Thrisssur Pooram - the travelogue part 1

Thrissur Pooram :

Probably the most hyped festival of South India would be the Pooram of Thrissur, which takes place on the grounds of Vadakunnathan temple in Thrissur on Pooram day of every summer. I heard about the festival through Harry who hails from that place. I forgot at what occasion he told me, but I could imagine him speaking to me about the festival in his own peculiar tone and energy. For he has used that excitement in his voice to talk about his hometown. 

Our friends at HCL and our British Clients fondly call him as Harry not because its difficult for us to pronounce Harikrishnan Mullakal Aravindababu but for the particular accent he puts up when he speaks English. Keep speaking to him in English and you will be convinced that he is someone from Yorkshire who is ready to die for Arsenal . So particular was his accent that it never ceases to go off your minds. 

It is with this accent that he must have told me about the pooram festival. I long forgot his reference to the festival until I managed to see the movie Charlie. [One of the few fictional characters other that Harry Potter whose life I would trade for mine]. 

I started learning about the festival through Internet after the movie and the desire to witness the same grew stronger. I was dying for a break from my usual work life during my birthday month last year and I decided to go on a trip of sorts to unknown cities. Ofcourse attending Pooram topped the list until I learned that I had missed it by couple of months. I had to reshuffle my list then.

My affinity towards the God's own country had grown multifold by then, thanks to the advertising of Harry and my crush who happens to live there. So after scrutinising through the places I had listed down, I finally settled for a trekking expedition on my birthday week that year (travelogue for which is still on hold ( I know it’s going to be a year but yes it’s still on hold)) It was then that I decided to attend Pooram the next year no matter what.

I was conscious enough to wait for the summer and ask Harry about the dates for Pooram. Before I could spell it out, harry himself offered to arrange stay for me if I was willing to attend. (willing, I was dying to attend ).

After confirming that this would be a solo trip too, I managed to start preparing for my trip (all my travel expeditions has been a solo one).

Pooram – the adventure :

Harry spoke to me a week later confirming the dates of the festival (25,26^th of April) and gave me guidelines on preparing itinerary for the trip. (although I sketched out the route map that I would be travelling by, I never did prepare anything seriously other than that).

My most expected trip started right after packing my bags. I dint have the tickets nor had I any idea of the number of buses that I will be changing on my route.

After Salem :

It was only after reaching Salem did I realise the amount of time I was running late by. Harry had asked me to be at his house on the evening of 24^th which would give me ample time to rest the night before I plunge into the Pooram crowd the next morning. My amateur plans were done according to his idea too. But I overestimated the quality of the state run buses in Tamil Nadu and the frequency of buses after 10 PM in the state of Kerala. Both proved detrimental to my plan, that was not there in the first place. I had expected a 10 hour journey on the whole but what turned out was a whooping 14 hour journey.

From my rough calculations I was expecting to reach Thrissur by 10 PM in the evening as I had started well before 9 am in the morning. But when I started I couldn’t find a direct bus to Coimbatore which would have made the whole travel a lot easier. Thrissur is a 3 hour ride from Coimbatore (CBE). I had to settle for a 6 -8 hour trip to Salem from where the buses to Coimbatore would be very frequent.

I did find a bus to CBE once I reached Salem but it seems that even the fastest bus in the shortest route would still take more than 3 hrs to reach CBE from Salem (a fact that I learned only then). So contrary to my calculations I reached CBE by the time I was expected to reach Thrissur.

Harry called again to check on me and he advised me to explain the delay to his brother who was waiting to pick me up from Thrissur had I reached there on time.

I calculated the said 3 hrs of travel time that was remaining and I explained Sandeep Chettan (Harrys brother) that it would be only after 12 that I would reach Thrissur. He then said something sweet. He said he was at the pooram grounds (probably enjoying the regursal of the festival that was scheduled for the next day) and it wouldn’t be a problem for him to pick me up by the time I reach there (which also means that I wouldn’t be disturbing him in sleep if I had to call him after I reach).

Again my calculations went wrong as there were no buses to Thrissur from CBE by then and I had to go to Palakkad to go to Thrissur. So from CBE – Thrissur became CBE – Palakkad – Thrissur. I dint think this would be a problem again as I knew somehow that both buses wouldn’t take more than 1.5 hours of travel time on road. Little did I know then that the problem was not with the travel time but with the time I had to wait for the particular buses to arrive at every bus station.

All the Kerala buses plying from CBE to Palakkad and Thrissur had gone long before I reached CBE and I had to wait for the last TNSTC bus that will not start until all the seats have filled up. I forgot the time it took for the seats to get filled but I knew I had had 3 chais ,2 coffees and 1 sukku coffee by then.

The situation was the same in Palakkad too where I had to wait for almost an hour for the KSRTC bus to start. (I had 3 chais by then, yes so do the math)

Although I have met Sandeep chettan once in Harry’s marriage it was difficult for me to identify the younger version of Harry in the bus stand in Thrissur. The poor soul had waited a long time for me. Before I hit the comfortable bed that was waiting for me at his place, I asked him the plans for the next day and decided to stick by it. But his reply came as a shocker as he said, “No matter what time you get up, Pooram will be there for you. Take rest.” From what I read in the internet, Pooram is bound to start from sunrise on the day of the main pooram and the celebrations are supposed to go on for the next couple of days.

After making sure that all my gadgets are charged up, I dozed off to sleep. Little did I know about the adventure that was awaiting me the next day.

The day started at 9 in the morning when I woke up. I realised the festive atmosphere at Harry’s home too and I wasted no time in getting ready. I joined the rest of the family for breakfast who were already drenched in the festive mood, thanks to the live relay of Pooram from the local TV channels. The Pooram grounds were barely 3 or 4 kilometres away from the house.

Me, Sandeep and Ishana formed a team of three and left for the grounds to witness the much awaited festival . Ettan warned me that RE could take us only half the distance and we were to walk with the crowd for some distance to reach the place. I told him that I was game for anything.

அருவி படமும் HOPE SONG தந்த ஆறுதலும் - 1

அருவி என்றொரு படம் திரைப்பட விழாக்களில் பெயர் வாங்கிய நல்ல திரைப்படம் என்றொரு பிம்பம் மட்டுமே என்னுள் இருந்தது, நீண்ட நாட்களாக. அதை தாண்டி இது ஒரு முக்கியமான படம் என்று எனக்கு சூளுரைத்தது ஒரு முகப்புத்தகப் பதிவே !!

இந்த ஆண்டு வெளியான இசை ஆல்பங்களில் தனித்து நின்ற அருவி யை எனை கேட்க வைத்ததும் ஒரு முகப்புத்தகப் பதிவே !!

படத்தில் உள்ள அனைத்து பாடல்களையும் கேட்டு மெய்சிலிர்த்து தான் போனேன். அதில் உள்ள வரிகளில் சில என் நெஞ்சை அடைத்தது.

என் மனதை தொட்டவை என அவ்வளவு எளிதாக கடந்து செல்லவியலாது. காரணம் அந்த வரிகளினால் எனக்குண்டான தாக்கங்கள் சொல்லி மாளாது.

அவைகளில் சில

“அடச்ச மனசு சிரிச்சு பேச

அடைக்கும் துயரம் அரண்டு மிரளும் “ என்ற வரிகளில் நான் அர்த்தம் தேடிக்கொண்டிருக்கையிலே

“மஞ்சள் நிலவே மயக்கும் மதியே

மயங்கி போகாதே”

என்ற வரியின் எதுகை அழகிலே மயங்கித்தான் போனேன்.

எவ்வளவு ஆழமான வரிகள் அவை. Hope song என்பது இப்பாடலின் பெயர். பெயருக்கு ஏற்றார் போல் நம்பிக்கை தருவதாய் இருக்கிறது.

எதாவது மனசு கஷ்டப்பட்டு அம்மாகிட்ட போனா, அடி விழுதோ இல்லையோ இரண்டு வார்த்தை ஆறுதலுன்ற பேருல வரும். அதுல ஒன்னு கண்டிப்பா ‘இதான் லைஃப் இதெல்லாம் தாண்டி தான் நீ வாழ்ந்து காட்டணும்’ னு சொல்லுவாங்க.

அதே வார்த்தைகளை “ இதுவே வாழ்க்கை,

வலியும் கூட அனுபவம் ” அவ்ளோ அழகான பின்னிசையோட பாடுறப்போ தான் என்னமோ செஞ்சது.

எவ்வளவு தான் அம்மா கிட்ட கர்வம் பாத்தாலும், எவ்வளவு தான் நொட்ட சொன்னாலும் அனுபவமிக்க பேச்சுக்கு பின்னால இருக்குற அர்த்தத்த கஷ்டபடுற நேரத்துல நமக்கு தர்ர ஆறுதல மறுக்கவோ மறக்கவோ முடியாது. இந்த ‘ hope song ’ கஷ்டபடுற மனசுக்கு தான் அவ்ளோ ஆறுதல். 

மத்த வரிகள் பத்தி சொல்லனும்னா மத்த பாட்டெல்லாம் கேட்டுருந்தா தான் புரியும். அப்படி கேட்டதுல நான் ‘அருவி’ பத்தி புரிஞ்சிக்கிட்டது என்னன்னா, அருவிங்குற சின்ன பொன்னு இயற்கை சூழல் உள்ள இடத்துல பிறந்துட்டு மனுஷங்க மனுஷங்களா இருக்குற இடத்துல வளர்ந்துட்டு நகர வாழ்க்கை வாழ வர்றா !! மனுஷங்க இயந்திரமா வாழ்ற ஒரு கட்டமைப்புக்குள்ள வரும்போது அவ சந்திக்குற பிரச்சனைய தான் அருவி கதை யா இருக்கும்னு யூகிச்சேன். இதுக்கு கம்ப சூத்திரம் லாம் படிக்கல, 'liberty song, baby song, party song' இதல்லாம் கேட்டு முடிச்சப்பவே இந்த பிம்பம் உண்டாயிருச்சு. 

.... தொடரும் Hope song ல உள்ள மத்த வரிகள் என்ன பாதிச்ச விதத்த பத்தி இன்னும் detail அ சொல்றேன் அடுத்த பதிவுல. 

நாளைக்கு படத்துக்கும் போறேன். படத்தோட பாடல்கள் எனக்குள்ள ஏற்படுத்துன தாக்கத்த வச்சு நானே அருவி க்கு கட்டமச்ச பிம்பம் நாளைக்கு எப்படி திரைல எப்படி இருக்குனு பாப்போம். படம் எப்படி இருந்தாலும், பாடல்கள் பத்தின பதிவு எல்லாம் டைரில இருக்கு, அத நாளைக்கு type பண்ணி பதிவிடுறேன், இதே திரில. 

The unfair competition and a brave heart.

Imagine a mango tree that has only 5 ripe mangoes hanging at its top most branch \. By the foot of the tree there as many as 10 people whose life time goal is to taste the fruit. THe competition so says that whoever is capable of climbing the top most branch can get hold of a fruit for themselves.

Fair competition would imply all the contestants be treated fairly and making sure that everybody gets the same kind of training before taking part in the competition. It is to be noted that all the 10 contestants are not from the same walks of life. Some are rich and some are poor. Some are orphaned while some are not.

Rakesh who is one among the 10 participants is an orphan and his family finds it very difficult to meet the ends. Grabbing a mango would mean that his family gets rid of poverty once and for all. He puts in all his efforts and makes use of his skill and education to climb the tree. He achieves what he wished for and is about to grab a fruit for himself along with four other skilled participants.

Trying to lay their hands on the fruit do they realise that the fruit is not real as it seemed. The organisers have shifted the location of the fruit from the branch in the mango tree to that of palm tree standing nearby.

All the contestants are thereby asked to fetch the fruit for themselves by climbing the palm tree again. Rakesh just like the other participants had complete knowledge about climbing a mango tree, but a palm tree was a different arena altogether. The organisers asked the contestants to prepare for themselves on climbing the palm tree and were not ready to help when the participants were in need.

Contestants hailing from rich family were able to fend themselves by buying necessary equipment that would help them in climbing the palm tree. While other few contestants got sufficient education on climbing the palm tree through their parents or other influential friends who are well versed in the field. Rakesh who is orphaned and poor was left out who had no idea on where to begin.

Even before Rakesh could figure out what actually is happening, the competition started again and he was left out last in the line. Rakesh decided to seek justice regarding the competition and fought the issue in the court. The court of law took a stand against Rakesh and gave a judgement that stated that the competition was fair and just.

 Dejected by the unfair competition and the injustice implied upon him Rakesh took his life from falling from the top branch of the mango tree where his dream fruit was promised and denied to him. Had the competition been fair he would have lived another day to taste his dream fruit. Had the organisers gave Rakesh the education that he deserved to climb the palm tree he would have won the competition just like he did with the mango tree. Had the organisers mentioned about the compulsory palm tree competition to Rakesh even before he attempted climbing the mango tree he would have made arrangements to learn something regarding the palm tree. Had Rakesh been born to a rich father or Had he got some influential friends who would have taught him something about the palm tree he would have lived another day.

The mistake was never Rakesh’s who had no control over his birth or the financial status of his family. The mistake was on the competition which failed its part to take place in a fair manner. Organisers are to be blamed again for they failed to give fair education to all the participants before the competition. Rakesh was brave enough to compete in the first place despite the burning situation at his house. Rakesh was brave enough to fight for justice while other participants cringed upon the injustice and stayed at home. Rakesh was indeed a braveheart who got killed by the unjust system and unfair competition in his country.

Please note that the story never hints at anything that is related to NEET. Rakesh is not Anitha. The competition is not the education system in India. The organisers are definitely not the politicians who enforced NEET. May be NEET was a better idea to produce high quality doctors in the nation. But before enforcing something as big an exam as NEET the government should have made sure that all the aspirants get similar education no matter which system of school they are hailing from. But this story has nothing to do with any of the above points, Rakesh is a pathetic fictional character.

When Fear change places Forcibly

The protests that instilled a ray of hope in the name of youngsters in almost every Tamizhan also instilled fear in those who exercised Power. Fear of losing to the peaceful protests sounds legitimate though considering the future predictions that are mostly obvious.

The intelligent ploy by the politicians made them switch the element of fear to the common public. Had the iconic protest succeeded in a peaceful way through out, then the chances of public springing to the road for every legitimate issue would be high.

• ·         Fear for the rise of any other political leader or party.
• ·         Fear that the same practice of questioning those in power might increase in the upcoming days.

The government or those in power or other political parties were experiencing these fears for the first time. When they were not able to handle the fear quite well, they decided to play a foul game and they are to make sure that the fear rests with the people itself. This foul game was what happened on the eighth day of protests. 

Protests so far in the history of Tamil Nadu has been called on only by any unions or political parties. For the first time the protests had been initiated by students and they had conducted the same in a dignified manner.

Calling for protests so far had been an indirect way of announcing the common public and families to stay indoors to avoid any kind of mishaps. This myth was broken by the students. The trust level that the families had on the students made them step out of their houses to join the protests and support the cause.

When the cause was something that questioned the cultural identity of Tamizhan, many were desperately waiting for a chance to join the crowd. Assurance of non-violence, appreciation from the police and the media made the families step out in support for the students. The one of its kind protests echoed throughout the planet when common public from walks of society decided to join hands with the students.

The real question of whom to credit for the success came just before the final day of the protests. The government after getting required approval from the cabinet ministers decided to pass the law which will soon end the protests. It might be the government that did the needful but it was the protestors who urged the government to take steps in such short notice. When the answer for whom to credit the success to question became obvious, it was then the people in power decided to spring into action. And it was time for the foul game.

To transfer the fear to the commoners, not much effort was needed by those who vests in power. What they needed was pictures and videos of the city burning and the cries of the pitiable protesters to sound through the news channels. These were enough to send chills down the spine of any common public watching a news channel.

The youth might have won the battle in legalizing Jallikattu but when correcting the corrupted system of fighting for rights came as a complimentary pack, those in power cannot be won over. The hope for a change in the corrupted system, and hope for the rise of a great political revolution were built in those six days. The hope did not just come out of thin air, they were the result of the work of pure hearted souls who helped the protestors feel at home and maintained decorum in an unimaginable crowd.

When the generic way of politics changes, dirty politics is the only option to resume old methods. When the public starts questioning/challenges the governments methods such unprecedented and needless violence are inevitable. The game is over only when the system triumphs over the public and regains its power in all senses.

We know that you hold power, we know that you control the entire system, but do you really need to establish the hard hitting truth in this awkward way. 

A small chat with my non Tamil speaking friend gave me a lot insights about what National media has failed to portray the real face of the protests. He started nodding the head and made a comment that startled me. “So it is more of a state’s problem right?” he asked me.

This irked me the most, since rest of the India believes what the national media shows and have no idea what Jallikattu is.

Then I started to give him explanation about why the ban on jallikattu came in the first place and how jallikattu will pave way for foreign companies to make money. This explanation is for him and all the others who think that this fight is only to get back ‘just’ a sport.

Jallikattu is indeed an age old tradition that happens once a year in villages of Madurai and Sivagangai in TamilNadu . The primary aim of the tradition is to segregate the strongest of the bulls. The Bull which is not capable of winning the game of Jallikattu will be chosen for ploughing while the ones which have won the game will be opted for mating with the cows.  The tradition is being followed for more than 2000 years.

The game of Jallikattu will indeed earn a lot of prize money for the bull owners. The farmers who rear the bull exclusively for the game will consider these cattle to be one of their household member. The cost of rearing the bull is also indeed high. But the love for the game and the bulls are much more precious for them than other costs.

The basic question for my friend was what happens if Jallikattu is banned. After the judgement for the ban of the game which came before 3 years, most of the farmers who were rearing the bulls started selling their cattle at very low prices. The bulls were being sent to slaughter houses since the farmers were not able to incur the losses of rearing the bulls, which will then be used only for the purpose of breeding.

If the bulls become extinct then artificial insemination would be the only option to keep the cattle count in check. All the patents and rights for artificial insemination are with foreign companies and they will start making money through that means. We believe many organizations which are fighting Jallikattu in court are being funded from these billion dollar companies.

It is to be noted that India is the leading milk producer of the world. Many lives are dependent on the industry and it is mandatory to keep the cattle count in check.  

For all the national media which questions our tradition, you have not looked into the politics behind the ban and I wish you take this topic in your debates (which obviously is not nearing anywhere near this). Yes, we are fighting for our tradition and our traditional game which in turn will not only save our native cattle breeds but also ensure the nation the supply of some good quality milk.

Talking about the quality of milk will take another big post, so I will explain this briefly. A2 milk is still being produced in some parts of TamilNadu where the native breeds of cattle are still alive. Kaangeyam and Pulikulam have not undergone any mutations so far. Milk produced from the mutated cows are A1 type of milk. Studies across the globe have found that A1 milk is responsible for most of the health related issues in mankind.

A2 milk is at least 4 times costlier than A1 milk and healthy too. No health ailments and digestive problems will result if you consume A2 milk. Companies which produces A1 milk are now on a mission to wipe out the regions that are still capable of producing A2 milk. Yes, you guessed it right. Tamil Nadu is one of the very few regions in the globe capable of producing A2 milk. Thanks to the games like Jallikattu and Rekla race that our native breeds have still not undergone mutation in any manner.

Our fight is not only to bring back our tradition but also to prevent our cattle from becoming extinct. We do not want to lose our identity just because it benefits a billion dollar industry.

And for people who still feel that we will torment bulls during Jallikattu. Please consider again. We celebrate Pongal to thank the nature that assisted us during the crop year. We celebrate Maatu Pongal only to thank the cattle that have helped us during the crop year. Our farmers consider their cattle in par with the nature. Our farmers take care of their livestock like one another member of the household. When our cattle die, we worship them. Do you really think we will be able to torment the bulls just on the game day.

"How could we know all this if the national media hadn't mentioned any of this ? " asked my friend again. Thats why we doubt if we still belong to India, i answered him.

For my non Tamil speaking friends out there, please look into the social media to understand the ground reality in Tamil Nadu rather than watching what is shown in media. If not ask any of the Tamil people in social media who will be ready to answer.