Venkata S. Anandu

Venkata Subbiah Anandu, or simply Anandu or Ajja, peacefully passed away on the morning of December 30, 2023 in Pelham, NY. He was 90 years old. 

He is survived by his two children Darshan of Houston, Texas and Nandini of Pelham, New York; his daughter-in-law Madhavi; his son-in-law Sanjay; his grandchildren or, as he dubbed them, his young friends, Rathi, Shiv, Manu, and Vishwa; as well as his brother Suri and his family. He was predeceased by his wife Jaya Lakshmi, to whom he was married for over fifty years. 

Anandu was born on August 26, 1933 to parents Venkatasubbiah and Gowramma near Bengaluru, India. It was there that he studied electrical engineering at Mysore University. Upon receiving his degree in 1954, he worked as a communication engineer for All India Radio, traveling far and wide across India, from Pune to Delhi to Chennai, chancing upon artists, classical musicians, and technicians. While he loved his post at the radio and all its comforts, his wife would instill within him the dream to quest onwards west. Together with their son, they immigrated to Montreal, Canada, where Anandu earned his master’s degree and their daughter was born. Later, they moved to the United States, residing in Savannah, Georgia before finally settling in the great state of Texas.

Hailing from a family of educators, Anandu himself took to teaching. He became a dedicated professor of engineering at a myriad of institutions, who was known for his precision, his fondness for the canteen, and his ambidextrous talent when it came to the chalkboard. He was cherished by his students, and he would author his very own workbook Electricity and Electronics to facilitate learning in the classroom. 

Anandu was an avid fan of tennis, who rarely missed a match. He enjoyed watching sports and game shows with his family, especially Jeopardy!, The Price is Right, and Wheel of Fortune, the latter of which he attended live with his wife, twice. He was a self-taught chef, who mastered sambar, dosas, and the signature hits of South Indian cuisine. He was known by his community for his routine strolls around his Houston and Pelham neighborhoods and for walking his grandkids to and from school. He had a penchant for straightforward storytelling, and for embellishing every detail with his own trademark remarks — “absolutely fantastic,” “unbelievable,”  “first-class.” He will be dearly missed by all who knew him. 

A service of remembrance will be held at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, January 3, 2024 at Pelham Funeral Home, 64 Lincoln Ave, Village of Pelham, NY 10803.