FAREWELL BELOVED SUBO

- a wonderful, loyal and loving cousin

- Sheranee Sellamuttu

It is with a deeply saddened heart that I bid farewell to my precious cousin, Subodhini Radhika Thambiayah Nirmalalingam, who passed away last week. To me, she was more than a cousin — she was my dearest companion, my confidante, and my sister in every way that mattered.

Growing up, Subo and I were inseparable — just three years apart, yet always side by side, two peas in a pod. We loved the same things, shared the same sense of curiosity and adventure, and walked hand in hand through our childhood. Our bond mirrored that of our mothers, Sundari and Rajeswary Sellamuttu, who were also devoted sisters and inseparable friends.

Subo had a flair for the arts from a young age. She dreamed of being a dancer and at school she shone brilliantly, excelling in Spanish, Bharatanatyam, Manipuri, Kandyan dancing and performed in theatre. Though her father guided her toward academics first, Subo never let go of her other passions. Educated at St. Bridget’s Convent, she left for London in 1959 to study law and was called to the Inner Temple, in 1963.