What to do? - IV

CONTINUED FROM III

 By now the place is littered and a handicapped person sweeps the floor and looks for alms. This is a common sight in long distance trains. Again the evening turns buzzy and someone from a nearer bay appears and seeks to know who are allotted the 2 lower berths requesting for exchanges on the plea of “staying together as a family” or inability to climb up due to age factor with the sane advice “let your luggage be here we will look after”. Some oblige and some refuse on the ground of their being more sick or old and counter advice that you should have taken care of things while booking the tickets. The person murmurs “our uncle suggested we can adjust while traveling”. The non-yielder asks “where is the uncle?” and the reply comes ‘he is not traveling’. Dissatisfied of having lost an occasion for a quarrel the non-yielder tells ‘uncles and aunts have nothing else except untenable advice’. The seeker of berth is disturbed and asks “why do you drag our aunt here?” The non-yielder issues a dynamic warning “unless you move off now I do not know what will happen”. With no one coming to his rescue, the failed mission drives the man off to his place.

The non-yielder advices his fellow travelers not to oblige any one and narrates how he lost his baggage on the way to Tirupathi for having obliged a fellow earlier. One person who is in no position to oblige [his is the upper berth] tells that if we oblige now, some one would help us later. Taking it as an oblique reference to him the non-yielder shouts in a loud voice, if you are keen you oblige, but do not suggest morals. This shout silences every one for the next half an hour or so. Mr. MEENACHI wriggles to life and opens his eyes in search of water can and gulps a litre of water in one go. As he gets up, he realizes that his dhothi has unfastened itself and he quickly tightens it taut around, dividing the belly into two hemispheres. Though unwieldy, he is absolutely innocuous. By now it is time for food and so silence too. As night progresses, local conversations relating to job positions and mutual exchange of addresses, phone numbers happen. People retire at the berths allotted. Mr. Meenachi eats very little and retires on the floor leaving his berth vacant, silently displaying a respectability of character with just no utterance whatsoever. To continue

WHAT TO DO -III

CONTINUATION FROM II

ON MOST SUCH OCCASIONS --He right away leans on   to the neighbour unmindful of gender. If the neighbour happens to be of the opposite gender, a lesson is taught by the neighbour by dislodging self and making the man fall violently. Before he gathers himself, he has a bulge near his temple area. Hiding the ignominy, our man with a yawn floats a question “has Villupuram come?” The question is not addressed to any one and he is not particular of any answer either. No one replies. The few children around enjoy the comic sequence and whisper something into the parent. The parent cautions the child by a frightening jetting of the eyeball suggesting ‘don’t be stupid’. Sleep is an infective phenomenon and many droop like dried leaves. Now, one person appears with a bunch of printed letters and places one each on the lap of all and moves off. The man looks speech- impaired on all such occasions. The pamphlet left by him tries narrating the cozy background of the man and how he got orphaned by a natural disaster like Tsunami. The narrative is printed on the name of some leading personality appealing for liberal help. Why such personalities do not take steps to have him rehabilitated? The man is speechless to enlighten us on this. Obviously, these are some techniques of making a livelihood through a factor of sympathy. The man reappears and tries to ‘collect’ from everyone both the pamphlet and some dole. The service rendered by the pamphlet is to wake us up from the day time nap. A new ambience sets in with “no holds barred” attitude discussing about dole seekers. Ironically those who doled out something keep off the deliberations and those who got out of the forenoon nap or sleep dwell at length on the ineffective railway system in containing such intrusions. Once again the ticket examiner comes looking for any new traveler. None talks to him about the intruders.

By now people seem to assume familiarity and different topics get discussed without any conclusion. Invariably, the items are political decadence, cinema, artistes and some important temples and the prowess of the presiding deities there of. It is time for noon meal and people find their own niches to “open” their food packets. Some look for the caterer’s supply. There is silence as mouths are otherwise engaged. Soon a change in the ambience is visible with exchanges of magazines and newspapers. In less than half an hour many coil up into afternoon sleep while some pretend to desist it as a bad habit and keep chewing or smoking to ‘avoid’ the sleep. They prefer worse to bad. 

To continue 

WHAT TO DO?- II

 CONTINUATION ...FROM  - I

In fact, I do not understand his English, though I am 1969 SSLC. In those days teachers would break our knuckles if we didn’t learn. But in College you will not beat the boys-no? Nothing helps like beating sir”. For once we are unable to concur or contradict. By now another on-looker, the third in the opposite row, has studied us and takes upon himself the role of a learned judge and proclaims, “Like what Kundrakkudi Adigalar said education should be changed, sir. Unfortunately, Indira Gandhi died unexpectedly; otherwise, that lady would have reformed education”. Suddenly sensing danger, our first acquaintance asks us, “Sir has Dindigul gone? See, we lost track of everything in our absorbing conversation. We never understand the loss of time while talking to educated people”. We are deeply confused as to whom he refers to as educated. Now he assigns us a serious responsibility. “Please look after my back [the reference is to his bag]. My friend is in S8[we are in S 1]   I will come back in 10 minutes”. He flips an ‘out of context’ question—“you need anything?” We nod in the negative. “Please wait, I will bring something” and our friend moves off leaving the place vacant and silent. Now springs up the ticket examiner asking for the occupant of the vacant seat, eager to fill it up. We try telling him that the person would come back after a while. “I will be in S-12; ask him to come there” says the TTE and vanishes. Thus pass the early 2+ hours of travel. Now, our lateral neighbour decides to eat and calls up “Meenachi, Meenachi”. The volume of noise gives the impression of his appealing to Goddess Meenakshi for food. From nowhere appears a stocky lady with a big vermilion [kumkum] on the centre of her forehead and quickly heaps over half-a dozen Idlies with the necessary additives before our neighbour. With a superb footwork, our neighbour effortlessly angles himself, hiding the idlies from public view. In a couple of minutes, the lady again downloads a few more idlies. Our neighbour quickly devours all of them and signals the end of it with a belch. Unlike the other intruders, our neighbour opens his mouth only for self-enrichment by eating. With him we are safe and free from any embarrassment like having to teach History and Science at college. But a different form of disturbance is in store for us a little later. Now, our first acquaintance comes back with a 10 year old boy and makes him sit near the window availing of the space tentatively open as the occupant has gone for a face wash. All seats are full. The deeply fermented idlies make our neighbour an embodiment of stoic silence, being possessed by sleep. The rocking train adds to the lullaby and in seconds our man hangs his head [not in any shame of course]. Soon the narrow seat and its open end towards the gangway make our man conscious of the fall-- imminent.  TO CONTINUE

WHAT TO DO?

 Quite often we witness a situation when this question looms large besides its being the most appropriate to portray our frame of mind. However, there are a few occasions when we raise this question as a prelude to suggesting a few remedial approaches to some problem or the other. Some funny situations come up in our life making the question relevant and spontaneous. Some such moments are: when we fail to enter sleep even after the day’s strenuous work; when after reaching a friend’s house in a remote locale we learn of his or her non-availability at home; when we undertake a journey of over 20 hours or so. The very thought is nagging when we have only the question and no specific answer there for. On the last of the occasions indicated [journey] our mind is not disturbed and it liberally runs amok hopping territories and quickly switching topics with no obligation of any kind. A number of imaginary conversations run in instant rapidity and in the process, a number of sequences unfold with an element of surrealism about them. Little does anyone else recognize our “thoughtful” experience except by our sudden peels of laughter despite our effort to hold them back. Such moments of “what to do” provide plenty of opportunities for character study. Obviously a train journey places before us a variety of characters that we cannot escape from. Rarely, we come across some intellects too. Invariably we find varying degrees of inexactitudes in expressions even in vernacular. Another common sight is irrelevance in narration. Like for instance when you say you are a teacher in a college, the new acquaintance would say “my brother is in the University”. Then you would ask “in which University?” The reply is “Madurai Teresa University”. Now we enjoy the inadequacy by saying “is it not Mother Teresa University”. “Yes sir, some such name”. We are emboldened. ‘You said your brother is there- didn’t you? But it is a women’s University’ [we put on a triumphant look].

The other man is undaunted. He says –“yes sir, he is a driver”. We ignore chances of so many avocations. Conditioned by his own congenital inadequacy the man almost declares “you teach Science and History” in the College, don’t you? We want to play truant with him saying “how did you conclude so”. Now he puts on triumphant looks and tells you, “Sir, you resemble my neighbour Mr. Namasivayam who teaches these subjects in the school. He also has a tilted tooth very much like yours. In History and Science he knows everything. All my sons are his students”. To escape from the story of the tilted tooth, we try diverting the subject asking “how many sons do you have?” I had 3 but now only 2 are with me. We slip into gloom and say “I am sorry”. The man replies, “don’t feel sorry; the third fellow is in Dubai.” We ask “What is he doing there?” “I don’t know. But he is well off. He is working for Sheikh Kalimullah and the Sheikh likes him for his English.[ To continue...]  Prof K. Raman

Do you know or remember - II

 Life then  .......

Among the items for men, only two things were known. These were the 7’O Clock blade and ERASMIC shaving soap in two forms- a stub and soap in a cup. Can we ever afford to expect durability from a   shaving soap? Erasmic cup / stub would last for months. Frugal customer- attitudes prompted blade manufacturers to design a blade honing device. It was a glass block with a shallow cavity of ground surface. The blade could be sharpened by placing in the cavity and rocking it to and fro applying the index finger across the length of the blade. It could prolong the life of the blade by 20-25% and people were never shy of these methodologies. Recycling and extending the utility of objects were shameless acts –so to say.  The long hollow fountain pen barrels [of unusable pens] were not discarded.  They would be “holders” for short stubs of pencils that can not be held even by the primary school child. Most things were recycled and the public garbage was limited in volume. Cosmetic items were bought by women with a sense of guilt. LUX was the major soap, with the same claim of being the favorite of actresses, only changing to the then “star”. Actors never figured in any sale promoting. Even tobacco products portrayed actresses but not with the item tucked between fingers. It went on unabated for quite some time. Facial beautification efforts largely depended on PONDS and REMY talcum powders. The dark complexioned used a cream – popular then as snow. It was “RAJA” snow, innocuously implicating the kings.      

Among the washing soaps SUN LIGHT was the only national brand. Others were restricted to small regions. RINSO was the first ever washing powder of the late 1950s.

Edible oils were not marketed on brand names. Exceptions were the two vanaspathi brands DALDA and TUSHAR. To my knowledge the earliest compact discs were  varieties of “APPALAM” liberally marketed.  In hotels there were 2 facilities, seating on floor and on dining tables. Serving food items on banana leaf was a must. The customers would directly settle their bills at the counter, reverently decorated by pictures of all known Gods.  A burly man would smilingly collect the money and refund the dues. Things have changed a lot in structure and even in food habits. In all towns and cities buses were supplemented by carts either drawn by ox or horse. Later man-drawn rickshaws, Cycle rickshaws, Auto rickshaws have dominated in that order. All the time taxis have coexisted. A new dimension is the share-auto. Life has become fast. None knows the reason, but everyone is busy.

DO YOU KNOW OR REMEMBER? [I]

 

A range of items has been used as subject matter for reading /discussion by me in the recent past. During the course of my conversation with some elder persons, quite a few things engaged our time. As is normally the case, these are things of the past and have held their places of pride with many households. Some of them have “lived” with their same old glory; some have undergone name change , some had changes in their market fortunes, some witnessed legal battles, almost all of them had their clientele intact until they chose to wind up on their own. 

As the day begins with dental care, let me start with those items. Times were when tooth pastes had to fight their way into the market, as tooth powders were more popular. Equal number of products from either category was popular, though the total number was far lower as compared to the present day. One interesting feature that comes to mind is manufacturers did not field both paste and powder. For instance the then leader of Toothpastes was FORHANS which never had a “Powder version”. It was a product of respected quality and retained its basic version “brown” till 1990or so where after, had to yield to market pressure for a paste that would liberally froth out while brushing. Thus came, FORHANS –BLUE. These products lived on their merit and had very little backup from media advertisements. Another tooth paste of late 40s was MACLEANS that had a market in many parts of the globe. Another was, KOLYNOS. This was an early product to claim “sparkle” of teeth. Then came,‘COLGATE’ whose powder too was popular. Somewhere in the 1960s came the later dominant BINACA, It was rechristened CIBACA.  There has been a paste popular as NEEM and is still holding its domain. The early market was for “powders”. Some well known names coming to mind are KALIGHAT, NANJANGUD, GOPAL and PYORRHOEA.                            

Of these, the last has opted to spell PYOREA now-a-days. Yet another was FAROOKI from Hyderabad area. I am sure, there would have been much more, serving in distinct areas. Toothbrush brands were not this many. Brush users had the habit of using tongue cleaners; this habit seems to have dwindled.

~Prof. K. Raman