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The tiled house on Draupadi Amman Koil Street, seemingly an extension of Sivan Koil South Street, close to the Amman temple and not far from Varadaraja Perumal temple, seemed to be at least a century old. The house located on a lane, opposite to the Model High School in Thopputhurai certainly has a wonder to behold.
A young lady welcomed us as we had comfortably perched ourselves on the pyol (thinnai) abutting the inner precincts of the house. She urged us to step into the inner hall (nadu kattu) through the corridor passage (raezhi) next to the open roof (mittam).
We seated ourselves on a large bench that was placed alongside a wall facing the kitchen (adukkalai) at the far end of the hall. Adjacent to us, were family and solo photographs of many members of the family and of the extended family that the house had witnessed, come and go, over the many decades of its existence.
A thin, frail and aged lady unaided by any support, walked into our midst from an adjoining room and looked intently at my mother for a few seconds and questioningly uttered, “Aren’t you my niece Janaki's daughter? I had last seen you during your marriage many years ago. Paavam, destiny did not permit my brother Kittu to live long enough to witness your wedding ceremony.”
Next, she transferred her gaze to me and remarked, “Your daughter resembles mapplai more than you”. She then pinched the cheeks of my two year old son and asked him, “Do you know who I am?”. My son moved his head from left to right and vice versa (to indicate his ignorance). The old lady remarked, “Subbulakshmi da Subbulaskhmi, your Ellu Paati (great-great-grand-mother)
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A colleague of mine, (quoted above) with her family members had been on a short trip to Vedaranyam to pay annual obeisance to her family deity. This town is not far from the coastal tip at Point Calimere where the Salt Satyagraha yatra from Trichy was concluded by Rajaji. Vedaranyam derives its name from Vedaranyeswarar temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva, that was built during the reign of Aditya Chola (871-907 CE). The legend has it that the temple was closed for worship by the Gods and it was the Tamil poet saints, Appar and Tirugnanasambandar who sang peans to the Lord in order to open and close the temple door for the benefit of the mortals.
Having fulfilled the purpose of her visit, she, with her family hailed an auto rickshaw to visit a relative’s home in Thopputhurai, a sleepy neighbourhood village, few miles from Vedaranyam,
Subbulakshmi is 105 years old and has been a witness to about eight generations of her lineal family from her grand parents to her great great-grand children. She is active enough to manage her personal daily chores sans any assistance from anybody else in the household. She doesn’t even use a walking stick. Though beset with some hearing loss, she is active enough to cut vegetables for her great grand-daughter, watch the television and pass cryptic comments, read the newspaper daily, walk out to the pyol by the street to chat with the neighbours and visitors or bargain with the vegetable vendor. She still manages the household by keeping a tight leash on the finances.
The family gathered about a decade ago at the ancestral house to perform Subbulakshmi’s Kanakabishekam. (an auspicious ceremony conducted in a family where a 4th generation great-grandson performs the event for the first generation of his great-grand father/great-grand mother). It was a grand affair with most of the relatives attending the function.
Subbulakshmi hasn’t travelled beyond Nagapattinam, the district headquarters of Vedaranyam taluk, yet she is seized of most political, social, economic and other matters affecting the state and the Nation.
Subbulakshmi experiences each passing day to live her moments, cherishing every minute of her life and looks forward to many more years of happy, joyous living and a meaningful existence.
