Celebrating the life called Maragatham — Part 2

A match made on earth, a partnership of a lifetime…

She married her athai’s son, Kesavan, in 1955. And her wedding was the talk of the town for years to come. Her wedding took place in their thotam house. Many little ones in the family took a month’s leave from their school to attend the wedding. Radha Silk Emporium set up a small shop in the premises so that the best choice of sarees would be available not only for her but for everyone in the family. Caterers made sure to serve delicacies for all.

She and Kesavan were a perfect match. They had common interests but still were poles apart in their nature. They would operate like clockwork each day and they would always lookout for the other.

Their day would start with both of them getting up at early in the morning. He would take bath and start his prayers by 7. He had this habit of praying and chanting the slokas out loud. That would be the signal for the community — they would tell their kids ‘mama has started praying, have your bath and kick off your daily routine’. She would prepare food and they would eat early lunch by 9. There was no concept of breakfast for them. They would get on with their respective work, then have a session of coffee, and tiffin by around 4. He would visit a different temple each day. Evening chat session with neighbours on their thennai and then dinner.

Both of them were very particular about cleanliness and would go the extra mile in grooming themselves. Their everyday dressing would be elegant, a sight to behold for the entire Srirangam community. On occasions, it would be even more special.

She would go the extra mile to make sure everything was in place and on time for his daily routines. Everything would be in order for his visits to Mahendramangalam every Thursday. She knew how duty-bound he was and supported him in every way.

They contrasted each other in many ways — she made quite a few rules. One of them was that boys playing cricket in the street should not hit the balls that enter houses, there was no way she would give them back. But if he was sitting in the corridor, the boys would have hope of continuing their games. She was more upfront in putting her views across, he would be the kind who would reflect a little before saying it out. But both of them would have people’s best interests at heart each time.

Their fights were cute. Sometimes it would be about one of them misplacing something and they would accuse each other like five-year-olds. Other times, it would be about picking on how many snacks the other would eat. Initially, he was the one who saw more of the TV serials and she would tease him about his habit. Later, she joined him and they would together comment on characters and storyline.

He encouraged her to learn car driving early on, but she being a perfectionist gave up after a few initial mistakes. He would admire everything that she would do, her cooking and her shopping. Each time she came back with big bags, he would have his hands on his hips saying ‘Oh my God, have you bought the entire store’. But immediately, he would admire each of her choices.

They were very prudent in managing their finances, putting together fixed deposits, chit funds, and saving up for all occasions of life. Every April would see a new notebook to maintain records for the year.

They would love visiting the Cosmopolitan Club together, relishing various snacks . They even sang ‘Kurai ondrum illai’ together at Lion’s club. The paatashala was active then. If the boys attending the paatashala would learn their vedas and verses from the master, discipline is something they would learn from this couple.

They were always delighted to attend family functions. They would dress up and sit at the forefront in such gatherings, pay respects to elders in the family, banter with cousins, and pull up nieces/nephews. They would make sure to eat in the first round when food was served — their theory was that food is most fresh at that time and tables most clean. They were close with the extended family, 2nd and 3rd cousins. So much so that they performed the Kanyadaanam of Gita, one of their close cousins. They kept in touch with the large family regularly.

The celebration of his 60th birthday, or Sathabishekam was also a talk of the family. After a long time, the large extended family came together for the function being held in Bangalore. Being a perfectionist, both of them along with their siblings ensured each and every detail of the function was taken care of — with the able support of the siblings and spouses. This would be the last function that her mother would attend. This was followed by many of the next-generation weddings being held in the same city. Both of them participated very actively in all these weddings — right from selection of the bride/groom (At least an opinion :)), shopping, ensuring all arrangements are in order.

Both of them visited family in Chennai and Bangalore regularly. She would make or get kanchivaram idli, elai vadam, sweets like badam or chocolate burfi, and a whole lot more savory stuff. All this meant a whole lot of bags during the onward journey and at least a couple more on the return journey. Of course, the couple would bicker about this too.

Life was going well, but then change comes when you least expect it. The passing away of Kesavan was a rude shock to everyone, especially to her. One month he was up and about, and then his health deteriorated rapidly. This devastated her. When she was nearing 70, life challenged her. They had been each other’s pillar of support and suddenly he was no more. Left to him, he would have wanted a longer life with her, but fate had other plans. But personalities like her shine through adversities, irrespective of age. Their family was responsible for the livelihood of a community and his sudden death naturally brought fear and uncertainty in people’s minds. But she rose to the occasion here too. Despite being struck by enormous grief, she stood in front of the community like a Queen giving them all the assurances they were looking for. Slowly but surely she ran the trust and with Sridhar, her nephew, taking over — things started looking better.

She lived for 12 more years, continuing to be the strong woman she always was. The family celebrated her 80th birthday cherishing her life and thanking their stars to have her watching over them.

Now on the way back to Srirangam, she decided it was time — to reunite with him.