Sri Nallan Chakravarthi R. Srinivasan (R S Mama, TVS Brakes India)

Birth

Sri  U.Ve. R. Srinivasan (R S mama as he was fondly known) swami was born on May 18, 1940 at Tirupathur near Pudukkottai in Tamil Nadu. His father, Nallan Chakravarthi Sri R. Rangaswamy Iyengar, was an advocate in the Pudukottai court. His mother was Smt. Ranganayaki. He was the second of four siblings, a brother to Janaki, Vijayalakshmi, and Kousalya.

Early Life

R S Mama had a modest upbringing in Pudukkottai in a joint family. Fondly called Cheenu, he inherited patience and kindness from his father, while his mother gave him the  vigor and can-do attitude. He attended the esteemed Kulapathi Balaiah school and Brihadambal school in Pudukottai before completing his PUC in Rajah’s college. His innate interest in science led him to obtain a B.Sc Physics degree from St. Joseph’s college in Trichy where he was secretary of the Sanskrit Society. He then attempted an MSc in Annamalai University before joining the prestigious Madras Institute of Technology to obtain a DMIT degree in Instrumentation. He was the first engineer in the family.


Marriage and Family

R S Mama married Smt Rajalakshmi on June 23, 1963 at Pudukkottai.  He was 23 years old while she was 17.  Her father P K Sundarrajan was the Branch Manager of TVS Pudukkottai. They had two sons, Chi Vijay Anand and Chi Raghunathan. R S Mama was a devoted husband and a father, who took every effort to ensure that his family had a secure and comfortable life. His hardworking nature was complemented by his ability to balance his work and his family engagements. He spent time with his sons, and regularly kept in touch with relatives in Chennai as well as in Pudukottai to make sure his family understood his roots.

Career

On June 23rd 1964, which was the day of his first wedding anniversary, R S Mama was appointed as an Apprentice Engineer at Brakes India TVS in Padi, Chennai. With a salary of Rs. 300 per month, he moved his family to Ayanavaram, Madras. His first mode of transport was a Hercules bicycle, which he still owns. His work ethic and dedication were so unparalleled that he quickly rose within the ranks in Brakes India to become a manager and eventually its first Senior Vice President.  He was one of the few employees outside of the TVS family to achieve such a high-ranking position. At Brakes India, he was responsible for several departments including Tool Room, Production Engineering. In 1988, realizing the need for the company to innovate new technologies and tools, he founded the Technology Development Department and grew the department from a few engineers to its current strength of 250.

R S Mama was widely recognized internally within Brakes India and externally in the industry as a revolutionary technology leader of his time. He introduced breakthrough new technologies including computers and CAD/CAM, Robotics, and special purpose automation to the company. He spearheaded several major technology initiatives, culminating in the formation of the Technology Development Department.  Here, he created computer controlled special purpose machines that were so innovative and cost effective that orders were not limited to within the company but came from top manufacturing firms in Germany, Japan and China.

He was the Vice President of the acclaimed TAGMA (Tool and Gauge Manufacturers Association) and was recognized as Chartered Engineer by the US Society of Manufacturing Engineers. An avid traveler, he visited over 30 countries to meet customers and vendors, and to speak at conferences. A Brakes India legend, R S Mama was asked to extend his employment beyond retirement several times, and ultimately provided 52 years of incredible service to the company.

R S Mama was a caring and compassionate leader who quietly practiced world-class management principles. He hired over 600 talented employees from the poorest sections of society without regard for religion or caste. Under his mentorship, they were trained to become the next leaders of the company.  He not only guided them to become experts in their profession but also taught them how to be successful in their personal life. He recognized their hard work by celebrating birthdays and important occasions. A master organizer, he invited the company’s leaders and employees to the grand annual Ayudha Pooja festival, which he conducted with the assistance of kainkaryapaaraal from Srimath Andavan Ashramam. This event created a strong sense of kinship between employees and their managers.

Association with Srirangam Srimath Andavan Ashramam 

R S mama had the privilege of meeting Srimushnam Srimadh Andavan Sri Rangaramanuja Mahadesikan in 1990. His samasrayanam was performed previously by Srimadh Thirukkudandhai Andavan.  Deeply moved by Srimadh Srimushnam Andavan’s stature and greatness RS mama invited HH for ponnadi saatral at his home in 1990.  The event marked the beginning of R S mama’s lifelong association with Srimadh Andavan Ashramam and its activities.  

Between 1992 and 2015 Srimadh Andavan made no less than 18 visits to R S mama’s house in Annanagar, which he named Sri Paduka Vihara Bhavanam for dolai, ponnadi, vaikunta ekadasi and dwadasi paranai, as well as paduka thiruvaradanam. Other acharyas including Sri Ahobila Matam Jeer, Sri Parakala Matam Jeer also performed dolai and ponnadi at Sri Paduka Vihara Bhavanam.

Under Srimadh Andavan’s guidance R S Mama performed various kainkaryams. He launched an upanyasam series at the Bhavanam for Thiruppavai, Srimath Ramayanam and Srimath Bhagavatham. He organized upanyasams for 12 consecutive years, from 1993 to 2004. Illustrious Upanyasakars such as Sridhara Thathachariar, Seva Srinivasaraghavachariar, Veerapuram Krishnamachariar, Natteri Rajagopalachariar, Villur Karunakarachariar, Kalyanapuram Aravamudhachariar and many more were chosen by Srimadh Andavan to share their knowledge and experience at Paduka Vihara Bhavanam. Additional upanyasams were held on special occasions including Azhwar and Acharayan thirunakshatrams.  The Desika Stotram and Prabandham classes organized at Paduka vihara bhavan were well received with large participation.

 

R S Mama’s intellectual curiosity and willingness to explore modern trends led him to create www.andavan.org, a website dedicated to the Ashramam, in 1997. He also launched the andavan@yahoogroups.com group, Blog, WhatsApp, Facebook, and Youtube pages for the Ashramam. These efforts helped sishyas around the world to stay connected and informed about Ashramam activities.

Srimadh Andavan would say that difficult projects are best assigned to R S Mama because he would quietly and quickly complete them to perfection without any desire for recognition. For his incredible contributions, RS Mama was appointed as a Trustee of Srimadh Andavan Ashramam in 1999. Listed below are a few of the incredible kainkaryams that R S Mama accomplished:

  1. Along with Sri Madhavacharyar RS mama help build Srimadh Andavan Ashramam at Tirupati and air-conditioned the rooms.
  2. He re-established and provided safe access to Saalakkinaru in Kanchipuram.  Sponsoring a person to carry the water from the well, he ensured that the water reached Sri Varadaraja Perumal temple in time for His daily thirumanjanam.

  1. Rebuilding Thiruputkuzhi Vijayaraghava Perumal koil pushkarani and reestablishing annual thoppam festival. He also helped in building a new vasantha mandapam adjacent to the temple.
  2. He helped renovate the Gopuram of Velaamoor temple where Srimushnam Andavan had performed aaradanam in his poorvashramam.
  3. He helped publish Sri Seva Srinivasaraghavachariar Swamy’s books and renovate his Mani Mandapam in Villivakkam.
  4. He was instrumental in renovating Srimath Andavan Ashramam premises in Kanchipuram.
  5. Building the Gopuram at Perumudivakkam Kothandaramaswamy koil R S mama helped to organize annual Brahmotsavam successfully.
  6. He raised funds and performed Pudukkottai Srinivasa Varadaraja Perumal koil samprokshanam in 2000.
  7. He helped in establishing Sri Ramanuja Mission, a representative of Srimadh Andavan Ashramam in USA, by obtaining a srimukham from Srimath Andavan and His blessings for building of a temple.
  8. Serving as the editor of Sri Ranganatha Paduka English Edition started in 2010, he helped the ashramam’s monthly magazine reach worldwide audience who cannot read Tamil.
  9. Upon the request of Veerapuram Krishnamachariar, R S mama helped bring Sri Padmavathi sametha Srinivasa Perumal Koil in Villivakkam managed by the Swami under Srimadh Andavan Ashramam’s umbrella. R S mama managed to raise an impressive Rs. 30+ Lakh corpus for its smooth operation. Now, throngs of devotees visit the temple every day and actively participate in nithyaaradanams.
  10. RS mama made numerous contributions to Srimath Andavan Ashramam kainkaryams. A recent example is samarpanam of Gangalam for Sri Sarngapani koil in Thirukudanthai.
  11. He also promoted arts and culture in Chennai including guiding the annual chithirai and margazhi nrutyotsavams conducted with the blessing of Srimath Andavan.