Director Ram"s write up on Muthkumar Part 4;In a span of 41 year he carried out 100 years of labour without taking rest

Right from his entry into the  film world  17 years ago  he has written more than 1500 songs. Indeed in the last 12 years he was the one who wrote more lyrics in Tamil Cinema. Following Kannadasan  and Vairamuthu tradition, in the Tamil cinema film song segment, he was the super star continuously. To sustain this star status every year the efforts he had made and the pressures he had experienced were enormous and painstaking . He would say,” writing songs for film is just like going on hilly road in a car on the mountainous region in a reverse gear.”

Whenever there is a chance  to write song about mother character, thoughts of his mother will envelope; the dangled legs of his mother will come before his eyes when she hanged herself to death. Till date he would never raise his head and look into the eyes of anyone and this trait was born when he saw the legs of his mother as a small boy at that moment. While writing every song, he would get back into the pain of the past or lock himself into his thoughts and bring the message and felt that it was his  job. The side effects of this act was uneasiness and inexplicable pressure and in the recent times he has shared  with me.

In a span of 41 years he carried out what one could labour in100 years, without taking any rest whatsoever. What remains after his final exit is the lyrics-more than 1500 songs he has written.(will they not speak for themselves)

kerala may be God's own country but pondicherry too at times might resemble for a fleeting moment

 After walking for an hour and sipping a small peg of hot tea in Kerala shop,opposite to Sarguru  fresh energy has been pumped into and I want to capture a few lines lest I forget.  I was reminiscent of the weather of wayyanad and Kumaraham region of kerala- the regions I visited more in the last one year, while devouring the fresh air and enchanting beauty of Pondicherry beach between 5 and 6 am today; the weather was very pleasant. It had rained the previous night; the air was cool and soothing; the sky was overcast with black shade and the sea water was also black. Who says black is not beautiful?

Kerala may be God’s own country. I also love my country Puducherry .Despite the absence of dynamic and smart leadership this region has grown modestly and there is a semblance of peace and beauty.

By the time I returned back towards the non functional Distillery zone the light had come and the black beauty has disappeared .Then I realized that unlike Kerala Nature will not be at full play always!.

But there is a new found enthusiasm now on the part of both CM and The Lt governor to make the city clean and livable and the sea erosion is also likely to be addressed.

Lazy Sam, Do not lay on the bed depleting energy and allowing devilish thoughts ,just escape to  the seashore early and enjoy the painting by the supreme on the vast canvas, the colours and the contour of the sky changing every fleeting moment.

 Did not Bharathi sing long ago: Translated on the back of the envelope,it reads :  we shall row the boat in the Ganges river singing a beautiful song in sweet Telugu in the  pleasant company of young keralite beauty on a full moon day and play. Does the federal India know there was one such mad person lived here in my region and talked about the unity and integration of the country without undermining any state or any part of the state ?

.Though life is not  a child’s play it is manageable only if we discover the child in us and behave with all naiveté without abandoning the spirit of  the stubbornness and strength of a child.

write up on Muthu -- part 3;Is film world like a glass curtain economy, shining and glittering?!

Work in the film industry is generally perceived by public as one of celebrations, and merry making entertainment. This has been the conventional wisdom. The majority opinion here is that those who succeeded here and thrived are conceived as princes of the erstwhile dynasty of kings/Rajas and live in a glittering celluloid world ( with all the privacy of their heart  throbs?).But the truth is different. But the film world is more like a cruel snake and ladder game where in  there is always a rat race- a  sort of reckless competition and uneasiness experienced by all ,lest the position just secured  might slip away and the ardent desire to somehow sustain the existing status and rank/position. The world of cinema is full of complete economic uncertainty.Muthu would often say  to me:Subbu,be careful, it is not my mother …. or your mother…..(colloquial expression).It is cinema da…even while you  sleep  see that you  keep on shaking legs otherwise they will conclude; you are dead. 

Some order in the Disorderly Orderly behavior at long last:will it become a habit?

‘Be not content with the ease of a passing day, and deprive not thyself of everlasting rest. Barter not the garden of eternal delight for the dust-heap of a mortal world. Ascend to the glorious meals above, and wing thy flight unto paradise “.

 Bahai Hidden words  #39

 I do not know to what degree my boys Professors Ammanulah and Aravanan were snatched away at the young age in gruesome car accident to partake  heavenly  meals ;more recently the young Muthukumar who was ascending in the literary/film world was gently taken under the guise of jaundice. I had hat trick in falling thrice some years ago hit from behind  twice and head on collusion once and the gift of God was that I was not aware of the fall ie not conscious at the time of hit but suddenly get up as if nothing had happened bt blood profusely running from the rear portion of the head and drenching the new banian and the new shirt(?) .In all the three cases In the process of volunteering to help the fellow2 human  -friends and colleagues, I met with these  accidents. All were fatal. Why did God save me?

Why recollect all these memories now? Why did Iqbal not type that piece  “Hat trick in falling” and got it misplaced? When I step into my late sixties I realize the speed with which the days are passing and I do not want to rest on the arm chair and enjoy the ease of each passing day. Living among the dust-heap of books and files accumulated over 50 years I want to taste the meals here, sip tea and God willing occasional  sumptuous food to test the digestive system and just read.

In the last week I had a troubled sleep, remaining  awake till  1  or2 am grossly abusing my system  and spoiling health.Abhoring day time sleep and going to bed at 10 30 I could get up at 4  an ideal time for me to read for an hour  “The future of Money “ –the book on crisis  gifted by Armstrong and sent thro Jain is on the bed.As it needs my gentle caressing  let me stop here .Ben Bernanke is also simultaneously read.I pray that these twins will put me on the track to work on my volumes suspended for  long  - for ages.

Oh! The supreme I do not have the age on my side  and help me to get freedom from the academic debris consciously collected because of unbridled academic greed.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained,

There’s always reward for audacity and courage,

Have faith and courage in your hands,

Face life as it unfolds with all crude

 UNCERTAINITIES and absurdities.

There is so much of trust deficit, one is scared of

Liking and loving and believing the fellow human;

When money eats and dictates and the bloody

Dirty money alone defines the path of life,and

Dominates the mind 24x7 in a drunken state,

Finer feelings and civility are thrown to the winds.

What shall we do?

Hal Borland comes to my rescue:

“No winter lasts forever, no spring skips its turn,

Knowing trees I understand the meaning

OF patience.

Knowing grass I can appreciate persistence.”

I will not throw mud, I will not allow that bloody outburst

To penetrate my heart  and disturb my  equipoise ,

Chewing more than what stomach can digest

And treading the path of corporate frauds,

Do not preach sermon.we have been taken for granted

And not vice versa.Yes gentlemen of the jury

When wealth accumulates men decay.

He loved to live with all relation and lived to love with a child,s heart and mind-tribute by Ram

The write  up on Muthkumar -part 2 

Ram continues: Thereafter we met quite often. During those days Muthu would spend his time mostly in the office of  Arivumathi( a celebrity in the literary film worldwho became his elder brother and mentor).Tambaram ,being my place the train link from kodambakkam to Tambaram  effortlessly brought him safe to me and united him with me .In that short train travel  he will enjoy sitting on the door steps. Once we enter the train  we will move to the opposite side and sit near the door dangling our legs. We will  closely observe whatever is moving or running on the way and discuss varied topics. One day when there was a scorching  heat there were some drizzles and at that time  a funeral procession was going on.Muthu’s immediate response was:” when a man dies regardless of summer heat it will also rain.”In his final journey too ,it rained  even while sun was shining.

Although Muthu had  a mind of a vagabond,desired to be amidst   forests and caves and his  ardent wish  was to sleep by looking at the stars, his roads will always  end up  towards his home only .in his long journey of his short life without the presence of mother ,all the relations provided the solace and he had immense love  and incredible respects and regard for  them.Muthu  was a beloved son;a beloved brother; beloved grandson; beloved father; beloved husband;he had so much love for his son and thinking about  him  he would sometime stand  nervous and uneasy and imprison himself into  the syllable of the word  Appa (father) .when he got his daughter eight months ago, he introduced her as his  mother borne to him.Thi is how he heaped his enormous love on the relations. I think sincerely that during his living period he has done full justice to the family as a son , as brother as grandson, as a father and as a husband.

The simplest pleasures that he derived from his circle of relations ,he always cherished and celebrated. His longing for their love perpetually and his craving for affection like a childs’ mind are abundantly scattered(recorded) in many serials of essays written in Ananda Vikatan. (To be continued)

A lengthy essay by Director Ram on Muthkumar :Part 1 love at first sight

A write up on Muthu …Na Muthukumar by Ram,  not the Hindu  N Ram , but  Director Ram

I do not know my literary link with Na Mu.Right from his untimely demise I have been in a state of shock and  uneasiness .The question of death of the innocent and young  frighten me and make me more humble . Soloman  Pappaya would say whenever he thinks about his mother the tears will trickle down  from his eyes and I have also experienced the same.  Without any blood relationship   Muthu  made me cr on 14 Aug ust 2016; and that gave some relief and then stability.

 His finer feelings as a human ,the inherent  shyness and inclination towards simplicity of life and his strength of character  all revealed through his writing did make some impact on me. The current issue of Ananda  Vikatan(24-8-16) carries a write up on him by Ram and also Bhava  Selvadurai.I will try to approximate their views and feelings by translating them into a language read by many with due acknowledgement to the publisher.

1996.Every Friday in madras Christian college under the shadows of a tree , a poetry reading session woul d go on under the banner “vanam”.In that act of reading poetry session many outsiders also would join our college students.Muthukumar was one such person who came to  sell his " butterflies"(his poetry volume ?) in our  “vanam”.After the session we sipped tea.As there was hardly anything to talk I suggested to him:”Why can’t you stay for two days in the hostel and go home on Monday?”Sipping the tea hot , he agreed  with a  slurping sound.”A few would  take more time to befriend us.But in the case of Muthukumar it was love at first sight.At the flight of a second  he took me as his friend and there was reciprocity from my side too.

A letter from a father on his death- bed to his son

The first letter written by Na Muthukumar to his son on deathbed  happened to be the last one and after reading it I felt that his poetic letter must be translated for the reference of non-Tamil public. The work was done at one stretch: and after lunch I begin typing. Translation task  is one I do not treat   as a work  but a kind of meditation and I do not merely/ mechanically translate put also my stamp without intruding too much into the author’s creativity. Tears  welled up in my eyes while typing the last para.

My dear son,

This  is the first letter from your dad.You are  too young to read or fully understand the true import of its content and meaning.

You have just begun learning to walk by holding the finger of the language.

Before long , the embankment of your ageing process would anchor you on prime of  youth. A girl’s body will be a riddle to you.

As I attempted to search for the key to unravel all the secrets that my father kept away in a box from me, one day you will also go in search of it.

That teenage period is the hardest and the most difficult to tackle and handle in a more secure and safe way.

I know you will be learning soon and know more and hence will be more careful in treading that path

Travel a lot .these windows of travel alone will open a new vista of life by help opening  two eyes on the back.

Love the books. When you touch(thumb through the pages) you have a new experience. Your grandfather and also your father had lost themselves and immersed in the forest of books.

That” paper river’ will be also running into your bloodstream forever.

Take up a job that you like and love rather than the one on which you happen to land by chance.

Always be ready to help other even by resorting to borrowing. The resulting sense of joy and happiness is something blissful and inexplicable

Be close to relations and also away from them by drawing limits. Of all relations in life  friendship is the best relationship.Always team up with good friends. You will find your life straightened/streamlined.

I have told all these things to you- learnt from my father without being told by him.

What I am telling now is what I want to tell more consciously that I must tell and share with you.

It was only after your birth I understood what is joy and happiness. Many a time I realize the meaning and value of my father’s love. When you grow and get a son   you will also know my love and care towards you.

Tomorrow and tomorrow’s tomorrow when you are conversing and playing with your grandson and grand daughter in case my memory invades and cloud your thoughts when  you pick up this letter   and start reading  in the tears trickling and rolling down from your eyes,I will be living.

 Your Loving father

Na.Muthukumar

From my dateless diary:Elementary school days

My education till past 14 ,was in a government school in my native village; before going to  the elementary school at the tender age of three, I had attended a school conducted  on a payal   by a  lame teacher; later  I was  formally admitted into the elementary school  at 4 plus  in the first  standard.   I remember to a have spent only a  few weeks  or a month in that class; one day , the teacher  asked me to read and write and tell some tables which I did and he was happy with me. Immediately I  was moved to the second standard .I vividly remember  that day when I ran fast with happiness and joy flooding my  heart on the  verandah  with school bag hanging on my shoulder. Once settled in the class of second standard I  felt as if I had earned something extra. This double promotion caused problem later when in 11 th standard I had to verify my real birth date and record into the first page of S.S.L.C book.

The  school was close enough that I walked home for lunch . when noon meal  scheme was introduced ,  along with friends I used to walk home  in the afternoon to refresh   and take  the plate and some home made lemon pickles.

Most of us belonged to the middle class family and not poor and I was the only child at home and food was not an issue and yet we took our noon meal at school and enjoyed the company of friends and the cooks were excellent ; the food was tasty.It was really a golden era and the teachers were more committed to work and we were handled in a humane way; though the medium  of instructions was Tamil ,English was taught as a second language in Third standard and for the beginner it was not that simple. Quite surprisingly we did not study English in the fourth  and from next year onwards the foreign language was in full flow and I was more comfortable. But my proficiency in Tamil was at

I loved going to school without missing a single day. It so happened that on the day of marriage of my uncle(the younger brother of my father) I  found myself taking the bag and walking towards the school and in the midway a relative caught hold of me ,virtually lifted me as I refused to obey him ;he scolded mildly dragging me back towards  home bristling with marriage festivity.

Consider the  public. Never fear it nor despise it ,coax it, charm it ,interest it, stimulate it, shock it now and then if you must ,make it laugh ,make it cry ,  but  above all never , never, never bore the living  hell out of it’ says Noel Coward

It is high time those  leaders  and the administrators who never had any real concern and respect for the aspirations of the general public, internalized the spirit and flavor  of the statement mentioned above. In any democracy ultimately it is the general public  which call the shot and their  patience should not be treated as cowardice. It is unfortunate that polarization of general public in terms of caste and colour, region and  religion and so on are well exploited and  the divisive and destrctive tendancies are well perpetuated by politicians.

The tragedy of our largest democracy is that there are too many political parties and too many political leaders.The deeply entrenched dynastic politics when combined with caste and creed, religion and greed  as deadly virus, effectively prevent the talent and enterprise of many honest and dedicated persons to surface the immediate family.

The lack of transparency in political fund collection and concentration  of economic power within the family structure ranging from print to visual media not to speak of the party trust fund and so on are virtually killing the political initiatives.

Therefore democratization of politics is the need of the hour; but it is highly unlikely, as politics has become more of a business and reduced to caste centric coalition devoid of any ideology or principles ably assisted by muscle power.Criminalisation of politics is visible across the mainstream politics. There is more alienation and frustration of the general public from the current tribe of politicians and the adminstration.If money making madness alone is the dominant force and the moneyed people alone can contest  then the whole democratic exercise becomes meaningless. Who will provide a better governance is the question each generation has asked whenever the unbridled greed has dominated over reason. We have no alternative but to patiently wait  but in the meanwhile  there is a reasoned fear that  social unrest and tensions arising out of  mass unemployment and economic deprivation would hijack and  threaten the very foundation of the pillars of democracy.

 Consider the  public. Never fear it nor despise it ,coax it, charm it ,interest it, stimulate it, shock it now and then if you must ,make it laugh ,make it cry ,  but  above all never , never, never bore the living  hell out of it’ says Noel Coward

It is high time those  leaders  and the administrators who never had any real concern and respect for the aspirations of the general public, internalized the spirit and flavor  of the statement mentioned above. In any democracy ultimately it is the general public  which call the shot and their  patience should not be treated as cowardice. It is unfortunate that polarization of general public in terms of caste and colour, region and  religion and so on are well exploited and  the divisive and destrctive tendancies are well perpetuated by politicians.

The tragedy of our largest democracy is that there are too many political parties and too many political leaders.The deeply entrenched dynastic politics when combined with caste and creed, religion and greed  as deadly virus, effectively prevent the talent and enterprise of many honest and dedicated persons to surface the immediate family.

The lack of transparency in political fund collection and concentration  of economic power within the family structure ranging from print to visual media not to speak of the party trust fund and so on are virtually killing the political initiatives.

Therefore democratization of politics is the need of the hour; but it is highly unlikely, as politics has become more of a business and reduced to caste centric coalition devoid of any ideology or principles ably assisted by muscle power.Criminalisation of politics is visible across the mainstream politics. There is more alienation and frustration of the general public from the current tribe of politicians and the adminstration.If money making madness alone is the dominant force and the moneyed people alone can contest  then the whole democratic exercise becomes meaningless. Who will provide a better governance is the question each generation has asked whenever the unbridled greed has dominated over reason. We have no alternative but to patiently wait  but in the meanwhile  there is a reasoned fear that  social unrest and tensions arising out of  mass unemployment and economic deprivation would hijack and  threaten the very foundation of the pillars of democracy.

learning the story of depression of 1930s from Grandma

The wise and benevolent destiny made prof Ben Bernanke as the successor to Alan Greenspan as the chief of the Federal reserve System-the largest manufacturer of the world money ,namely the US dollar in September 2006.Within a year of his  assumption of office as the Fed chief, he had to confront and negotiate the worst recession of the 20^th century occasioned by the bursting of the  US Housing Bubble,popularly and also mistakenly known as subprime Lending crisis in 2007 August.

Students and professors know full well that Bernanke was a dominant giant and authority on Depression Economics having read more, researched more and also written more in this area. Did he learn the first lesson somewhere at the young age. Yes, His recent Memoirs reveals  the secret.

His grand Ma was the key behind in educating by stories.As she lived through the turbulent period of the great depression of !930s Bernanke recalls from the conversations he had with her when he was hardly six. She   narrated  how young children of those days went to school either barefoot or in worn-out shoes.Bernanke asked the reason why did the parents not buy new shoes. The old lady said:

”Their fathers had lost their jobs, as the shoe factory got closed”.

“Why did the shoe factory close?”, the boy was curious to know.

“because ,nobody had the money to buy shoes”.

My dear readers,this was what Thomas Robert Malthus told long ago but he was bulldozed by David Ricardo who gave  a wrong twist  to the car of Economics as told by Haney once , in so far as denying the general theory of glut.Mr Keynes had to rediscover the merits of Mercantilism Economics and the greatness of Malthus  work and their relevance in the great depression period of 1930s

Under consumption and overproduction had to seek some balance at one time in the capitalist order; in the face of inadequate and shrinking demand ,the supply had to be reduced, and thus the production came to a halt, throwing thereby the  labourers out of   job ,shrinking their income and also others income in a vicious circle,by curtailing purchasing power.

Let experts work on Money and monetary policy. No intruder please

At long last our PM has come out openly against who have taken law into their hands in the context of protecting cow. The time has come for the new two year old Govt which is no longer new to guarantee the fundamental rights and implement the Directive principles of state policy.It is commonsense and much talked about without mincing words that politics is business and therefore only those who have money in abundance can contest. Furthermore when polcs game is mostly concentrated in family  connections matter and conducting an exhibition in the  art of flattery matters most.Govt at the centre and states have the great responsibility to have some control over the control and ownership of natural resources of the community and render social and economic justice.Redstribtion mechanism must work in such a way that it should serve the common interest of the community.shall we expect our leaders – the operators of the economic system to set it right in order that the inhuman treatment inflicted on Dr Raguram Rajan one of the finest central Banker that  the supreme has ordained does not become a way of life. Setting of interest rate and control of money supply cannot be defined or dictated by others especially when the Professor  i n charge of RBI  is really a man of integrity and also well versed in the subject. Come September,  our Rajan will leave and let us hope better wisdom will prevail in appointing a right person no matter what the trouble maker will say and suggest as if he is the authority in Economics