Achachan
We called him Achachan, the equivalent of grandpa in my native language, Malayalam. He was actually my grandpa's younger brother. I don't have clear memories of first meeting him. But I remember whenever we met him during some family gatherings; he used to be very affectionate to us. And my father was fond of him. Achachan was the youngest child in his family. As a kid, he was very good in his studies and did his course in Survey. Later he worked as a civil engineer in Singapore. He loved books and was a voracious reader. Not sure about the authenticity of this story, but it still makes rounds in the family. When Japan invaded Singapore during the Second World War, people started leaving their houses picking whatever valuables they could carry. One day, while the bombing was going on, Achachan ran out of his house and kept running for some time. Once the sound of bombing subsided, he walked into a nearby house. He couldn't find anyone inside and suddenly fire broke out. ...