Crack an egg on my behalf for him

Crack an egg on my behalf for him

If you think this article is anything to do with non vegetarian stuff, rest assured you are wrong. I am a vegetarian hailing from an Iyer family and tried to be a Vegan for a couple of years and then gave up to be a vegetarian, yet again.  Much as I would have wished to return to being a Vegan for a life time.  Of course, of late, it is a different matter altogether that an Iyer or an Iyengar does not carry the same  respect, that he / she once commanded ,  considering that  there are black sheep who  spoil the credibility/scenario of the pristine glory of the sect by their bad eating habits and drinks. And that’s a shame.

When I go for my constitutional each morning I return with a bag of vegetables from the market.  Usually the vegetable shop is crowded with people in the mornings every day, not because others go for their constitutional and return like me, but because it is a morning market and the vegetables are freshly unloaded from the Koyambedu market.

There are many people who are common faces by virtue of being in the same locality. However, since I am like a nomad, travelling from place to place, I am seen as someone who suddenly disappears, only to show up yet again one fine morning.  Also, the fact that we have our own essential vegetables from our organic garden including Coconuts, Ripped gourd, Snake gourd, Raddish, Aloe vera, Tomatoes, Brinjals, Ladys’ Finger, Cluster beans, Oregano, Curry leaves,  Colocasia or Arbi, Bananas,   Vazhai thandu, Greens and , not to mention, the seasonal mangoes (which although belongs to  neighbours , lends much fruits to us ), does not warrant me to go daily to the vegetable shop, except when supply at home is reduced. I opine that the Universe reveals its secrets to those who dared to follow their hearts, if ever you think you can’t have a good kitchen garden in an apartment.

When I went to the  shop  after my trip last Winter from Parthy ,  a  Muslim gentleman  slightly elder to me , known to public as ‘Bhai’  said , “ Enna Ma , eppdi irukkenga , romba naal aache paathu”  and smiled . I too wished him and said I have been on travel and as such doing well.    Bhai is known to be a very humorous man, a good soul with no bad intentions, and yet one with a sharp tongue for sarcasm .  He would nag the women coming to buy vegetables and they would often remark, “Bhai , Engala vittoodu, kaalangaarthale ippdi thollai pannadhey”. He would find a way to converse humorously to every woman, no matter who lands up at the shop. None was spared, not even the poor shopkeeper lady. But they were all used to him and his merry ways. He has a lot of children and would rant openly saying he has completed all that he has to do and they are all well settled in life , so when Allah calls him, he is geared.

It was my turn to face the tune with him one day. Normally, I know the prevailing market prices and would carry just enough cash with me during my walks. On one such occasion, I found the price of some vegetables to be much more than i anticipated. So I asked the shop keeper why the steep rise. The shop keeper said, “Amma what to do? on some days the market is so. In fact I thought about it when I was at Koyambedu and hence picked only a small quantity for sale to play it safe. May be the price will come down tomorrow.”

Meantime, Bhai , taking the opportunity said “ Yes, what to do ? We are forced to buy vegetables and eat instead of meat. Look at our plight.  We are Muslims and eating vegetables.  Meat has become costly, so can’t afford it.  Here you say vegetables have become costly.  Ennatha solla, idha enga poyi solla?’, 

 Bhai spared no moment to tease me and say the prices of non vegetarian food went up thanks to Iyers and Iyengars to make statements which gave me a jolt as he reeled out the latest statistics. The feelings of people around when the word ‘Iyer’ or ‘Iyengar’ is pronounced, is something akin to raising not just their eyebrows up but also  their sharp ears.  And that’s not surprising. Phew!  I went red as a tomato.   I never would respond, no matter what, until one day he asked me, “Where do you stay and are you studying somewhere?  I seem to know you but can’t place you.  Every day I see you going straight and turning left and soon disappear, but won’t you ever talk to people?  You are in a tearing hurry to buy your vegetables and promptly leave. You seem like a no nonsense girl but that smile of yours is beguiling and don’t know how to interpret you.”

I smiled and said, “Bhai, I am a healer.  I am an Iyer but don’t take non vegetarian food.  I live close by and I am a former student of SIET College.”   He was happy to hear that.  He was from that very same college and I wasn’t aware of that until one day I met him at the bank and he revealed it.  He said he knew every student out there from the college but he didn’t seem to have seen me ever in college and asked which year I passed out. Not surprising, for even when I was at college, I hardly studied a week or more there, as I was at Jaslok Hospital, Bombay most of my college days, looking after my mum who had a renal transplant there.    He had by then done his spade work and come to know me as the bank lady called out my surname. He was surprised to hear I was related to Kalyanam, who he said was well known to all in the college for his lively presentations to students.  From that day onwards, he has great reverence, not sure what facts he gathered of me or from whom, but of late, I don’t get to see him.  And that troubles me. Hoping all is well with that merry old chap and that the New Year 2018 continues with him being his usual self as I did enjoy his snide remarks with others and his sarcastic, yet relevant, nonstop off beats in the local language after a brisk walk.  I would often bite my lip silently to ensure I don’t go into peals of laughter in the presence of all.  

He is not someone who is adept with the internet or is in Facebook.  He is just an old, fun-loving crackpot who makes others to smile by his enticing conversations and enlivens the morning by his early morning darshans chewing the neem stick in his mouth! So much so that the busy local women would often remark, “enna Bhai ki inniki pozhudu pogaliya ? Poi velaiya paru pa. Engalukku ethaniyo velai bendu nimira keethu, unna madiri illa enga pozhappu.”

But all said and done, life has shades of colors and we do miss someone, possibly including  even a doggie or pet during our solitude walks, who we have gotten accustomed to see at a particular dent of the road.  That dog could be anybody’s for all we care and we get used to inquiring if all’s well  and contemplate on our mind whether the dog has changed its route , its timing of walk or whether we have lost out on our time sense, etc., etc.,  for  no wonder it is said , old habits die hard. We live on hopes and long to see it again. Sweet encounters and memories fill our minds for long.  Alexander Graham Bell rightly said, “When one door closes the other opens but we so often look so long and regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the ones which open for us.”

For sure he wouldn't have gone to visit Pakistan. The next time you get to meet Bhai, the unsung hero of Alwarpet, give him my thoughts, New Year & Republic day wishes . Crack an egg on my behalf for him. Cheers! Thank You.

MALINI KALYANAM alias USHA

The Writer is a Holistic healer , HR Consultant,  conducts workshops  on soft skills, Yoga-Dance-Mudra practitioner and trainer, Garden enthusiast and Environmentalist, Pottery artist and teacher, Tarot card reader , Angel therapist, Color and Switch words therapist.

PS: The words in Tamil are provided such as he worded them, to give it the local flavor . Truly sorry, for translating them will mean injustice and deprive one of the liveliness of the article.