that period. I also found out that Senthil was no 'yes man' to Appa. He would argue with him if he did not agree with him, and there were apparently quite a few such arguments. The fact that teacher and student held other in such high esteem for so many years and continued to remain close until the very end speaks volumes of not only their respective personalities and utter lack of personal egos, but also of the complete and mutual honesty in their relationship.

I had been meaning to do a profile of Mr. Senthil on this website, like I had done with a few other of Appa's illustrious students.  I had collected some details from Mr. Senthil in preparation. And now, after his demise, too soon and so cruel, it is with a heavy heart that I have gotten around to writing what has now become a eulogy. It's been over a year since I last spoke to him, but I vividly recall his voice - deep and warm. 

​Next: "Professor and I" - Senthil, in his own words, on his life and times with his professor.