Will You Walk With Me? The Final Part

My Dear GFs,

First accept my hearty congratulations. To walk with a mofussil accountant along the streets of a mofussil town is no easy accomplishment. I am sure it would have taught you enormous patience. When your wonderful husbands hold your chin and ask you, “Honey, where did you learn this kind of patience - something I have not come across during the xx years of our marriage?” , tell him about me.

Ok, it’s time to go now. Take out your make-up kits, arrange your hair, have a glance at your beautiful form. If you don’t have a mirror you can use the dark glass of any vehicle that is parked in <st1:Street><st1:address>Vakkil New Street</st1:address></st1:Street>.

<st1:City><st1lace>Madurai</st1lace></st1:City>, in those days, was one town which gave a realistic shape to the adage, “Birds of the same feather flock together” in its town-planning process. All the advocates of <st1:City><st1lace>Madurai</st1lace></st1:City> had their office-cum-residence in this street and hence the name. We had (and still substantially have) all our jewellers in one place (<st1:Street><st1:address>South Avani Moola Street</st1:address></st1:Street>).

<st1:Street><st1:address>Vakkil New Street</st1:address></st1:Street> used to be a very calm residential area in the 60s. In those days all the Courts in <st1:City><st1lace>Madurai</st1lace></st1:City> were functioning in Thirumalai Nayaker Mahal, the Nayak king’s palace. (The courts moved to the new complex in Northen Madurai only during the seventies) The courts were just a minute’s drive from the <st1:Street><st1:address>Vakkil New Street</st1:address></st1:Street>. The lawyers had a peaceful, contented life here. Literature and fine arts flourished. The lawyers were the patrons of many sabhas and cultural associations in the city.

Now Vakkil new street is full of fruit vendors. (Pazha Commission Mandi is the name that’s given to the fruit sellers here).It is difficult to find a place in the platform to walk. Most of the time we have to walk on the road itself an activity which the Maduraiites have perfected to an art form. We manage to escape the passing vehicles and start inching towards our destination.

On our left side we see the door number 155. Now this is quite special to me. I pause for a micro second every time when I cross this building. A wholesaler of fruits has his shop here in this place. So what’s so special about 155, <st1:Street><st1:address>Vakkil New Street</st1:address></st1:Street>?

Let’s pause here and take a walk down my memory lane. <st1:Street><st1:address>155 Vakkil New Street</st1:address></st1:Street> happened to be the office of a lawyer, popularly known as VSR in the legal circles.

 

I have told you that I was adopted by my uncle, my father’s sister’s husband in 1972. He hails from Varalotti and his full name is Varalotti Srinivasa Rengaswamy Iyengar.

Now you know how I got my pen name. I am using his name Varalotti Rengasamy only to repay a millionth of what he gave to me. He gave me not just my initials; in a way he gave me my life and made me into what I am today.

Our family (that is my biological parents, my brothers and sister) and my aunt’s (father’s sister and her husband – they did not have any issues) family were living together as one joint family.

When I was doing my seventh grade VSR had to undergo a cataract surgery. It was early 70s and the medical science had not advanced this much. For a long time he could not read the briefs, the law journals and other materials. I was asked to read them out for him.

But that great man did not just use me as his clerk. He would insist that I should have a dictionary handy. And made sure that I understood the meaning of every word I read. He would pause many times to quiz me on the meaning, and even the rationale of the statements I had just read. Unknown to myself I was building up my command over English. And unknown to myself I was also honing my argument skills.

Lawyers would sum up their arguments after the trial is over. Whenever an argument was due VSR would dictate the arguments to me. I would write them in long hand. He had a phenomenol memory. He did not need the background paper. It was mainly for me.

Once he had to argue a very difficult case at the <st1:street><st1:address>Melur Court</st1:address></st1:street>. (Melur is a small town 30 kms from <st1:city><st1lace>Madurai</st1lace></st1:city> in the <st1:city><st1lace>Madurai</st1lace></st1:city> – <st1:street><st1:address>Chennai Highway</st1:address></st1:street>) He asked me to go with him. I was only too happy to cut my classes on that day. I had taken down the arguments the previous day.

I sat in the visitors gallery in the court watching VSR give one of his sterling performances as a trial lawyer. He had told me that he would ask me during the lunch break if he had omitted any points that he had dictated earlier.

And when he asked, I told him with awe and reverence, “Not only you did not omit a single point, but added several, that were not in the original text.”

“I should not let my own earlier preparation limit my performance,” was his reply.
Now I have many friends who are lawyers just by qualification. In those days even before I finished schooling I was a lawyer in all ways except by qualification.

And the credit goes to this great human being, VSR.

When I had to choose a career I thought it was all pre-ordained. I told him that I was going to be a lawyer. He told me with a heavy heart.

“No Sridhar, you cant be. Don’t ever try to be. I am already 74. I may not live long. It may take another 5, 6 years for you to qualify. By that time I will be gone. The profession has gone from bad to worse. I don’t want you to waste your life here. Let’s think of something else. First get your degree.”

What he said about the legal profession was true. And what he said about his life came true. He died before I could finish my degree. I was just 19 when he passed away. It was really tragic that he could not finish the work he started – of moulding me into a lawyer.

But he had given many precious gifts to me, the value of which, I was to realise much later.

 

About three months back my friend and I were in in a leading lawyer’s office for his case.

My friend had suggested some legal move to the lawyer. The lawyer is my close friend and he knows my background very well.

He asked me, “Sridhar, what do you think of this move suggested by your friend?”

I told him on his face that it won’t work. That would only instigate the other side to a vehement retalliation. And we would eventually lose the case.

You won’t believe. The lawyer stood up from his seat and shook my hands. “Only you could make such a powerful statement.”

He turned to my friend who was his client and said, “I knew that but I wanted Sridhar to confirm my view.”

My friend was puzzled. “After all Sridhar is an accountant like me and you are the town’s leading lawyer. How could he know about all these things?”

It was a herculean task for me to muffle my sobs. “Thank you Athi” (that’s how I used to call my adoptive father. He insisted that I should call him the same way even after my adoption) I mumbled as I ran out of the chamber trying to hide my tears.

A year after his death his portrait was unveiled at the Madurai Bar Council Hall in the Court Complex. I was asked to offer an eulogy to him. I was a lean 20 year-old lad who had just started apprenticing for the chartered accountancy course standing in a hall full of lawyers. The District Judge was the Chief Guest.

I quoted the immortal lines of Shakespeare (Do you know that today -23^rd April- is Shakespeare’s Birthday as well as his day of death) which Prof. John Sahayam had drilled into my young heart four years earlier, to describe VSR’s glorious life.

His life was gentle, and the elements
So mix'd in him that Nature might stand up
And say to all the world,
This was a man!

In moulding the character Shiva, Shalini’s father in the serial SHE I took a lot of VSR’s traits.

Sorry for making you emotional, but could not help it.

 

Let’s now continue walking beyond 155, <st1:street><st1:address>Vakil New Street</st1:address></st1:street>. We go further down and merge into the broad <st1:street><st1:address>North Veli Street</st1:address></st1:street>. Now this is the place where we have all the shops dealing in automobile spares. Some of them have sales running into crores of Rupees. What is Wall Street to <st1:state><st1lace>New York</st1lace></st1:state> is <st1:street><st1:address>NV Street</st1:address></st1:street> to <st1:city><st1lace>Madurai</st1lace></st1:city>.


But it’s economic importance has come down a lot after the introduction of the new generation cars. Now you don’t go to this street to buy automobile spares. You just send your car to the dealership and they get the parts directly from the manufacturers eliminating the traders in between.


Now we come to a traffic signal. In those days there was a bus stop there called “TVS”. Now the actual corporate headquarters of TVS is near the Railway Station. But then why should they call this the TVS stop? Because it was here that the founder of TVS, TV Sundaram Iyengar started a small shop. He used to sell wood, cycles and so many other things, before he ventured into his legendary automobile business.

Now we need to turn left and walk further down. We come across another junction. To our left is <st1:street><st1:address>Naicker New Street</st1:address></st1:street> and to our right is <st1:street><st1:address>Goods Shed Street</st1:address></st1:street>. The latter had a lot of Doctors’ clinics in those days. We go straight and in a few minutes we reach our destination – <st1lace><st1lacename>Nehru</st1lacename> <st1lacename>Alalasundara</st1lacename> <st1lacename>Vinayakar</st1lacename> <st1lacetype>Temple</st1lacetype></st1lace>.


What had Nehruji to do with a Pillayar Koil? When he visited <st1:city><st1lace>Madurai</st1lace></st1:city> in the early 60s, his procession paused at the <st1:street><st1:address>West Masi Street-North Masi Street</st1:address></st1:street> junction and he should have cast a loving glance at the Pillayar statue standing there. And people immediately gave that name to the temple. There’s a huge pupil tree and beneath it stands this Vinayakar, the very embodiment of love.


I don’t even go inside the temple. I don’t even take off my shoes. I stand right on the road folding my hands in His direction.

“If you get to live your life once again, what choices would you make? And what specific boon would you seek from Him?” these are the usual questions at the interviews.


I have lived more than three-fourths of the life alloted to me. If ever I have the chance to respond to these questions, I will just say, “I feel that every choice I made in my life, right or wrong, good or bad, was inspired by His love. So I will do the same thing again. And I would only ask to love more, love better, and love more deeply.”


Ladies, we have now walked 3 miles. (about 4.5 kilometres). So let’s take an auto-rickshaw and return home. When I go alone I go by the bus. The only time I travel in the city bus, again a penance no less than walking over the AV bridge.


So how did you like the walk? And if I call you over again, will you come?

 

Dear Kitchuppa,

First things first. I have been hearing all nice things about you and your wife. But only today my forum had the honour of being visited by you.

You are perfectly right, Kitchuppa. In those days our parents did not bother us with what is to be done and what not to be done. But they spent quite a lot of time with us. They used to take us to movies, circus, temples, festivals and the like. Now the parents meet the child very rarely. I still remember a joke told by my friend several years ago.
In Mumbai one child asked his mother, 'Mommy who's this guy who comes home only on Sundays and does nothing but watches the TV?' Well there could not have been a more cryptic role on the dad's role these days.

Well said. I am ready. But the problem now is that will our grandchildren come to us lovingly as we went to our grandparents? I doubt that. Let's just wait and see.
Thanks for your fb and let me say again, Welcome to this forum.

regards,