C-S Wedding

It was an amazing experience to attend Cheruba--Sanjay wedding in Connecticut State on Sep-18, 2010.

Both the wedding ceremony in the church and the reception that followed in the evening kept me wondering about the painstaking efforts and the attention paid to minute details without losing sight at the bigger things at the same time. That Malini anni chose to sing the popular 'MangaLam.. MangaLamE...' in church pairing with her co-mother-in-lawi was a great idea. (I recalled -this was perhaps the song I used to hear in all the Christian weddings back in India). Cheruba's rememberance note of her father was touching. As she noted, her dad would be watching the Wedding from above, and He would be watching with pride. Her note promptly recalled the other three gentlemen who were very supportive in the recent past, and traveled from India to attend the wedding.

The wedding at the church was simple and nice, and the pastor's brief speech was meaningful and to the point. He made the couple to repeat the oath that ended with this powerful text: "I am yours only".

Rajesh drove us to the Evening Reception which was arranged in a lake front resort.The evening reception sizzled with excitement though -with the Monsoon Wedding song and the couple's moms' and friends' dance performance. Both Cheruba and Sanjay did well in the toasts. The 'thali' ceremony was an interesting add-on! (They should have had the 'ketti-mELam' and 'NathaSwaram' palyed in the speakers!) The lakefront venue was a nice selection, and there was 'a lot' of food. Thanks to the careful picking of table-mates, we felt like being in India for a while! And there was this custom- an American custom?-the bride Cheruba threw the flower bunch backwards for one of the unmarried girls to catch, symbolically suggesting the next-in-line for the wedding!

Sanjay impressed us quite with his broad smile and courteous speech. He took me & Deepika by suprise by recalling our Mt.Fuji climb. Cheruba was gorgeous in her choLi-like costume that fit well for the evening -she was just 'too excited' that she uttered even a simple 'hi' with a lot of 'drama'tic facial expressions! :-)

The day also presented us an opportunity to mingle with some of our relatives whom we (or 'I' to be precise) met for the first time. Dr.Bosewell's two daughters -Beryl, Cheryl, their husbands, YaLini Ravi Arumugam, Murugesan-family & Amsa-anni were all new faces to me at the beginning, and not at the end of the day. Though we could 'catch' Divya and Thompson, we couldn't catch up with them as they were busy with the arrangements. (Thompson must be a fan of 'Sivaji' Rajini :-) In the hotel where we stayed in, we befriended Murugesan-family and another gentleman who said he was Cheruba's dad's boyhood friend from Nazareth.

I should be thankful to Malini anni for this opportunity for another reason -this was the very first marriage all the four in our family attended together. We have attended marriages of relatives in India but there was never a chance for all the four of us to be present. One thing our children miss being in a foreign country is the warmth of attending family functions/weddings -I'm glad that both my kids could attend the wedding of their 3rd cousin Cheruba-akka with whom they had traveled to Hiroshima, Nara and Kyoto in Japan in 2006.

Mt.Fuji -A once-in-lifetime Experience!

In August this year, Deepika, Shibu and I climbed to Mt.Fuji's summit!

Mt.Fuji, the iconic symbol of Japan, remained elusive to me for years. ln 2006, our Kalyan's team (Kalyan, Sudhir, Rajkumar & Nick) traveled to Mt.Fuji in a package tour with Nick making it to the top while others reaching 'almost the top' -the 8th station. A year later, a package tour booked by 15-20 of IITians got canceled due to storm forecast. There was no serious attempt for a Mt.Fuji expedition thereafter.

Mt.Fuji is officially open to public only for 2 months a year –July & August. (Due to extreme windy/snowy/freezing conditions at the summit, it is closed for the rest of the year, i.e, ‘officially’ -meaning, you could still go there throughout the year; but you are unlikely to return, as they say!). Deepika, Shibu and I decided to Just Do It it this summer. It turned out to be an amazing trip and proved to be an acid-test for our physical and psychological caliber. Here is our Mt.Fuji story (July 31-Aug 1).......

‘Roadside’ sleep: We chose to drive (one way 520 km) instead of going on a bus tour, to have extra thrill, fun & flexibility. And it just worked great. We left around 7 pm on Friday (July-30) from Takasago, drove along Sanyo, Chugoku, Meishin, Shin-Meishin, Higashi Meihan, and Ise Wangan expressways and were soon in Tomei expressway where we stopped at around 10:30 for late-night dinner. Being one of the oldest and widely-used highways leading to Tokyo, many Parking areas in Tomei expressway have convenience stores (like Lawson) and chain restaurants like Yoshnoya, Starbucks and McDonalds. At 1 am we stopped in a Parking area, and got ready to sleep (we had carried with us bed, bedspreads and pillows). As the restaurants were all closed except one or two, we made the tables they had left outside into twin beds, and comfortably slept under a shamiana! Almost equivalent to 'roadside sleeping', it turned out to be another unique experience we could do only in Japan! (We saw some others sleeping like us).

When we woke up at 6 in the morning, it was bright though the weather was chill, and the Parking lot was just getting busier. The place was surrounded by mountain in all the sides, and people were simply strolling or sitting at the viewpoints enjoying the mountains sipping hot coffee. We took local driving directions from the Information center (no GPS in my car!), had some hot Udon noodles for breakfast and left at 8 am to reach Kawaguchiko.

Kawaguchiko Trail: Mt.Fuji (3,776 m) is divided into 10 levels (known as '10 stations') and buses/cars could reach up to 5th station. There are four 5th stations at different points in the conical circumference Mt.Fuji namely Kawaguchiko, Fujinomiya, Gotemba and SubaShri (what a name! :-). We chose to climb from Kawaguchiko 5th station (2,300 m) as it is the most popular and supposedly least difficult of the 4 routes. The ascent to the top is 7km and could take 6 hrs, and the descent -in a different path- 4km and 3 hrs. (That's what internet said). Kawaguchiko's Visitor Center had all the information for tourists and the girl was helpful in Kanto style (which was different from the Kansai style in that the typical Kansai style politeness and friendly smile was missing). We had the first glimpses of Mt.Fuji from the 2nd floor terrace of the Visitor Center; wondering that soon we would be climbing to the top!

Preparation: At the car parking lot in Kawaguchiko 5th station we changed into our climbing attire and ensured that our backpack is equipped with the essentials -1 liter water flask, headlamp, gloves, face mask, sunglass, sweater, knitted hat, towel, plain hat, thermal in-pant, spat (?)*, rainwear, a cover to protect the backpack against rain, aspirin tablets, oxygen can, energy biscuits, dry fruits, chocolates, a number of Y100 coins, cash, cell phone & camera. We also carried a hiking pole -a 1 meter length stick sold for Y700 in any convenience store in that area. The list may sound redundant -but each & every item became absolutely essential at some point or the other when we were climbing up for day & night in areas where there was nothing but molten rock! 5th station is visited by not only climbers, but also those who just go there to see the Starting point. There were a number of foreigners (we met about 6-8 Indians along the route). Statistics says more than one-third of Mt.Fuji climbers are foreigners. Had lunch at one of the restaurants in 5th station.

The Start: It was 2:10 pm when we left the start point. The entrance to the climbing route had two stone pillars, and a small wooden board showing "Route to Mt.Fuji summit (320 min)". Deepika happily posed for a picture with a smiling face near the board. She realized little then that this 320-min was going to be 600-min for us and that too the toughest 600-min we have ever had!Apart from a number of enthusiastic climbers, there were also many families that were not in the climbing attire -they went for a 30-min hike along the route to get a feel of what climbing Mt.Fuji was. The initial path was not steep, the mountain was green, the trail was 2-m wide, and with the mild temperature in a cloudy atmosphere, the 30-min hike made a wonderful one-day-picnic for families & children. Horse-ride was also there. The first 30-min trail was the same for ascending & descending, and we saw those returning -all of them had only weary look. The trail was nice to walk, and Shibu was commenting if the entire route would be like that there would be no difficulty at all. He was naive.

The scene changed: The scenes of day-picnic changed after 30-min where we saw only climbers all set for a tough track. I found the climbing way different from the hiking we've done -that there was absolutely no greenery and the trail was very steep and continuous. At many places, Mt.Fuji’s exceptionally symmetrical conical shape made me feel like climbing up a conical surface with 60 degree base angle. And the trail was full of rocks, rocks & rocks. Without proper hiking shoes and the hiking pole, one would risk injuring his ankle. There were many groups led by tour guides that passed by. We decided to go on our own pace.

 

The 7th station (2,700 m level): As we reached the 7th station at 2,700 m level, both Deepika and Shibu were active; -they wouldn't let me go ahead; and they stayed ahead even as I was following them. Saw a 'mountain hut' (yama-goya) -a resting 'box' - where you can take rest in a 6 ft Length x 1 ft Width x 2 ft Height space in a 'wooden container' for Y7,000. We had only climbed 400m and reached 2,700m and I was wondering why one should rest at that level. The peak is at 3,776 m level, and we have to climb up another 1,076 m!. The hut had a small bench (just one bench) for us to sit & relax, and space for smoking. They sold 500ml water bottles for Y500, one banana for Y200. (I buy them for one-tenth of that price in Takasago Seiyu!). Despite a 'clear' weather forecast, it started raining, and we had to use our rainwear. It stopped in 10-15 minutes. It was still bright.

7th station (3,000 m level): It took nearly 4 hrs to reach the 3,000m level, and we were all tired having climbed 700m. People were seen taking rest at the side of the trail, mostly on rocks. Saw many people using their oxygen cans at this level. On seeing them, Deepika wanted to use hers as she said it would 'clear her lungs'. I had read that the air will get 'thin' as we climb up where the oxygen cans would come as handy, but I didn't feel anything strange in breathing at this level. Sensing that Deepika's need for 'clearing lungs' was more of psychological than actual, I promised her that we would use oxygen when we reach the 8th station, where I had reserved for 3 spaces in a mountain hut. She was a bit upset that I didn't buy her theory of 'clearing lungs' but she didn't have (her usual) energy to fight back either! I wanted to save oxygen for 'real' breathing difficulty one might face at much higher elevations. We were eagerly looking for 8th station to take rest.

 

The 8th station: At 7 we reached “Horai kan” the mountain hut in 8th station at 3,150m. Being well-mannered or being dead-tired, the in-mates were silent and the 'container' didn't look like the one where some 200 people were sleeping! They provided curry rice & salad -which were luxury at that level. The 3ft wide bed was spared by 3 persons, and a slight movement would disturb the other guy. Yet, there was absolutely no disturbance, and there was ‘pin drop’ silence. Shibu & I had mild headache and we took aspirin. Deepika used oxygen cans, and 'looked' fresh. We went to bed at 8:30. The sunrise on the next day was to be at 4:41 am, and we had to climb another 600m. We had a good sleep till 12:30, and woke up to see no guys around us -they all had woken up early and proceeded to climb up (without making any noise!).

We changed to winter clothing and left the hut at 1:30 am. Just outside the hut we saw a chain of people climbing up- with weary looks and heavy breathing- they all had started from the 5th station at night of the previous day. (A majority of the climbers start at 7-8 pm, and climb throughout the night without resting in the hut) I don't think I could do that- as the 4 hr rest in the hut came as a psychological boost.

The 9th station: Even within few minutes of climbing we were tired -apparently the rest wasn’t that refreshing as we thought. We all had headlamps. Our climbing pace had come down greatly. As it was 3 am there were a number of climbers lying on the rocks -and sleeping in whatever position they could --sitting, leaning on the rocks, or simply lying on the sideways. Tents are not allowed in Mt.Fuji. At times, I felt like walking through a battlefield where there were hundred victims lying dead. Some were seen vomiting -as they suffered nausea at higher elevations. I made sure that there was no breathing difficulty. Shibu was lagging behind. And Deepika was walking like a 'sadhu' --taking every step very slowly as if in 'slow-motion', holding her hiking pole like 'Auvaiyar', having her head lowered and mostly closing her eyes. Even when I asked if she was alright, she said '...mm' without raising her head or opening her eyes; I never knew she could speak in such a low voice! I commented if only she was this quiet at home, how peaceful my life would have been... She wasn't in a mood to smile (or ‘give back’). When she & Shibu were sitting on a rock to rest, I saw her eyes closed, and heard her mouth chanting "Muruga....Muruga...." !! (I doubted Lord Murugan in Mt.Palani (TN) could hear her thin voice from Mt.Fuji).

It was 4:40 and all the climbers got ready to look at sunrise, though everyone was dead-tired. A number of them continued to sleep on the rocks –apparently the sunrise failed to impress them to wake up and see. They've been climbing all through the night.

The summit: Since 5 am we could see the summit close-by, and the ‘tori’ they had built as the point of entrance. Yet it took another one-and-half hours to reach the spot... and at 6:30, we finally landed at the highest peak of Japan. Even before we could take pictures, Shibu slept on a small bench. There were a couple of petty shops, a cafeteria, and a post office (where you can buy cards and send anywhere in the world). Even as Shibu was sleeping, we went near the crater and walked around. It was a fulfilling feeling -wherever & whenever we see Mt.Fuji's picture, we can now point our finger at the summit and say "We have climbed up to this point..."

 

The Descent:Spent a couple of hours at the summit and started descending. I found the descent equally hard -if not harder than the ascent. We didn't get tired as we didn't strain the heart, but the legs ached as they took the load. The descent was in a different route, and though there were no rocks, the trail was steep, and full of small stones that would keep getting inside your shoes if you weren't wearing the so-called 'spat'. It got quiet hot at 9 am and without sunglass, sunscreen and mask it would have been really tough. And there was no hut -meaning there was no place to buy water. Mt.Fuji changed from black to red and finally to green in color at the 6th level. As we approached the start point we saw hundreds of enthusiastic climbers just beginning with a lot of vigor and energy their expedition –their long struggle to reach the summit.

It was 2 pm Sunday when we arrived at the Start point –it took exactly 24 hours for us to get back to where we started. We packed ourselves in the car without even changing the climbing wear and proceeded straight to a nearby onsen -Fujiyama Onsen.

 
Climbing Mt.Fuji is truly a once-in-lifetime experience. At 3,776 m elevation, Mt.Fuji is the highest point we have ever landed in/ climbed up on earth. To do that, we had to climb up and down continuously for 24 hours, except for the 4 hr rest at night and the 2 hr stop at the summit. We felt great that We Made It. We couldn't believe we made it!

Uma

Caution: Vegetarians must skip this page!
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"Sushi" -rice ball topped with a slice of raw fish- is by far the most popular Japanese food known in the world. Raw fish ("sashimi") by itself is a popular delicacy in here -and is sold in all the supermarkets where you buy meat. People visiting Japan might wonder how the Japanese eat raw fish. Thinly sliced raw fish served on radish flakes eaten dipping in hot soy sauce is a tasty delicacy indeed -you would hardly believe its raw fish! Having most of its landspace very close to sea (and perhaps being in a hurry to spend time in cooking!), these guys have been historically having 'raw fish' as a main item in their menu.

Even 'adventurous' foreigners who like to try different meat often avoid sashimi -the idea of eating something raw is indigestible to them. You don't have to ask about Indians who dare to touch even beef. (Deepika still believes Sridhar changed his travel destination from Japan to Egypt mainly because of my writing about raw fish as a delicacy here! :-)

Eating 'raw' hasn't just stopped with fish -they eat beef, chicken, octopus, squid and shrimp also raw, rather occasionally. Lately, I came to know that they do eat horse meat, that too raw! Though not sold in regular foodcourts/ restaurants, there are restaurants that sell raw horsemeat -"basashimi"- and I got curious to give it a try. As Deepika won't even touch beef or sashimi, I had had to wait..... and visited last week a restaurant in Kobe that sells this item which, as the restaurant claims, comes from a farther island "Kyushu" in Japan. It tastes not quite different from raw fish. (See pics). ('Horse' is 'Uma' in Japanese)

Thought about the unique meats that I could put my hands on in all these years.... in Seoul, a local guide showed us a restaurant that sold snakes and only snakes! (I didn't have the guts to try, then). Tried turtle in China which also has dog meat restaurants. My Japanese boss who is otherwise adventurous in trying unique food was taken aback on seeing dog meat restaurant -and refused to try as he was raising a pet dog, and that pet dog used to sleep with him in his bed everyday! Though I didn't have any such affinity for dogs, as a courtesy, I had had to give up that chance. Pagals & Ponraj when they visited Florida have tasted alligator fries...(or was it alligator fin?) which tasted like chicken. Octopus ia another popular item among children in Japan.

Back in India, almost all the Tuticorin 'night clubs' (that's how evening-only non veg stalls' are known in Tuticorin) sell a unique item "kaudari" a bird which tastes pretty much like chicken. Pigeon is also sold in most of the restaurants, and Tuty guys comment that pigeon doesn't have much of flesh. Kathax and Isaac might have tasted them. Surprisingly, I haven't seen these dishes in Chennai or other places!

 

And here comes a response from my friend Isaac (another Tuty guy), with a poetic ending:

Subahar and AJB,

You guys are making my mouth water :-)~~~~~~~
The following is not for the faint of heart. Vegetarians should probably quit reading at this point...

Yes, I have had Kaudari, while living in Tuticorin. We used to buy from hunters, and later used to hunt them ourselves in the wilderness area that surrounded our Harbour colony. My younger brother was quite good at catching those birds. Kaudari is a flightless bird, but it can fly better than chicken. If you chase it, it will hide quickly, sometimes by throwing loose sand over itself. Because of its camouflage, it will be very difficult to locate. So, when it hid like that, we would surround the area and wait patiently for it to pop back up. We would then rush it, scaring the bird into hiding right in front of our eyes. Once we knew its exact location, my brother would pounce on it.

AJB, you are right, it is very difficult to tell the difference between Kadai and Kaka. In those days, we used to hunt, cook and eat all sorts of living things, including squirrels and vellai eli (as long as they were grey and not too dark, they were good enough for the table). One day, we thought, "Why not kaka?". So, we got a young Kaka and our grandma cooked it for us. I think my mom was too grossed out. For some reason, we didn't make it a habit of eating kaka (our mom must have prevailed). We did cook and eat kaka eggs sometimes. Once, my cousin, who is even more adventurous, wanted to try a raw egg. He cracked it open, poured it into his mouth, but quickly spit it out. The egg was not so fresh after all. Uncooked kaka kunji managed to gross out even my cuz.

We were "growing boys" and we loved meat. Chicken was expensive and mutton was almost out of reach. Thankfully, we found a person who could buy beef from a nearby village and bring it to our house on a regular basis. Eating beef was looked down upon and we had to kind of do it quietly. But we loved it, especially the unlimited quantity that we could eat.

Recently, we tried buffalo and elk meat, while visiting Wyoming. They tasted good, but I couldn't tell the difference between them and beef. Venison (deer) is not sold in stores here, but some of our friends are hunters and they do get a deer or two every season. Paavi pasangal are not sharing it with me!

There are some wild rabbits living in our backyard here in Carson City. I sit and watch them sometimes, wondering how things have changed. There was a time when they would have become tasty rabbit fry. Now, I refer to them by their names, like 'Cloudy'. They are names that my daughter has given them.

Regards,
Isaac
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ஆண்கள் அறிக!

கவிதை பெரும்பாலும் நிஜத்தைத் தொடுவதில்லை.  “ஆண்கள் அறிக” என்ற தலைப்பில் தாமரை விகடனில் எழுதிய கவிதை அப்படியில்லை எனலாம், அங்கங்கே தெரியும் சற்றே மிகைப்படுத்தலை உதறிவிட்டுப் படித்தால். (கடைசிப் பத்தியின் ‘நச்’ வரிகளில் ஒரு கவித்துவம் கலந்த ’இடி’யைப் பார்க்கலாம்).
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காதல் சொல்லும் கணத்தில்கூட

முதல் காதலிக்கான கவிதை

வாசிக்கப்படுகிறது.

கல்யாணத்துக்கு நெருக்கும்

பழுத்த காதலிகளிடம்

இன்னும் வயதுக்கு வராத

உங்கள் தங்கையின்

திருமணத்தைப்பற்றிப் பதறுகிறீர்கள்...

உங்களை நம்பி ஓடி வந்து

மாலை மாற்றிக்கொண்டவளிடம்

'என் அம்மாவைவிட்டு 

வந்துவிட்டேனே' என்று

புலம்புகிறீர்கள்..

அடுப்படியில் வெந்து விறுவிறுக்க

மனைவி தயாரித்த மணத்தக்காளிக் குழம்பை

உறிஞ்சிக்கொண்டே,

'என் அம்மா வைத்தால்

ஊரே மணக்கும்' என்கிறீர்கள்...

'என் மனைவிக்கு மிகவும் பிடித்தது

மல்லிகைப் பூ' என்று

கைம்பெண்ணிடம் பூ வாங்கும்போது

முணுமுணுக்கிறீர்கள்...

வாழ்வின் விளிம்பில்

ஊசலாடிக்கொண்டு இருப்பவளிடம்

எப்படி உங்கள் பெண் குழந்தைகள்

தேவதைகளாக இருந்து

உங்களைக் காக்கிறார்கள்

என்று வியக்கிறீர்கள்...

மரணப் படுக்கையில் இருப்பவளிடம்

உங்கள் மனைவி பிரசவத்தில்

பிழைத்த கதையையும்

விபத்தில் சிக்கியவளிடம் உங்கள்

குருதிக் கொடையால் கண் விழித்த

கல்லூரிப் பெண்கள்பற்றியும்

விவரிக்கிறீர்கள்...

பிள்ளையற்றவளிடம் உங்கள்

பாட்டி பெற்ற பதினாறைப் 

பட்டியலிடுகிறீர்கள்...

நாட்டியக்காரியின் வீட்டை

நாடி வந்துவிட்டு

அவள் காலை நக்கிக்கொண்டே

உங்கள் வீட்டுக் 'குத்து விளக்கை' எண்ணிக்

கண்ணீர் உகுக்கிறீர்கள்...

காதலோடு நீங்கள் பேச ஆரம்பிக்கும்

ஒரு பொழுதேனும் இடைமறித்து

'அந்த மகிழம்பூ மரத்தடியில் வைத்து

மகேந்திரன் கொடுத்த முத்தத்துக்கு

ஈடாகாது எதுவும்' என்று

சொல்ல வேண்டும்.

கண்ணகிகளை மாதவியாக்கும்போது

நீங்கள் நகுலன் அல்லது

சகாதேவனாகிறீர்கள்.

இடம் பொருள் ஏவலற்றுப்

பிற பெண்களைப்பற்றிப் பேசும்

ஆண்கள் அறிக,

உங்களுக்கான முத்தம்

வேறொரு உதட்டில்

இடப்பட்டுவிட்டது!

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”அண்ணாச்சித் தெரு”

’அங்காடித் தெரு’ படத்தைத் திரைப்படம் என்று பார்க்க முடியாமல் போவதற்கு, ”காட்சிகள் கற்பனை அல்ல; அத்தனையும் அண்ணாச்சி கடைகளின் நிஜம்” என்பதை நாம் உணர்வதே காரணம். சில விமர்சனங்களில் சொல்லியிருப்பது போல காட்சிகளில் ஏதும் மிகை இருப்பதாக எனக்குத் தெரியவில்லை. எல்லாம் நாம் ’தெரிந்துகொள்ள விரும்பாத’ நிஜங்கள்.

அண்ணாச்சி கடைகளில் காலை 8 மணி (அல்லது அதற்கும் முன்னால்) முதல் இரவு 11-12 வரை ஓய்வேதும் இல்லாமல் வாரம் 6 நாள் தொழிலாளர்கள் வேலை செய்கிறார்கள். ஏழாம் நாள் ஏதாவது ‘படத்’துக்குப் போகிறார்கள். (”மதிய உணவுக்கு 20 நிமிஷம் தான் தருவார்கள்” என்று ரங்கநாதன் தெரு அண்ணாச்சி கடையில் வேலை செய்யும் பெண், முன்னொரு நாள் என் தங்கை போயிருந்தபோது சொல்லியிருந்தாள்). எந்த வகையிலும் நியாயப் படுத்த முடியாத இதற்குக் காரணம் கிராமத்து அறியாமை, மற்றும் கொடுமையான வறுமை. ஒருவர் விடாமல் எல்லா அண்ணாச்சிகளும் சின்ன வயதில் இப்படி மாடாக உழைத்து மேலே வந்திருப்பதால், ‘மாடாகத் தேய்வதே உழைப்பு’ என்ற பொய்யான எண்ணத்தில் இருக்கிறார்கள்.

அண்ணாச்சிகள் ஸ்டைல் -சம்பளத்திற்கு மேல் தங்க இடமும் மூன்று வேளை சாப்பாடும் தருவது. இதெல்லாமே சொற்பமாக சல்லிக்காசாக இருந்தாலும் அதை விட்டுச் செல்ல யாரும் விரும்புவதில்லை -பிற வேலைகளில் உள்ள “நிச்சயமின்மை’ பயமுறுத்துவதால். நம்மைப் போல் “labor law regulations" "exploitation of illiteracy" "abuse of poverty" என்றெல்லாம் பேசத் தெரியாத அந்தத் தொழிலாளர்களுக்கு நிச்சயமாகத் தெரிந்தது: இந்த வேலையை விட்டால் நடு ரோடு தான் கதி என்பது. அதனாலேயே வேலை பறி போவதை சிறிதும் விரும்புவதில்லை. ’கொத்தடிமை’, ’ஜெயில் கைதி’ என்றெல்லாம் நினைப்பதும் கிடையாது. வறுமை மற்றும் அறியாமை.

Child labor ஜப்பான் மற்றும் மேல்நாடுகளில் நினைத்துப் பார்க்கமுடியாத ஒன்று. Sexual harassment, power harassment, limited working hours பற்றியெல்லாம் இப்போது பெரிய கம்பெனிகள் மிகக் கவனமாக இருக்கின்றன. நமக்கு அதைப்பற்றியெல்லாம் அக்கறை இல்லை. அதிகாரிகளும் ‘நம்ம பை கொஞ்சம் நிறைந்தால் சரி’ என்று இருக்கிறார்கள். அதுவரை Demand-Supply தியரியின் படி அண்ணாச்சிகள் காட்டில் அடைமழை தான்.

அண்ணாச்சிகளைக் ‘குறிவைத்து’ அடிக்கும் இந்தப்படத்திற்கு அண்ணாச்சிகள் தரப்பில் கூடிய சீக்கிரம் அரசியல் ரீதியாக எதிர்ப்பு வரலாம். (Aftar all, முதல்வரின் ‘துணைவி’ அண்ணாச்சி ஆளாச்சே!)

(படத்தின் எளிமையான மெயின் காரக்டர்களும் ‘கனியிருப்பக் காய் கவர்ந்தற்று’ போன்ற வரிகளை ஜெயமோகன் நைஸாக நுழைத்திருப்பதும் என்னைக் கவர்ந்தன. ஸ்னேகா வருவது போன்ற கலகலப்பான காட்சிகளைக் கூட்டியிருக்கலாம்).

சேர்ந்து வாழ்ந்தார்?

திருமணத்திற்கு முன் ஒரு
ஆணும் பெண்ணும் சேர்ந்து வாழும் (cohabiting) மேல்நாட்டு வழக்கம் நம்மால் ஜீரணிக்க முடியாதது. நம் கலாச்சாரத்தை ‘ஆ, ஊ’ என்று புல்லரித்து, மேல்நாட்டவரை ‘சீ’ என்று பார்ப்பவர்களுக்கு இது ஒரு ‘லட்டு’ மாதிரி பாயிண்ட். என்னதான் தனிமனித உரிமை அது, இது என்று மேல்நாட்டவர் சொன்னாலும், பின் திருமணம் என்ற ஒன்றை ஏனய்யா இன்னும் வைத்துக்கொண்டிருக்கிறீர்கள் என்று கேட்கத் தோன்றும். ’திருமணத்திற்கு முன் உறவு’ (premarital sex) என்பதும் நம்மூரில் கிட்டத்தட்ட இதே நிலையில் சிலவருடம் முன் வரை இருந்தது; இப்போது அங்கங்கே ‘இலைமறை காயாக’ நடந்து வருகிறது -அதை ஓப்பனாக ஒத்துக்கொள்ளும் அளவுக்கு இன்னும் நாம் தேறவில்லை. திருமணமாகாமல் குழந்தை என்பது நம்மூரில் நினைத்தும் பார்க்க முடியாதது; அமெரிக்காவில் சகஜம். (சென்றமுறை என் மகளுடன் அவள் ஹைஸ்கூலுக்குப் போனபோது சில மாணவிகள் புகை பிடிப்பதைப் பார்த்து ‘திடுக்’கிட்டேன். "Oh dad, some have even babies" என்றாள் மகள்! )


நான் எழுத வந்தது அதைப் பற்றியல்ல. சமீபத்தில் இந்திய சுப்ரீம் கோர்ட் சேர்ந்து வாழ்தலும், திருமணத்திற்கு முன் உறவும் சட்டப்படி எந்த வகையிலும் குற்றமல்ல என்று சொல்லியிருக்கிறது. நமக்குத் தெரிந்தது தான்; அதில் ஒன்றும் ஆச்சர்யம் இல்லை. அந்த சுப்ரீம் கோர்ட் நீதிபதி ஒருபடி மேலே போய் சேர்ந்து வாழ்தலுக்கு ஆதரவாக இந்து மதத்திலிருந்து கிருஷ்ணன் - ராதாவை உதாரணம் காட்டி பேசியிருக்கிறாரே, அது தான் என்னைக் கவர்ந்தது!

எனக்குத் தெரிந்தது கிருஷ்ணன் நம்ம மு.க. போல் மனைவி, துணைவி என்று பாமா-ருக்மணியுடன் வாழ்ந்தது மட்டும்தான். ராதாவுடன் சின்ன வயதில் ‘அப்படி, இப்படி’ சில்மிஷம் பண்ணியதாகவும், ராதா அந்த ‘கிக்’கிலேயே ஏங்கியதாகவும் தான் படித்திருக்கிற்னே தவிர, அவர்கள் சேர்ந்து வாழ்ந்தது பற்றித் தெரிந்திருக்கவில்லை. சு.கோ.நீ. சொல்லியிருப்பதாலும், பி.ஜே.பி. கண்டனம் கூடத் தெரிவிக்காததாலும் நிஜம் என்றே நம்ப இடமிருக்கிறது. சேர்ந்து வாழ்ந்த கடவுளை வணங்கும் நாட்டில் அந்த வழக்கம் சுத்தமாக இல்லாமல் போய் எல்லாம் ‘முறைப்படி’ என்று ஆயிற்று. முற்றும் துறந்த முனிவராக ஒரு முறையோடு வாழ்ந்த ஜீசஸை வணங்கும் நாடுகளில் முறையில்லாமல் வாழ்வதே முறையாகிவிட்டது. முரண்!

அடுத்தமுறை தீபிகாவுடன் கிறுஷ்ணன் கோவிலுக்குப் போகையில் சந்நதிக்கருகில் நின்று “இன்னா நைனா, சின்ன வயசில குளிக்க வர்ற பெண்கள் கிட்ட சேலை திருடறது, சேர்ந்து வாழ்தல்ன்னு படா கில்லாடியா இந்துகீறே..! கலக்கிட்ட மாமூ..” என்று சொல்லவேண்டும். (முன்பொருமுறை எம்பெருமான் திருமுருகக்கடவுள் வள்ளி-தெய்வானையுடன் திருக்காட்சி அருளும் திருச்செந்தூர் கோயிலில் "எனக்குப் பிடித்த கடவுள் முருகன் தான்" என்றேன். அவள் ஏன் என்று கேட்கவில்லை).