The Marwadi way

Marwadi-s are very good money managers. It is an inimitable talent. Even if others learn the art (of money management) they don't get the finesse of the Marwadi-s. Sometimes their way borders on cheating.. but from their side they are 'clear.' Probably it is like this: If a greater good is realized by even taking a wrong path, you can still go ahead. But mostly the customer gets a good deal notwithstanding the fact that the Marwadi always ends up with a better deal. Marwadi vs. customer is alwayas a WIN-win situation. If at all it comes to it, the Marwadi ensures that it is a win-lose situation in his favor. It is in their blood. That is why across the length and breadth of this world they are successful businessmen.

Today's incident demonstrates how I ended up in a win-lose situation (I was the loser.)

Last week we gave a mixie for repair in a Marwadi-s owned and managed shop. The shop gave an "invoice" for Rs. 396/- at the time of taking the order. Then itself I assumed that I am giving a big profit. I assumed that I will get a bill while receiving my item and that will stand as a safety-net for me. On the appointed day I went to collect my item and I was given the item. No bill. I felt uncomfortable and asked for a bill. The shop said "no bill for repairs, sir," with all politeness typically enacted by them. I insisted on a bill and seeing my persistence he took a white paper and scribbled most illegibly, "butterfly moter" put a hyphen and entered the amount. Dashed a vertical line and under it a short horizontal line and under it the "total" amount. On the left corner he scribbled an even more un-understandable sign.

I hated this bill. I argued that I can write such a bill myself at home much more lgibly. I asked for a "proper bill" by which I meant something on a letterhead mentioning the problem in my mixer and the charges for the repair. He insisted he cannot give such a bill; it was against his shop's "policy." I could not stand it anymore and soon we were arguing loudly. A grandmother was managing the cash counter and she intervened, trying to explain me. I was not ready for anything less than a bill on a letter-head. At this time, the fellow brought in the concept of warranty - said that the replaced item carried no warranty and so no bill. I was not knowing but this was where he took me completely in. I uttered that this kind of no-bill activity is equivalent to "cheating." And this made him also angry. (Actually the Marwadi never gets angry. Angry man doesn't have cool head and a hot head is not the best strategist tool. So, he looks angry but actually is not.)

Another lad came into the quarrel (now the argument became that.) He played the good man and tried to explain me. But I was ready for anything but to go without the bill. So I argued valiantly with both. Slowly they started highlighting that they are honest and that if the mixer develops a snag again I can walk in confidently and they would repair (and charge equally impressive amount.) "No need of bill." I was not be won over by such smooth talk. I stood strong and finally I won!! They agreed to prepare the bill. They prepared on the shop's letterhead. Now both sides were smiling - I that finally they gave an honest bill and they, that they were "satisfying" me.

And that was the catch. I *thought* I won, but actually the Marwadi converted it into a WIN-lose situation in his favor. While preparing the bill with a smiling face he was explaining that it attracts 4% for VAT and that there is no guarantee on the replaced part. The latter part he told with so much conviction that I believed it totally; I sympathized with him that it is not in his hands. And he mentioned both (VAT and no guarantee) in clear and legible writing on the bill.

I ended up paying more. The bigger loss is, had I taken the item with a smile at first I at least would have had a chance to go to him if the mixer goes phut after some days or weeks of use. Chances are that he wouldn't forget that it was repaired only recently and chances are that he would charge less. But now he deprived me of that chance (or did I deprive myself of it?) Even if the snag reappears tomorrow I lost all chance to blame anyone.

Moral: If you ever enter into an conflict with a Marwadi, go by his way. At least the loss will be smaller.

Rapturous Mangalam

Today I got an SMS from SGS Ashram informing about the concert of Swamijee in Haridwar. Pleasantly surprisingly the concert is in Patanjali Yog Vidya Peeth, in the presence of Baba Ramdev. The the SMS was a tipoff about live telecast of the program in Astha Channel.

Sure, the whole congregation was immersed in the devine yoga Sakti (of both the great guru-s.)

Swamijee's program was "pancha tatva raga malika." Unlike in the previous such concerts, there was almost contiguous playing of the raga-s. At the end Swamijee told what various raga-s were and what tatva-s they were about. There was a "relaxation" raga also as Swamijee said. But actually every bit of His music charges up the devotee. The last piece was as usually mangalam. Swamijee said, that this mangalam is a simple composition of "bits" and that it represents vayu and bhu tatva-s. But actually it was characteristically complex and simply inimitable. And just as He mixed vayu and bhu tatva-s in it, this time uniquely, the mangalam started with samajavaragamana, proceeded mellifluously in the same and refreshingly merged into the "ragaragini mangalam." I am sure today's mangalam took all the datta-bhakta-s viewing this live telecast into rapturous ecstasy.

In a short "vote of thanks" very pleasingly Baba Ramdev said, "Unke upasthithi hi mangal dayak hai - kyon ki Ganapati unke nam me pehle hi hai. Aur wo swayam hi Sachchidanand hain." He added, "ab to Patanjali Yog Vidya Peeth and SGS Ashram alag alag nahin hain.. hum sab ek hogaye hain." He expressed the desire that Swamijee conducts this program many more times in PYVP.

The only regret of the TV audience is that the advertisements were rather cruel interruptions in an otherwise great session of Swamijee's nada chikitsa.

Jaya Guru Datta.

Anjaneya AshTOttara Sata nAma Stotram

ఓం ఆంజనేయాయ నమః
ఓం మహావీరాయ నమః
ఓం హనుమతే నమః
ఓం మారుతాత్మజాయ నమః
ఓం తత్వఙ్ఞానప్రదాయ నమః
ఓం సీతదేవీముద్రాప్రదాయకాయ నమః
ఓం అశోకవనికాఛ్ఛేత్రే నమః
ఓం సర్వమాయావిభంజనాయ నమః
ఓం సర్వబంధవిమోక్త్రే నమః
ఓం రక్షోవిధ్వంసకారకాయ నమః
ఓం పరవిద్యాపరీహారాయ నమః
ఓం పరశౌర్యవినాశనాయ నమః
ఓం పరమంత్రనిరాకర్త్రే నమః
ఓం పరయంత్రప్రభేదకాయ నమః
ఓం సర్వగ్రహవినాశినే నమః
ఓం భీమసేనసహాయకృతే నమః
ఓం సర్వదుఃఖహరాయ నమః
ఓం సర్వలోకచారిణ్యే నమః
ఓం మనోజవాయ నమః
ఓం పారిజాత ద్రుమూలస్థాయ నమః
ఓం సర్వమంత్రస్వరూపిణే నమః
ఓం సర్వతంత్రస్వరూపిణే నమః
ఓం సర్వయంత్రాత్మకాయ నమః
ఓం కపీశ్వరాయ నమః
ఓం మహాకాయాయ నమః
ఓం సర్వరోగహరాయ నమః
ఓం ప్రభవే నమః
ఓం బలసిద్ధికరాయ నమః
ఓం సర్వవిద్యాసంపత్ప్రదాయకాయ నమః
ఓం కపిసేనానాయకాయ నమః
ఓం భవిష్యచ్చతురాననాయ నమః
ఓం కుమారబ్రహ్మచారిణే నమః
ఓం రత్నకుండలదీప్తిమతే నమః
ఓం చంచలద్వాలసన్నద్ధలంబమాన శిఖోజ్వలాయ నమః
ఓం గంధర్వ విద్యా తత్వఙ్ఞాయ నమః
ఓం మహబల-పరాక్రమాయ నమః
ఓం కారా-గృహ-విమోక్త్రే నమః
ఓం శృంఖలా-బంధమోచకాయ నమః
ఓం సాగరోత్తారకాయ నమః
ఓం ప్రాఙ్ఞాయ నమః
ఓం రామ-దూతాయ నమః
ఓం ప్రతాపవతే నమః
ఓం వానరాయ నమః
ఓం కేసరీ-సుతాయ నమః
ఓం సీతా శోక నివారణాయ నమః
ఓం అంజనా-గర్భ-సంభూతాయ నమః
ఓం బాలార్క-సదృశాననాయ నమః
ఓం విభీషణ-ప్రియకరాయ నమః
ఓం దశగ్రీవ-కులాంతకాయ నమః
ఓం లక్ష్మణ-ప్రాణదాతాయ నమః
ఓం వజ్ర కాయాయ నమః
ఓం మహాద్యుతయే నమః
ఓం చిరంజీవినే నమః
ఓం రామభక్తాయ నమః
ఓం దైత్య-కార్య-విఘాతకాయ నమః
ఓం అక్షహంత్రే నమః
ఓం కాంచనాభయ నమః
ఓం పంచ-వక్త్రాయ నమః
ఓం మహాతపాయ నమః
ఓం లంఖినీభంజనాయ నమః
ఓం శ్రీమతే నమః
ఓం సింహికాప్రాణభంజనాయ నమః
ఓం గంధమాదన-శైలస్థాయ నమః
ఓం లంకా-పురవిదాహకాయ నమః
ఓం సుగ్రీవ-సచి-వాయ నమః
ఓం ఢీరాయ నమః
ఓం శూరయ నమః
ఓం దైత్యకులంతకాయ నమః
ఓం సురార్చితాయ నమః
ఓం మహాతేజాయ నమః
ఓం రామ-చుడా-మణిప్రదాయ నమః
ఓం కామ-రుపాయ నమః
ఓం పింగళాక్షయ నమః
ఓం వార్ధి-మైనాక-పూజితాయ నమః
ఓం కబళీకృతమార్తాండ-మండలాయ నమః
ఓం విజితేంద్రియాయ నమః
ఓం రామసుగ్రీవసంధాత్రే నమః
ఓం మహారావనమర్దనాయ నమః
ఓం స్ఫటికాభాయ నమః
ఓం వాగధీశాయ నమః
ఓం నవవ్య-కృతి-పండితాయ నమః
ఓం చతుర్బాహవే నమః
ఓం దీన-బంధవే నమః
ఓం మహాత్మాయ నమః
ఓం భక్త-వత్సలాయ నమః
ఓం సంజీవన నగాహర్త్రే నమః
ఓం శుచయే నమః
ఓం వాగ్మినే నమః
ఓం దృఢవ్రతాయ నమః
ఓం కాలనేమి-ప్రమధ-నాయ నమః
ఓం హరి-మర్కట-మర్కటాయ నమః
ఓం దాంతాయ నమః
ఓం శాంతాయ నమః
ఓం ప్రసన్నాత్మనే నమః
ఓం శతకంఠ-మదాపహృతే నమః
ఓం యోగినే నమః
ఓం రామకధాలోలాయ నమః
ఓం సీతాన్వేషణ-పండితాయ నమః
ఓం వజ్ర-దంస్ట్రాయ నమః
ఓం వజ్రనఖాయ నమః
ఓం రుద్ర-వీర్య-సముద్భవాయ నమః
ఓం ఇంద్రజిత్ ప్రహితామోఘ బ్రమ్హాస్త్ర వినివారకాయ నమః
ఓం పార్ధ-ధ్వజాగ్ర-సంవాసినే నమః
ఓం శర-పంజర-భేధకాయ నమః
ఓం దశబాహవే నమః
ఓం లోకపూజ్యాయ నమః
ఓం జాంబవత్ప్రీతివర్ధనాయ నమః
ఓం సీతా-సమేత స్రీరామపాద సేవా దురంధరాయ నమః

The shoe newsmaker

Suddenly a journalist by name Jarnail Singh hurled a shoe at home minister Chidambaram and himself into news.
He asked a question about the injustice Congress party had been meting out to the Sikh community (with reference to Indira Gandhi assassination and the massacre following it.)

Despite the involvement of the shoe, it was a real clean incident.

The recipient is the current Mr. Clean of Congress party - P Chidambaram. He proved again that the characteristic charming, silencing smile he always wears on his face originates from his heart. He didn't express much shock or start on the unwelcome surprise gift of a shoe. He remained composed. He smoothly told the security people, "take him away."

Jarnail Singh was left by the police after he confessed his mistake. He also expressed regret for becoming emotional and wished no other journalist copies him.

Akali Dal announced Rs. 2L as a reward to Jarnail Singh. Let's wait and see how he will receive this.

Meanwhile Lalu talking nonsense about Varun Gandhi, Rabri Devi mouthing something against Nitish Kumar, Arjun Singh weeping that his daughter didn't get election ticket etc. have been going on as usual.. the odd, bad and ugly side of Indian politics.

Odd, bad and ugly

These are the words that are striking to me when I think of the state of Indian politics.

Garden rich

The audumbara sapling brought from Mysore is doing well. The day before we transferred it to the new pot, it was 'broken' by monkeys. The 'trunk' and roots were fine but the that was bent had all the leaves. Eventually all those leaves wilted and I had to cut that portion off.. I was not sure if it would come back, but wanted to try.. few days later, Lord Datta smiled!! "Dattatreyam Krishnam Haritam.." New leaves sprouted gradually the plant grew. Now it looks very promising.

Brought a new two-headed (branched) audumbaram from Vijayawada. The plant has undergone transportation shock and has wilted.. all the resplendence is gone, though greenery is still to be seen at most 'nodes.' Only one leaf is remaining now. I am hoping against hope that it too jumps back to life and the Adi Guru showers His kRpa from it also.

I want to make at least one of them into a Bonsai.

The other day, I got a dream.. I saw an Audumbara and another tree.. they were so close to each other, almost intertwined. The other tree's leaves looked like those of brahma-medi in size but in shape and texture they were more like the normal audumbaram. It had white flowers and the tree had a very divine look. Something or someone was telling me that it was indeed audumbara and I chanted digambara-digambara seeing it.. The tree in the dream and the dream itself was fleeting. It was one of the shortest dreams. I want to get this tree also.

Having seen for short duration about "Maddi chettu"/"Arjuna vRksham"/Noni-tree on the TV, I searched for it in the internet. The looks (especially leaves and flowers) matched with that of the 'brahma-medi' sized "audumbara" I saw in the dream.

I would love to adorn the garden with a kadambam also. When will Kadamba Kusuma Priya shower Her blessings for these endeavors??

I am also ambitious of getting monkey-bread tree.. within the next ten years.

Dreams...

I was planning to go to Hamsaladeevi for Maha Siva Ratri.

But the night before I was to leave, I got a dream.. In the dream:
I was starting on a journey and was on a road. The weather was cloudy, especially in the direction I was heading towards, the sky was overcast with dark clouds.. almost as if it is raining heavily there. Suddenly a gale started and I heard from somewhere that thunderbolts are likely. Seconds later, a thunder bolt struck.. There were furious sparks from electric transformers; wires got burnt and were cut.. the cut wire ends fell on the road and looked menacing.
Amidst all this, I was somehow safe. I stopped my journey in the dream.

I could not go to Hamsaladeevi for Maha Siva Ratri.. though I was planning to go till the 'last moment,' situation so came that I had to drop the plans. The program went very grandly, as my brother told. Abhishekams, puja, homam, samudra snanam..

Pittala dora

పిట్టల దొర (piTTala dora) is a Telugu phrase, which stands for a hunter-like clown. This guy has none of the characteristics or antecedents of a hunter except the dress he wears and the gun he wields. The dress is full with the cowboy hat. The gun sometimes is a wooden dummy. Even if it were a real gun, it is so elementary that at the most he can "hunt" dead birds with it. piTTala means, 'of birds.' dora means, 'the respected man.' dora is used to describe the British officers of India's colonial past. The phrase piTTala dora is a mockery of the British officers but actually represents the poverty and travails of the subjects of those officers. May be, it actually mocks the then British officers and their tall claims.

Well, the dora also doesn't claim any hunting accolades. Only, he claims much bigger achievements. His language is very funny and the experiences he relates are highly lofty, thereby evoking mirth, laughter and hilarity among the onlookers. After a few minutes of such a "show" he extends either a begging bag or his hat into which the householders drop their alms. The dora moves on to the next household while the giggling children follow.

An example of a typical pittala-dora's claim: "Just as I finished breakfast with the prime minister of Japan I was called by Queen of Great Briton. I told her to call later but she persisted. She was not too OK with Obama's appointment as the President of the US and wanted to discuss the matter with me. I told why not with my deputy, the PM of UK instead.. though he may be much shorter in maturity than I in such international matters. Well.. I heeded to her and reached London for lunch. Called on Bush and Obama and suggested that both of them gave way for Arnold the guvnor of Calif. I left them to discuss the matter and returned home as it is Sankranti here." The content, tempo and intonation are usually much funnier than this. And then he extends the ragged begging bag or his tattered hat.

In Andhra Pradesh, it is common to call people of too small stature claiming too big things as pittala-dora-s. People who show-off too much are also called pittala-dora.

The last I saw a pittala dora was last year when I was in Machilipatnam for Sankranti. In bigger cities we don't see such 'native' Sankranti features. There was a movie in Telugu about the lives of pittala-dora's . Ali (the comedian) played the lead role as a pittala-dora and PL Narayana as his father (also a pittala-dora.) Both did a great job though I am not sure if the film was a great commercial success.

Well.. this year, I could not go to my in-laws house for Sankranti. But, I didn't miss many of the festivities, pittala-dora for one.

No.. I didn't see a pittala-dora on Bangalore streets. I read a news report about one.

Dr. Rajasekhar, the "hero" of some movies in Telugu has created a flutter some days before Chiranjeevi announced his political entry. He uttered something like Chiranjeevi doesn't have political experience. And he was followed by angry fans of the mega-star all the way from somewhere in coastal Andhra Pradesh to his home in Hyderabad. Chiranjeevi himself visited Dr. Rajasekhar's house (while the Dr. and his wife were away at a police station to complain about the attacking mega-fans) and silenced many people observing the fiasco.

When the Dr. said that he will enter politics if people wished, many including me brushed it away. Later, he again said that he will contest against Chiranjeevi if the "party" insisted. (He joined the Congress Party some time after the 'fan-following' incident.) More recently - just days before Sankranti - he said that defeating Chiranjeevi was his sole aim.

The mega-star fans and people like me are just watching the fun.

Not businessman like

After building an enterprise - Satyam Computer Services Limited - as an empire, Ramalinga Raju gave in to something wrong.. and we know what happened. A great man, a silent superstar who created a hundred thousand careers* has had to sleep nearly on the floor, eat rationed food. The man who led countless computer experts had to count the bars.

* On my first day in my first job - as Entry Level Trainee Program (ELTP) associate** - in Satyam more than ten years ago, the then HR chief announced, "we are not giving jobs here.. whoever came here for a job can leave." He stunned the assembled 100+ baccalaureates for a few seconds and told, "whoever came for a career can stay back." By the day the world received the Satyam shock, Satyam strength is close 50000. Together with many supporting staff and people who left the organization after being associated for some time, the number of careers touched by Satyam can cross 1 lakh.

** Satyam doesn't address its employees as 'employees.' They are "associates." One meaning of the very symbol of the company is, "together we grow/succeed." And the present logo also stresses 'association' and 'success.'

Before being businessmen and career-men, we are men.. human beings. Association and commaraderie are part of human nature. The reactions people give in certain situations are very indicative of their nature.

As soon as the crisis news broke out, many Satyam's alliance companies and customers sent notes of concern and support. Contrastingly, a competitor company's super-chief - one of the most respected Indian businessmen associated with one of the most respected Indian IT companies - immediately distanced himself, however. His company immediately announced that they will not receive any Satyamites seeking jobs. In normal days, they have no such laws.

Of course, barring some frightened people most of the Satyamites decided to "stand united" and stay with the company in these trying times. If the business demands, the company may extend a parting handshake (private sector handshakes are not 'golden,' by the way; they are 'pink' if it comes to that) to the same loyalists, but that's a different matter.. in business, all is fair.

But, such a reaction coming from one of the most inspiring Indian IT businessmen is not quite businessman-like. People so much admired this short man of tall stature that one wondered whether Satyam is really a tainted company. Later one wished that this man didn't utter what was attributed to him. But just like many other wishes people made with respect to (pun intended) Raju, this also was not fulfilled. Today he gave a clarification which only smacks of hypocrisy.

No, I don't mean that good or bad, Raju should be supported. A responsible person could have termed his reaction much better than this.. while stressing that law should be strictly imposed on the wrong doer, he could have felt and expressed concern at the sorry turn of events.

Anyway, Satyameva Jayate.

Still a hero

Ramalinga Raju has been a great entrepreneur.

While the truth about the Dec-08 to Jan-09 melodrama is still unfolding, one should not miss the truth about his enterprise, entrepreneurship, pioneering and towering achievements.
At least for a considerable amount of time, he had been a bright star in corporate India's firmament.

Long live the fire with which he kindled a glowing chapter in India's business world in general and Indian IT industry in particular..

One of the few companies and one of the few entrepreneurs that Andhra Pradesh and Telugu people had been very proud of, have got permanently tainted, unfortunately.

The way Mr. Raju allegedly mishandled it all will remain as a huge case study - as sadly in business education as in criminal law.

Somehow, Andhra Pradesh itself seems to be a land of such ill-fated entrepreneurs and enterprises. Dharma Teja's Jayanti Shipping Company of 1960s, NT Rama Rao (the legend of cinema turned politician) of 1980s, and Ramalinga Raju and Satyam of 1990s-2000s are all stories of self-makers-and-destroyers.

They still remain as heroes and legends.

Posts to come

Trip to Alampuram (24-Nov-08)
Trip to Kasapuram (26-Nov-08)

Dhyana/Mangala Slokam in Malavikagnimitram

ఏకైశ్వర్యే స్థితోపి ప్రనత బహుఫలే యః స్వయం కృత్తివాసాః
కాంతా సమ్మిశ్రదేహోప్యవిషయ మనసాం యః పరస్తాద్యతీనాం |
అష్టాభిర్యస్య కృత్స్నం జగదపి తనుభిర్బిభ్రతో నాభిమానః |
సన్మార్గాలోకనాయ వ్యపనయతు స న/వ స్తామసీం వృత్తిమీశః ||

Teach us, Oh Krishna!!

धर्मदॅव जगन्नाथ सत्यदॅव जनार्दन |

मामुद्धर शृतॅर्बोधॅ सन्मार्गमवलॉकय ||

Dasara

बाले त्वमन्नपूर्णासि मीनाक्षी सुन्दरी सती |
गायत्री छन्दसां मातः ललिता त्रिपुराम्बिके ||
ऐश्वर्यदा महालक्ष्मी विद्यादात्री सरस्वती |
आर्तानां साधकानाम्च दुर्गे दुर्गति नाशिनी ||
शिवागात्री हृदिस्था मे अविद्या महिषं हर |
राजराजेश्वरीख्यता सच्चिदानन्द रूपिणी ||
नवरात्रीशु संपूज्या दशम्यां विजयप्रदा |
अनन्त कृपया मातुः त्राहि मां शरणागतम् ||

Deepavali

రామేణాభిమతం మోక్షం కృష్ణేన నరక చ్యుతిః |
గోవింద స్మర ణాత్ప్రాప్తాః శ్రియో దీపావళీ రివ ||

Pray Sri Rama and be sure of Moksha. Pray Sri Krishna - he had eliminated naraka (pun - naraka=hell and naraka=the demon narakasura.) Chanting the Lord's name "Govinda" will ensure good tidings in life, just like the series of lights - Deepavali.

Posts to come..

I have to post my travelogues and experiences of my recent (?) trips:
Kukke Subrahmanya and Dharmasthala - August 9-10, 2008.
Mysore (Mahati Aksharabhyasam) - August 20, 2008
Thrissur - Valapad - August 30, 2008.
Guuvayur - August 31, 2008.
Athirapally Waterfalls - August 31, 2008.
Alwaye - September 01, 2008.
Kalady - September 01, 2008.
Cochin - September 01-02, 2008.
Tiruvannamalai - September 14-2008.

Muskura ke jiyo

Yes, I dropped a tear on hearing the news that Mahendra Kapur passed away.

I have a special place for him though he was as much/good a Rafi clone as Mano is of SP Balu. Special place, because the first Hindi song I learned was his. "Yye... neele gagan ke tale.. dharti pe pyar pale.." from Hamraz. Another solo from the same film also, I have learned. I have sung both the songs couple of times during my 11th and 12th classes.

"Na muh chupake jiyo
Aur na sar jhukake jiyo
Ghumon ka daur bhi aye to
Muskura ke jiyo"
is a great song from the same movie.

His face was always as if he was smiling; at times as if frowning.

By the way, I didn't study Intermediate.. it is one more peculiarity of my life. While most of my contemporaries went to school, studied state syllabus and after 10th class went to college for Intermediate.. I didn't go to school, passed 10th in state syllabus and joined class XI in CBSE syllabus. The school was a little cosmopolitan of those times.. my class had people from Kerala though Kashmir. It was a complete change of ambience.. from being a veda-student to being a student in a public school.

It was "school", so one prayed in the morning 'assembly', wore uniform, and had extra curricular classes every week. I had to learn and sing songs among other things and Mahendra Kapur entered my life through an audio cassette (of the songs of the film Humraaz.)

First Kerala trip

My first visit to Kerala was in December 1999. I went to Cochin to write TOEFL. My score was 543.

I boarded the Kanyakumari Express at Bangalore City Railway Station one night with an RAC ticket. Sometime during the night I got a berth to sleep on. Many people in the train were talking loud Malayalam, feeling all at home in the train that leads to their land. Initially, so many people talking Malayalam sounded a little cacophonous. After some time, I found that there is a sweetness in the language and the "wavy" intonation (of may be dialect of some particular region within Kerala) of Malayalam was quite sonorous. Harsh ('parusha') sounds were almost never heard in the language ; it always sounds very light, crispy and easy flowing.. I felt all this, though I didn't understand even a single word. I learnt my first Malayalam word only later in the day: "Vellam" means water. (Of course, I already knew that 'Kera' means coconut and Kerala means, "land of coconuts.")

As soon as I got hold of a berth somewhere after Hosur, I slept off.. I woke up early in the morning to the high-pitched voices of 'coffee-tea' sellers in Coimbatore railway station. As soon as the train pulled out, I slept again. Palakkad passed without my knowledge and I saw Trichur slip away, half awake.

When I opened my eyes finally.. what I saw outside remains etched in my memory forever. My first ever look at Kerala. The greenest landscape full of coconut trees and paddy fields, a river (Chalakudy?) flowing alongside the railway line, light mist over the fields, green hills and mountains (looking dark blue), some of them being kissed by clouds at a not-far-off distance... I felt the train had transported me from Bangalore to a dreamland. Soon, the towns of Angamali, Alwaye passed and I was told by a smiling Keralite (which Keralite is not friendly, cheerful and smiling, by the way?) that my destination Ernakulam is nearing. Of course, being a travel enthusiast I already knew this as I had done homework on routes and soon after the train passed Alwaye I started preparing to get down at Ernakulam North (Town) station. As Ernakulam-Cochin is the largest city of Kerala one could see the looks, smells and sounds of a typical Indian suburb already. Also, even back in 1999 one could see the 'real-estate' buzz in the surroundings which are close to Cochin International airport.

After reaching Ernakulam, I took a hotel room and in the afternoon headed for the TOEFL exam center (Sacred Heart College, Thevara.) Next day early in the morning I went to Kalady, then to Fort Cochin and later to Guruvayur and headed back to Bangalore on the third day.

The short and lonely trip made me a fan of Kerala for my whole lifetime. My second ever trip happened more than 9 years after the first, and after more than 4 years of 'planning and postponing.' This time it was much more wholesome and has been the most memorable trip I ever undertook.

Our hosts Rajan U family in Valapad (near Triprayar, Thrissur district) made it an unforgettable stay with their unending hearty hospitality. It was their love and caring that made us feel at home even though both our families understood very few words in what each other spoke. The fresh clean air, green surroundings of the vast household (with its beautiful blooming flower orchards, countless areca, coconut, mango and other trees and spice creepers), sounds of nothing but wind, birds and rustle of trees, mellifluous music, ayurvedic water, delicious and sumptuous food.. one never felt like returning from there.

I have to dedicate many subsequent posts describing every part of this trip in detail to pay homage to the loveliest land on earth with God's own greenery, God's own people, God's own food, God's own backwaters, God's own beaches, God's own cities, God's own towns and God's own villages.

Coffee House

Once during a walk in MG Road, I saw old low-rise buildings co-existing with the new high-rise multiplex-multi-complex-multi-storied-glass-facaded buildings. Old lamp posts and old trees remnants of past. I just wondered that even if so many changes come the core beauty of MG Road would not change.. nobody, for example, would afford to play with the boulevard abutting Kariappa Park and the parade ground.
Within a few years after that evening Bangalore Metro came.. the boulevard was razed. Trees of the yore and lamp-posts of colonial past were bulldozed. We have to put up with the awkwardness of the under-construction-elevated platform of the metro, for don't-know-how-many-more-years.

Meanwhile, on the other side, the change has been continuing. More glass-facades are appearing. Some old shopping complexes have disappeared and some are on the way. Ever since I saw in the newspaper of the boulevard's disappearance I have been avoiding MG Road like I would helplessly avoid a cursed distant relative.

The other day, I somehow dared.. As usually I parked my bike some miles away from where I was headed. While walking, I saw that an old landmark - the GG Welling photo-studio and photography equipment shop is intact. Many other old establishments close to it had gone. As I walked further, I passed by new-age coffee bars filled with chit-chatting youngsters. On MG Road and Brigade Road and in all those malls one finds so many of these fancy and funky youngsters so many at a time. I walked further.

Earlier, as I read in newspaper that old establishments are disappearing - Plaza, for example - I feared that my favorite destination here would also have gone, and thats one reason I avoided MG Roard after Metro work started. But this day as I forced myself there and looked apprehensively.. I was quite happy to note that it was intact.

India Coffee House.
First time I visited it was on December 26, 1996. I was on a college tour and while friends went for lunch in a nearby restaurant, I discovered this and went in for a coffee. Since then, there was never a time that I went to MG Road but not stopped by in Coffee House for a cuppa. All these years, the coffee is same.. in color, taste, quantity.. the servers are the same.. and I guess the cups are also same. Of course, my association with coffee house is only 12 years. I remember reading about coffee-house customers doing their 50th year non-stop. And that there is some coffee-house-customer association in Kokata.

Except for the price of coffee (first time I tasted, it was less than Rs.5/- per cup) there is absolutely no change in the whole experience. You can find people of all ages.. individuals, pairs and small groups talking, discussing, bantering, quarrelling, settling businesses... a lot can happen over a cup of coffee. Some framed pictures lauding the taste and greatness of Indian coffee are mounted on the walls.. even they are the same. On the photograph of Mahatma Gandhi there is a vermillion mark on his forehead.. it always looked as if it was put freshly on that day. Sitting in the coffee house, sipping the loveliest coffee, looking at the people inside the restaurant and the curios ones (you were and will be one of them) outside is a refreshing experience one should not miss.

The price per cup of coffee is Rs. 8/- now.. and as usually when you hand a Rs. 10 note, the server never bothers you with the change. He keeps it with himself and thanks you for the 'tip.'

I hope, when the metro rail work is completed, and it keeps its promise of taking up most load of the roads and the boulevard (or something equally enchanting) is re-developed, one again relives the real Bangalore experience in the same Coffee House serving the same refreshing and invigorating cups of steaming filter coffee.

NTR, the superman

I just finished watching first half an hour of NTR's ace movie Kondaveeti Simham (on the TV), for the 100+th time. Of course, only once (when I was a kid) did I watch the movie in full.

NTR is a great actor.. In most movies that he acted, the characters' weight is magnified because he plays the role. And most of his action was not 'natural.' It was a highly amplified portrayal of emotions, drama, action and pathos.. it is believed that he (like his Tamil counterparts MGR and Sivaji Ganesan) over-acted to get the 'maximum effect.' And yes, the audience's hearts were won. Not only a great actor he was a great man in his own right.. an inimitable icon.

I was an 8 year old boy when I first saw him in person.. He was CM of AP then, and was at that time donning the Swami Vivekananda attire.

After he entered politics, he assumed various getups before settling with the last known. For some initial days he used to wear khaki trousers & shirt. Then he took up white safari suite. And then the more Telugu attire of panche+shirt+kanduva. Then the orange (sanyasi) robes. It was believed that he lived like a sanyasi, though many would say that he only acted like one and in his home he still gulped chicken fried in pure butter (quite unbecoming of a sanyasi). This dress changed to that of Swami Vivekananda, for which it seems he wrapped an 18 feet cloth around his head. It was a veda-sabha at Hyderabad and he came as the chief guest. The organizers got all the pandits honored by him and in that sabha I sat very close to him. He spoke on that occasion but I remember nothing of it.
When it came to honoring me, he handed over the gifts, and I didn't know how to react. He said, "teesuko babu.." ("take it, boy"). I took, saying "thank you." Probably I was the only one in that sabha to have said this. Everyone laughed including him and he tapped on my cheek and proceeded.

It was an open secret that he hated brahmins. One can see it even in some of his on-screen performances. Probably for this reason our elders were not for his political party. I didn't like this, and wanted to vote for him if I ever got the chance.. I never got it.

Another occasion I saw him was when he inaugurated the famous temple of Jubilee Hills. How was Jubilee Hills at that time! It was a vast 'layout' with mostly empty plots and newly laid tar-roads. Here a movie mogul's house, there a minister's house.. rocks in between. One could see the Hyderabad Airport from there . The runway, aircraft landing and taking off ... Now, not even a house in the next street is visible, or even the next street itself is out of visible range.

Many years later, in fact within the same year that NTR passed away, a friend of mine visited NTR on behalf of his college. He spoke of NTR's warm reception and the attention he paid to what to him was a small thing - a representation from an engineering college. My friend was most impressed by the powerful personality of the giant. The personality reflected in the sharpness and sheer power/magnetism/glow/energy in NTR's eyes.

Wasn't he already too popular when he entered politics? Why did he still don so many attires to attract public attention and awe? All his various attires, the 'gimmicks' as detractors who could not even trace his glorious path let alone catching up would term, were one expression of the great man's energy. In fact, in popularity, I strongly believe that NTR far surpassed MGR and it is hard to believe that any other person can come close to him in the foreseeable time frame.

Long live the NTR, the pride of Telugu people.