THE DUET: BENGALI EMBRACES MALAYALAM

Salil-da had another wife, Malayalam was a mistress

Malayalam owes it to the serendipity of Ramu Kariat.In the mid-1960s he was determined to make a cinematic statement. He was mesmerized by the scriptwriter of Do Bigha Zamin(1953) and music composer of Madhumati(1958). Ramu Kariat, Director of the epoch-making film, Chemmeen(1965), met that script writer and composer, Salil Chowdhury. Madhumati had two stalwarts and was scripted by Ritwick Ghatak; its Editor was Hrishikesh Mukherjee, who later edited Chemmeen, Ezhu Rathrikal and Nellu.

 

Salil Chowdhury

It was not music that changed Salil's life; it was the story, Rikshawalla that he wrote in the early 50s. His close friend Ritwick Ghatak wanted to make it into a film. But when Bimal Roy visited Kolkata, Ritwick made Salil tell him the story. It was shot in Hindi in 1953 as the famous Do Bigha Zamin. Bimal Roy wanted initially Salil to write the script only but was asked to do the music later. Rickshawalla finally made in Bengali in 1955 was a flop. His debut in Bengali was Poribortan(1949).It had a chorus and a solo,Abujh manre bal morey.Debabrata Biswas, whom he knew from the Indian People's Theatre Association(IPTA )days, sang the debut song for him(source: Wikipedia). Debabrata had sung some of Salil's protest songs.Mahabharoti(1994) was Salil's last  Bengali movie.

Salil Chowdhury(1922-1995) was born in Kothaliya, Sonarpur in the 24 Parganas district of West Bengal; it was also the birthplace of Subash Chandra Bose. Salil spent his childhood in the village, of Harinavi. His father, Dr Gyendra Mohan Chowdhury was working in a tea garden in Assam. The childhood days Salil spent in Assam made him a musician. His father had inherited a lot of Western classical records and a gramophone from the departing Irish doctor. Salil listened to Beethoven, Mozart, Chopin and Tchaikovsky. He heard the chirping of birds in the jungles and listened to Assamese folk music. Mozart, who died at 35 and created six hundred compositions, was his favourite. He used to joke later that he was Mozart reborn. He taught himself flute. He learnt Piano, violin and Esraj.

He also imbibed progressive ideas from his father who used to stage plays with the coolies and tea garden workers. According to Reghu Chakraborty, Salil's friend and close associate, financial difficulties, pushed Salil to choose music as his vocation. His father, who resigned from his job in Assam, died suddenly. It fell on Salil to look after the family were eight brothers and sisters. When he joined the Bangabashi College in Kolkata in 1944, he became part of the Communist Party. He took part, as a worker in the peasant movement, in the Tebhaga struggle of the Kisan Sabha. At that time,share-cropping peasants had to give half their harvest to the owners of the land; the demand of the tebhaga (sharing by thirds) movement was to reduce the share to one-third. His first protest song was Bheschhe baaner Jale, when he was only 21.

Sabita

Salil joined the IPTA of the Party as a flute player. The song, Kono ek gayer Bodhu he composed when he was 27 became very popular. It infused a new wave to Bengali music. In the mid-sixties, he drifted away from the movement disliked the infighting in the party, the petty jealousies over his success and the Party's attempts to control the artistic content of his work.

One more incident shook his life: he fell out with the singer, Hemant Kumar.

Manna Dey with Sulochana

It was just after the split in the Party that he got the call from Kerala. Chemmen released on 19 August 1965 won the national award for best feature film and Marcus Bartley won the gold for Cinematography at the Cannes Festival. Salil Da introduced Manna Dey to Malayalam, though Manna Dey had married Sulochana of Kannur in Kerala, in 1953. Sulochana rehearsed him for several days to get the pronunciation right. Her father Kumaran had a business in Mumbai. She sang the duet, Ami Tomaro Shongey Bendeehi amaro pran with Manna Dey at a Rabindra Sangeeth recital organized by the Indian Cultural League in May 1948. Manna Dey was teaching Rabindra Sangeeth in Mumbai. Love blossomed."I can claim without the slightest hint of embarrassment that all the love songs I ever sang following our marriage are dedicated exclusively to her," he wrote in his autobiography.

SONG 1: MANASA MAINE VARU/FILM:CHEMMEEN/MANNA DEY

 

Now, let us listen to the Bengali version by Yesudas and Sabita in the 1979 movie, Srikanter Will. Several people are curious why Salil didn't retain, Manna Dey. This is the only song people don't dare to attempt in Kerala-where is the initial humming of Manna Dey when Yesudas attempted?

SONG:NAAM SOKUNTALA TAAR/FILM:SRIKANTER TAAR/YESUDAS,SABITA

Here is the one by Hariharan, for the dubbed version of Chemmeen in Hindi, Chemmeen Lehren(1980). The movie was dubbed into English as The Anger of the Sea.

SONG: PYASA HAI MAN KYA KARU/FILM:CHEMMEEN LEHREN/HARIHARAN

The original of Puthanvalakkare is, Bagh Mein Kali Khili in the 1965 Hindi movie, Chand aur Suraj.

SONG: BAGH MEIN KALI/FILM: CHAND AUR SURAJ/ASHA BHOSLE

Kadalinakkare was based on the Bengali folk song,Hay,Hay,Herilam by Nirmalendu Chowdhury.Salil da wanted Lata Mangeshkar to sing Kadalinakkare; She had a fever, so, Yesudas lent the voice!

SONG: HAY HAY HERILAM/NIRMALENDU CHOWDHURY

   

Salil Da composed music for 70 Hindi,41 Bengali and 27 Malayalam movies and one Malayalam album.111 songs in Malayalam. Out of 27, four were background scores: Abhayam(1970), Dweep(1977), Vellam(1984)and Vasthuhara(1991). After Chemmeen, the next in Malayalam was Ezhu Rathrikal(1968), directed again by Ramu Kariat. It had the Bengali, Kamal Bose, as a Cameraman. Lyrics again by Vayalar Rama Varma. The song, Kaadaru Masam by KJ Yesudas is still fresh.

SONG 2:KAADARU MASAM/FILM:EZHURATHRIKAL/YESUDAS

 

But the rendering of a five-line poem, evoking the depth of night, by PB Sreenivas is haunting. It has no percussion, only the piano chords to seize the mysteries of the night. The only song PB Sreenivas did for Salil is my favourite. The lyric is unique.

SONG3:RAATHRI,RAATHRI/FILM:EZHU RATHRIKAL/PB SREENIVAS

I remember  Kakkakarumbikale sung by Yesudas, Anto, KP Udayabhanu and Latha Raju too. The song, Makkathu Poyvarum was composed by Latha's mother, Santha P Nair in Salil's absence. Salil scored background music for the 1970 movie, Abhayam directed by Ramu Kariat. The music was by Dakshina Moorthy. It had 13 songs/poems.

For the first time, ONV Kurup teamed up with Salil Da for Swapnam (1973) directed by Babu Nanthancode. Madhu and Nanditha Bose were the leading pairs. All five songs are still remembered: 1. Mane Mane 2.Kanakuyile 3. Nee Varu Kavyadevathe 4. Sarike, En Sarike 5. Sourayudathil. Babu the director, later left movies and became a priest, with the name, Brother Thoma. His last movie had this name on the credit card. He was an Adayar Film Institute product. He studied Cinematography, and was a tutor in the Institute for a brief period, under T Vaiyadurai, his guru and dept Head. He worked there for two years there as a production manager. Cameraman Nivas and actor Sudheer were his friends. Nivas had been the cameraman for Bharathiraja, and through him, Babu knew Bharatiraja.

His first movie was Dhakam (1972), in Tamil, and it was a flop. He was assisted in the script by Vaiyadurai and K K Raman; Vaiyadurai wielded the camera. The cast included  Muthuraman, Nandita Bose, Sundarrajan, Pandharibai, Rajakokila, Renuka Parvathi, and Jayaseelam. One of the lyricists on the credit card is Bharati- Bharathiraja?

After becoming Brother Thoma, he gave up chappals. He was seen walking barefoot on the Merina beach, in the scorching son. He didn't join any Church and was a self-styled evangelist. He used to deliver public sermons in Nagercoil towards the end. Former minister B Wellington and owner of Madras Cafe, Narayanan decided to launch a movie project with Baby. When they boarded the train from Cochin to meet him in Chennai, he took a train to Kerala, to avoid them. Thus he left filmdom.

SONG4:NEE VARU KAVYADEVATHE/FILM:SWAPNAM/YESUDAS

Original of Mane, Mane was,the 1971 Tarun Banerji Song, Aarderi nei Aschi.

SONG:AARDERI NEI AAMI ASCHI/TARUN BANERJI

It was recycled into Hindi by Salil, using Yesudas, in 1978, for an unreleased film.The song was,Gaa Mann mere gaao Tarane.

  

  

In those days, novels were adapted into movies. Chemmeen by Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai, Abhayam by Perumbadavam Sreedharan and Swapnam by P Kesava Dev. The next film of Ramu Karyat was adapted from Nellu by P Valsala(1974). It was the debut movie of Cinematographer Balumahendra and actor Mohan Sharma. Prem Nazir and Jayabharathi were in lead roles. Jayabharathi was brought in because Saradha refused the role of a tribal woman. Ramu asked K G George, SL Puram Sadanandan and Valsala to write the script. He took portions from the three and re-wrote. Hrishikesh Mukherjee was the Editor again.
There were four songs penned by Vayalar. Though people think that Manna Dey sang only one song, Manasa Maine, he sang, Chemba, Chemba with Jayachandran in Nellu.

SONG5: CHEMBA CHEMBA/FILM:NELLU/MANNA DEY, JAYACHANDRAN

Lata Mangeshkar sang her only song in Malayalam,Kadali,Chenkadali.Yesudas and Madhuri sang,Neelaponmane and Kadu Kuliranu by P Suseela. 

Original of Chemba Chemba was O bhai re bhai from the Bengali movie, Marjina Abdullah(1973).

SONG:O BHAI RE BHAI/FILM:MARJINA ABDULLAH/MANNA DEY

Kadali,Chenkadali was adapted from Sandhya Mukherjee's song, Sajani, Go Sajani.

SONG:SAJANI GO SAJANI/GEETHASREE SANDHYA MUKHERJEE

See the original of Neelaponmane.

SONG:O NEEL NEEL PAKSHI/ GEETHASREE SANDHYA MUKHERJEE(1973)

  
Director N Sankaran Nair used Salil Da's talents for five of his films Leela (1975), Thulavarsham (1976), Madanolsavam (1978), Ee Ganam Marakumo (1978) and Chuvanna Chirakukal(1979). All the songs in Madanolsavam are evergreen hits. ONV once again teamed up with the Kamal Haasan movie, Rasa Leela. Four songs in the movie have stood the test of time;1.Manaykale Thathe 2.Neeyum Vidhavayo 3. Nisasurabhikal 4. Ayilyam padathe penne.

SONG 6:MANAYKALE THATHE/FILM:RASA LEELA/YESUDAS

                                          


But my favourite is Neeyum Vidhavayo by P Suseela because of the lyrical quality. The widow played by Jayasudha asks the full moon, You too a widow?

SONG 7:NEEYUM VIDHAVAYO/FILM:RASA LEELA/P SUSEELA
                                       

  

 It was during the research for this post that I  discovered, one song in Thulavarsham, Swapnadanam  Njan, was written by my former colleague, Chovallur Krishnan Kutty. Vayalar wrote,Keli nalinam andYamune Nee Ozhuku .These three were composed by Salil Da. Dakshina Murthy was the other composer. Hema Chowdhury was the heroine.

SONG 8:SWAPNADANAM NJAN/FILM:THULAVARSHAM/S JANAKI

Madanolsavam took Salil da to new heights, with ONV. All six songs were instant hits:1.Madaprave Va 2.Sandhye 3.Mele Poomala 4.Ee Malar Kanyakal 5.Nee Mayum Nilavo 6.Sagarame Santhamaka Nee...Nee Mayum Nilavo is ethereal, and my second favorite of Salil. A rare gem.

SONG 9:SAGARAME/FILM:MADANOLSAVAM/YESUDAS

SONG 10:NEE MAYUM NILAVO/FILM:MADANOLSAVAM/YESUDAS

Mele Poomala was sung by Salil's second wife, Sabita (Banerjee) Chowdhury with Yesudas. Salil had three daughters with his first wife, Jyoti (the marriage was on July 14,1952): Aloka, Tulika and Lipika. In Sabita, two daughters: Antara the singer, and Sanchari and the sons, Sanjoy and Bobby.

Aurina Chatterji, granddaughter of Jyoti, and daughter of Lipika, who lives in Mumbai/Toronto, Says that the Jyoti family used to refer to him as Bapi dadu. He was an infrequent visitor at,16, Hi Krest, Perry Cross Road, Bandra, Jyoti's house. Salil, according to Aurina, was a benevolent ghost. The walls of the house were plastered with his photographs. Salil was a tutor to Jyoti in Philosophy. Malayalees have an answer here, in why he gave only copies to Malayalam. It was definitely an aberration. Vayalar Rama Varma's wife's younger sister, Bharathi, became Vayalar's wife. I have seen the first wife as a domestic servant in my place, Tripunithura. N Mohanan, writer, and son of Lalithambika Antharjanam, who was with the Sahitya Akademi called me once to say that the Akademi has sanctioned a pension to Vayalar's wife. But they found he had another wife.

Aurina Chatterji

Now, we have another revelation in Malayalam by Saraswathi, daughter of Karoor Neelakanta Pillai, writer. She says, there was a proposal from Vayalar. As far as I know, Vayalar loved only one woman, the actress, Ragini, who was married to Madhavan Thampi. I was sitting in the actress, Padmini's home in Chennai, in 1987, talking to her. The children in the colony were playing cricket outside. Suddenly, two girls appeared in the room. One girl, I knew-Amala, is now the wife of Telugu superstar, Nagarjuna. The other girl was dark. Padmini, the one-time heroine of Rajkapur, introduced her as Lakshmi; the daughter of Ragini. The Travancore sisters, Lalitha, Padmini and Ragini, danced and were in the limelight for long. Ragini enjoyed her drinks. A genius may have other relationships. To be frank, the Jyoti branch is better. Aloka was a Professor, liked by her students.


Now I quote Aurina, verbatim:
One day, in our Bapi-bedecked hall, my older cousin told me in conspiratorial tones that Bapi had another wife and he had other children and that is why he lived in Calcutta, and that is why we rarely saw him.

Ramu Kariat

Aurina says then that she was a happily stupid child. She continues: I didn't think of my mother's devastation, nor the stigma of my grandmother in the 1960s in India....he once accompanied Charlie Chaplin on Piano...But for all his generosity, when it comes to the outside world, like so many luminaries before and after him, Bapi was less than exemplary in his personal life. He had abandoned a devoted wife, a wife he had fallen for while he tutored her in Philosophy, a wife he had secretly married much to the chagrin of her Brahmin father, a wife who selflessly clothed and fed and mothered many of the Film and Cinema aspirants who followed Bapi from small town Bengal. He abandoned his three little ones, the musically named Aloka, Tulika and Lipika, who to my shock and eternal admiration, harbour no regret against their deeply loving but absent father. He always disappeared behind the fragrance of his tobacco pipe...

Young Salil

Finally, Aurina asks some questions about him if he were alive now: What was it like to hide in toilet holes to escape the British? Did you really think Stalin was a good man? How about Brezhnev? Can you teach me how to create harmonies? What are your thoughts on Putin? What do you think of the CPI(m) now?
(Salil died when Aurina was 12)

Salil with pipe

 
SONG11:MELE POOMALA/FILM:MADANOLSAVAM/YESUDAS,SABITA

Sankaran Nair's Ee Ganam Marakumo saw the ONV-Salil combine again hitting the charts. The four songs in the movie are still known 1. Ee kaikalil 2.Kalakalam 3.Onapoove,Omal Poove 4.Rakuyile Urangoo...

Salil again tried Sabita with Yesudas.Rakuyile Urangoo had its original in Raat kuheli in the Bengali film,Rai Bahadur.Its Hindi version is  Chaand Kabhi in Sapan Suhane.

SONG 12: RAKUYILE /FILM:EE GANAM MARAKUMO/YESUDAS, SABITA

 For Salil,1975 was successful. Three commercial directors, Kunchako, Bhim Singh and P A Thomas commissioned him, proving  Salil a huge success in mainstream Malayalam Cinema. Kunchako invited him for Neelaponman,  Bhim Singh for Ragam and PA Thomas for Thomasleeha. It is also amazing to note that Kunchako used Marcus Bartley as the Cameraman for Neelaponman.A Cannes winner for Kunchako!The three songs out of five, penned by Vayalar are still hits:1.Kaadu Karutha Kadu 2.Kilu kilum 3.Theyyam Theyyam Thare.Theyyam Theyyam was based on his Bengali classic, Dhitang dhitang bole sung by Hemant Mukherjee(1954). Lata Mangeshkar's version followed in Aawaz (1956).

SONG:DHITANG DHITANG/HEMANT KUMAR

Salil met Hemant Kumar for the first time, in the house of Debabrata Biswas, in the early 40s. After joining the Communist Party in 1946, Salil spent most of his time in Jashoda Bhavan, where he took part in political discussions. In one such discussion, Krishno Bandopadhyay suggested to Salil to request Hemant to sing his songs. Salil met Hemant at his Indra Roy Road residence 1n 1948. The party had become illegal after the Calcutta Thesis. Hemant asked Salil to come up with something new since it was a difficult time. Salil went back and finished the half-written song.Kono ek Gayer Bodhu was born.Salil went underground; Hemant himself recorded it as a Puja number was a sensation.

SONG:KONO EK GAYER BODHU/HEMANT KUMAR

Its tune was copied in the 1979 film, Devadasi by Salil himself.

SONG 13: ORU NAL VISANNERE/FILM: DEVADASI/YESUDAS

Sharmila Tagore was there in Chuvanna Chirakukal.Among the four songs by ONV, people remember two. Neeyoromal was based on the 1973 Bengali song, Nayone tari from, Pasher Bari, sung by Dhananjaya Bhattacharya.Parannu poi nee came from, Mone pode Sei, in Antarghat.Hindi version is Kishore Kumar's Man kare Yaad in Aakhiri Badlaa.

SONG 14: NEEYOROMAL KAVYA/FILM:CHUVANNA CHIRAKUKAL/YESUDAS

 
Don't you think, this is a copy of Neelaponmane? Copying a Malayalam song himself!

SONG: NAYANE TARI/FILM:PASHER BARI/DHANANJAYA BHATTACHARYA

                                        
 

ROBERT VADRA,BRASS ,CRASS AND SCRAP

Not Only Vadra,Brass also has an Italian Connection

Brass is an alloy of copper and Zinc.Bronze is principally an alloy of copper and tin.But not always tin-it can be arsenic,phosphorous,aluminium,manganese or silicon.Brass is generally used for applications where low friction is required such as locks,gears,bearings,door knobs and musical instruments including horns,bells and saxophone.Its melting point is relatively low:900-940 degree centi grade,like when Robert Vadra lost his temper at a cub reporter.Vadra family was selling brass wares in Moradabad in UP.

Brass was used in Roman coinage and military equipment.So when it comes to military,brass is older than Ottavio Quattrocchi or Bofors gun.Roman coins Dupondi and Sestertii were brass.Hence the Jews boycotted brass.They in Palestine were against Roman authority.As you know,the Roman Governor,Pontius Pilate washed his hands off the famous crucifixion.Not that he was pious.That is politics.

Rahul,Priyanka,Miraya and Robert at Vir Bhumi

Robert Vadra met Priyanka Gandhi when he was 16.She was 13.I have always wondered how he manoeuvered the SPG to meet Priyanka.Once when I happened to enter the SPG ring around V P Singh in Rampur,UP,I had a horrifying time.The one important theory is that Robert's sister Michelle was a classmate of Priyanka;  Robert and Priyanka met at a party.Priyanka's School was Modern School, Delhi.It is not easy to subscribe to this view,though there maybe a speck of  truth in it.

There is a Quattrocchi connection to the love story. Priyanka and Rahul Gandhi grew up with Quattrocchi's son,Massimo.Robert used to visit the Quattrocchi home as a friend of Massimo.Robert studied in the British School,Delhi.He didn't go beyond plus 2,meaning he stopped studying after he met Priyanka.The Vadras were trading in brassware and artificial jewellery.Robert occasionally gifted the jewellery to Priyanka.Both Quattrocchi and Sonia Gandhi shared Vadra family's interest in antiques.Sonia,born as Edvige Antonia Albina Maino to a building mason,Stefano in Orbassano,Italy,is keenly interested in art.Data available with the Registrar of Companies shows that Robert along with his mother Maureen has stakes in Lambodar Art Enterprises India Pvt Ltd.Robert is proprietor of Artex Exports.He has antique stores in Delhi and Italy.

Some think that Sonia knew Quattrocchi in Italy.It is not so.An Italian,Molinari ,introduced Quattrocchi to the Gandhi family.During 1980-87 all major deals went to Quattrocchi.

Maureen Vadra with Priyanka

Robert,who became friendly with Rahul too,was a regular visitor at 10,Janpath.Without any planning,Priyanka once went to Robert's Moradabad home.Their marriage was according to Hindu customs,on 18 February,1997,after a clearance from IB on Robert's family.Robert's mother,Maureen wanted the marriage to be consecrated in the Sacred Heart Church.His father,Rajinder was against the marriage and disowned his son." I was not keen on it after Bofors and the treatment meted out to Maneka",he had revealed to the Outlook on January 21,2002."He is one of the cleanest people I have ever met",Priyanka said of Robert years later."He is someone who is completely comfortable in his own skin",she added."I gave up my life for Priyanka,fighting every day to not be a celebrity",Robert confessed.His acquisition of Priyanka was disproportionate to all his known sources of talent.He was dealing in scrap while marrying Priyanka.He frequented the Oasis discotheque and danced non stop at his niece's birth day party.

Rajinder

The Vadra family was originally from Sialkot,Pakistan.Rajinder's father with family had migrated during partition.Rajinder married Maureen Mc Donagh,an Anglo Indian of Scottish origin.By 2009 Robert's all close relatives were dead under mysterious circumstances.His sister Michelle died in a car accident in 2001 while returning from Jaipur.His elder brother Richard was found dead in September 2003 at his Vasant Vihar residence.It was said he "fell off the roof".His father Rajinder,who was called Eric, was found hanging with an ironing cord  in City Inn guest house in Yusuf Sarai on April 02, 2009.By that time he had separated from his wife.Robert had issued a public notice in January,2002 saying he has nothing to do with his father and brother.Both of them used to make recommendations to Congress CMs and office bearers.

Michelle

Rajinder,after his death was cremated emphasizing the fact that he was a Punjabi Hindu,the Punjabi family name being Vadhera.A report,Vadra Farm Hosts RSS School in The Indian Express dated 09 March 1998 said:"Sanjay Manu Vadera farm,the favourite retreat of the Vadras,has tastefully done-up farm house,a swimming pool and Saraswati Shishu Mandir-a school run by the RSS.Om Prakash Vadera,the family patriarch and uncle of Robert Vadra,says he donated the school to the RSS in 1995."

Mysteries and mystery deaths were not new to the Gandhi family.Sanjay Gandhi wed Maneka on 23 September 1974 at the house of Mohammad Yunus is a mystery.Why Yunus?You have the answer in MO Mathai's book.Sanjay had met Maneka,17,at a party in her uncle Major General Kapur's home on 14 December 1973.The party was thrown to celebrate the forth coming wedding of Kapur's son, Veenu,who was Sanjay's school friend.Kapur was the husband of Maneka's father's sister.

After Sanjay's accidental death,Maneka was thrown out of her house by Indira Gandhi.Maneka's father Lt Colonel Trilochan Anand was found dead in a field riddled with bullets.General Kapur killed himself.Maneka's brother disappeared.

Richard

Robert is the only commoner in India who is exempt from being frisked at airports.The others are the President,Vice President,The Prime Minister,Chiefs of Armed Forces and the Dalai Lama.Robert's name was added in the Warrant of Precedence by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security on 28 September,2005.Please remember Warrant of Precedence is to position,not to person.The only one appearing by name is Robert.It gives him immense freedom to handle antiques.

It is a solace that Priyanka follows Buddhist philosophy-she was taught Vipassana by SN Goenka.

Coming back to Massimo Quatrocchi-he is Ad visor to the Luxemburg based Clubinvest on business in India.It has an office in Bangalore.Massimo was in India when his father was arrested in Argentina on 06 February 2007.Priyanka is said to have helped him  sort out the CBI mess.

Brass is susceptible to stress corrosion cracking,especially from Ammonia.This defect was first discovered in Indian Army, in brass cartridge cases used for rifle ammunition during 1920s.Cartridges were stored in stables and ammonia concentration rose during hot summer causing brittle cracks.If something happens,Robert has a solace in the form of a Residency permit in Dubai. 

See my post,QUEEN PROPOSES,GOD DISPOSES

RUSSEL AND THREE IDLE MEN

They retreated to serenity

I enjoy laziness.Hence I left my job when I crossed the age,40.Of course,I had read the wonderful essay,In Praise of Idleness(1932) by Bertrand Russel.But I don't hold him responsible for my quitting the job.

When I called it a day,I didn't know much about Matthieu Ricard,Richard Cohen or Pico Iyer.All of them had retreated much earlier.

Russel

 One thing that I remember about Russel is that when he was having sex with a girl,her sister was the watch woman outside the door-I don't remember where I read it;it has to be in his autobiography.I have also read a book by his daughter.So,it seems Russel was not that much lazy!
When Pablo Neruda was having sex with a poetess,Spanish play wright Federico Garcia Lorca was the watchman below the tower:it is there in Neruda's autobiography.Neruda used to collect autographed panties from his women as keepsake.He won the Nobel prize because he was not lazy.
Russel quotes the famous story of the traveler in Naples. The traveler saw twelve beggars lying in the sun(it was before the days of Mussolini) and offered a Lira to the laziest of them.Eleven of them jumped up to claim it,so he gave it to the twelfth.
Russel doesn't subscribe to the conservative view which says "Satan finds some mischief for idle hands to do".What a man earns,he usually spends,and in spending he gives employment.As long as a man spends his income,he puts just as much bread into people's mouths in earning.The real villain is the man who saves.The expenditure of most civilized nations consists in payment for past wars or preparations for future wars.
Work,Russel observes,is of two kinds.One:altering the position of matter at or near the earth's surface relatively to other such matter.Two:telling other people to do so.The first is unpleasant and ill paid.The second is pleasant and highly paid.
My job was of the second kind.But I found it monotonous.So  retreated.In retreat there is silence and silence is the highest form of monotony.Or rather,sublimated monotony.A ragamalika!

Ricard

Matthieu Ricard decided to retreat when he completed his doctoral thesis in Molecular Genetics at the Pasteur Institute in Paris,under Nobel laureate Francois Jacob.So,when he got his PhD in 1972,he decided to forsake scientific career and to practice Tibetan Buddhism.He is now in the She Chen Tennyi Dar Gyeling Monastery in Kathmandu ,Nepal.
Matthieu Ricard was born in 1946 as Jean-Francois Ricard  in Aix-les-Bains,France,to renowned philosopher,Francois Revel.His mother was the lyrical abstract painter Yahne Le Toumelin.Ricard grew up among the French intellectuals.
Leaving France,he studied with Kanguur Rinpoche in the Himalayas.He was a close student of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche until Rinpoche's death in 1991.Ricard is a wonderful photographer of the Himalayas.Henri Cartier-Bresson said:"Matthieu's spiritual life and his camera are one."
His dialogues with his philosopher father,The Monk and the Philosopher and the book,The Quantum and the Lotus he co authored  with Trinh Xuan Thnan are best sellers.He is also the author of Tibet,an Inner Journey,Monk Dancers of Tibet,Himalayas:Journey to Enlightenment and Motionless Journey:From a Hermitage in the Himalayas.He has translated several Buddhist books including,The Life of Shabkar.
The researchers in the University of Wisconcin have found him the happiest man in the world.Neuro Scientist at Wisconcin,Richard Davidson wired up Ricard's skull with 256 sensors and the scan showed that while meditating on compassion,Ricard's brain produces a level of Gamma rays -those linked to consciousness,attention,learning and memory,never reported before in neuro science literature.This phenomenon is called neuroplasticity.The scan also revealed excessive activity in his left prefrontal cortex of brain compared to right,giving him an abnormally large capacity for happiness.Ricard has studied the brains of meditators,including himself, who have undergone a minimum retreat of three years.Since 1989,he is the French interpretor of Dalai Lama.

Cohen

Leonard Cohen(born 1934) after making his mark as a musician,poet and novelist,retreated to the Mount Baldy Zen Center near Los Angeles.Five years of seclusion followed;in 1996 he was ordained as a Rinzai Zen Buddhist monk and he took the name,Jikan,meaning silence.He was personal assistant to Kyozan Joshu Sasaki Roshi.Roshi appears in the documentary on Cohen's monastery years,Spring,1996.
Cohen,a Canadian Jew,second only to Bob Dylan,returned with the album,Ten New Songs in 2001. The album included the poem,The God abandons Antony by the Greek poet,Constantine Cavafy.I have seen a movie Cavafy (1996)based on the life of Cavafy by Greek director,Yivannis Smargdis.The film is dominated by silence.
I mentioned the Spanish play wright,Lorca in the beginning.Cohen named his daughter Lorca,in honor of the play wright.Lorca began to suspect his manager,Kelley Lynch in 2004.She shared it with Cohen and he found an unauthorized credit card transaction of $75000.Then he found that $ 5 million from his retirement/charity funds have gone and only $1,50,000 remained.Soon,his old business associates began to sue Cohen.In 2006,Cohen made his first public appearance in 13 years,with the Book of Longing.Cohen had suffered depression during much of his life.His early works included themes of depression,self-harm and suicide.Redemption became a theme in the post monastery years.
Pico Iyer (born in 1957)retreated to the cradle of Buddhism,Japan,in 1992.He lives in a village without cell phone,car,bike or television,with sporadic email access.He lives with his Japanese wife,Hiroko Takinuchi and two children from an earlier marriage.

Pico Iyer

Pico Iyer's writing goes back and forth between the monastery and the air port.He is the best travel writer in the world today.His articles have appeared seven times in the annual Best Spiritual Writing anthology.He has said about himself:"I am a multi national soul on a multi national globe on which more and more countries are polyglot and restless as airports.Taking planes seems as natural to me as picking up the phone or going to school.I fold up my self and carry it around as if it were an over night bag".Here,there is an inner search.Inevitable,because he is Sidharth Pico Raghavan Iyer.Sidharth in his name is Buddha and Pico is the Florentine neo-Platonist,Picodella Mirandola.His father Raghavan N Iyer and Mother Nandini Nanak Mehta had moved as academics from India to Oxford where Pico Iyer was born.Raghavan was Philosopher and political theorist.
The one favorite line of mine is from Milton's On His Blindness:They also serve who only stand and wait.
It is certain that one can have an alternate life.I am waiting for my Rinpoche.

see my post,RAIMON PANIKKAR HAD HIS ROOTS IN KERALA





 


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PARIKSHIT THE LAST KING AND THE OTHER PARIKSHIT

He Abdicated the Throne for a Panchangam

The last King of Cochin was known as Parikshit Thampuran (1876-1964). Though his real name was Rama Varma (Kunjunni) Thampuran, he was known as Parikshit because of the travails he had to undergo before his birth. He went through the kind of experiments the Pandava king, Parikshit of Mahabharatha had to undergo before his birth.

Parikshit Thampuran

Thampuran's mother, Amba/Manku Thampuran was not able to deliver the child even after two days after she started having labour pain. When the Ayurvedic medication by Thycaut Moos and Elamana Krishna Menon, was found fruitless, the family members decided to bring Dr D Gunther, Medical Officer, and father of Robert Gunther, from Ernakulam, and other doctors from the Cochin Fort, to do an operation. Dr Gunther said that they would be able to save either the mother or the child. The family began praying to the presiding deity, Sree Poornathrayeesa. Then, a Kshatriya lady (Nambishtathiri)servant in the Palace who was an expert in the ottamooli (treating with one wonder drug)treatment, came forward and said she would make a try. Dr Gunther grinned; he went to a room and sat there waiting for the tragic end.

Young Parikshit

The servant searched the Palace compound, made a juice with some medicinal plants, carried it on a wooden plank and entered the Queen's room. Within minutes, the cry of the newborn made the Palace jubilant-the mother had a sudden, easy delivery. Only Dr Gunther was unhappy. T M Chummar, who knew the King very well, records that, it was the famous Vaidya Madom Nambudiri, who experimented with a wonder drug, and it was before the arrival of, the doctors.

Parikshit, ChithiraThirunal, Airport/1949

The Royal family remembered the birth of the mythical King Parikshit and appended it to the name, Rama Varma.

The mythical Parikshit had succeeded Yudishtira as the Kuru King of Hastinapur. He was the grandson of Arjuna and Subhadra and the son of Abhimanyu and Uthara. Uthara was carrying her son in her womb when Abhimanyu was slain in the war by Kauravas. Ashwathama tried to kill the unborn child and the mother directed Bhrama-sheer asthra towards her tent. He had done it to avenge the killing of his father, Drona by the Pandavas. He even wanted to kill the unborn to finish off the whole race. Though he succeeded in his aim, Krishna appeared and gave life to the dead embryo. The child, Parikshit was born after the war. Krishna was a maternal uncle of Abhimanyu.

Coronation of Parikshit, Aug 1948, Durbar Hall/Cochin

Though it is well known that Thakshaka, the serpent King of Taxila caused the death of Parikshit due to a curse of a Brahmin, I read an alternate account while researching the story. The official wife of Parikshit was Madravati and her son, Janamejaya. But he had an unofficial Puthrika (lower caste) wife, Samika and a son, Sringin.It was Sringin who murdrerd Parikshit!

So there was a cover-up even during the mythical times. The Royal family decided that people should never know that the King had his death at the hands of a Dalit. Manusamhitha had denied equal rights to a puthrika wife and a puthrika son.

The first attempt to introduce modern medicine was made in Cochin in 1818 by a missionary, Rev J Dawson, who opened a dispensary in Mattancherry. It received a monthly grant from the government, but it was closed after a couple of years. In 1823, the Civil Surgeon of British Cochin was made ex officio Darbar physician, and a Dresser was attached to the jail at Ernakulam, while the Trichur jail was placed in the charge of the Dresser attached to the British Military detachment there. These three people began to show the advantages of modern medicine and surgery. In 1848, Dewan Sankara Warrier opened the first Government Hospital, the Charity Hospital in Ernakulam, which was developed into the present General Hospital. Just a year before the birth of Parikshit Thampuran, in 1875, a hospital was opened at Thrissur. 

People who do not know history see the swearing-in of upstart politicians on grounds like Ramlila Maidan, a revolution.What about the Coronation of Parikshit on the ground of the Durbar Hall in Ernakulam in August 1948?

Ariyittu Vazhcha Kovilakam 

Till Parikshit Thampuran, the Coronation or ariyittu vazhcha was held in Mattancherry in a very small cottage, called the Ariyittu Vazhcha Kovilakam. It was opened only for the coronation. There was a cot in the locked room in the cottage, only used during the coronation. The Zamorin of Calicut sent troops to seize it but was defeated by the Portuguese troops in 1557. In gratitude, the Cochin King gave them permission to build the Immanuel Fort; in reciprocation, they built the Mattancherry Palace. From then on, the coronation procession began from the Mattancherry Palace to the ariyittuvazhcha kovilakam. Then the King would take a dip in the pond. The locked room will be opened and he he would sit on the cot with an olakkuda (umbrella made of farm frond). History has it that one of the Cochin Kings, Rama Varma (1701-1721) had taken a vow not to wear the crown till he had reclaimed Vanneri, the land he lost to the Zamorin. So during the coronation, the Crown was placed on his cap. The priests performed the Vedic rituals, and rice was showered on the King as a blessing.

Ikkanda Warrier

After the coronation, the King would go to the Palliyarakadavu temple, opposite the Palace. Then he would proceed to the houses of the Tamil Brahmins to pay obeisance. The ceremony ended in the Coronation Hall of the Dutch Palace(the former Palace built by the Portuguese)where the King would hold the first Durbar. All this was changed by  Parikshit in one go.

We have scant regard for history. Part of the Ariyittuvazcha kovilakam, six cents, was used for the village office till 1995 when the activist Purushothama Mallya interfered. Now it is going to be a monument.

Parikshit Museum

Parikshit Thampuran was the son of Ottur Raman Nambudiripad and Amba/Manku Thampuran.The scholarly mother taught him initially and Nyaya was taught to him by his uncle, the abdicated King(1914) Rama Varma, he was the second prince to pass B A from the Presidency College, Madras, after the reigning King, Uthradam Thirunal Kerala Varma. They had, in fact, gone to the College together, but he could pass only two years later, in 1904, because he fell ill, after accompanying his uncle on a North Indian trip. They had gone to attend the Durbar in Delhi, in honour of the visiting Prince of Wales, Edward VII. After the Durbar, they went on a pilgrimage to Kasi and Rameswaram. His uncle delivered a speech in Sanskrit at Benares. He married the daughter of his uncle and Ittyanath Valiya Parukutty Nethyaramma, Ammukutty/Madhavi Amma. They had no children.

Among his works, Subodhini, the Logic text is prominent. He along with his classmate, K Rama Pisharody, wrote a commentary to Kalidasa's Sakuntakam, titled, Sarartha Deepika. Among his poems, Prahlada Charitam is famous. His articles in Malayalam were compiled by A D Hari Sharma, as, Dhalangal.

Parikshit Thampuran with the Jews/Painting at Synagogue

He took leadership in conducting the Scholars Assembly, every year at the Sanskrit College, in Tripunithura, from 1926. In 1960, the Chief Justice and Sanskrit scholar, M Pathanjali Sastri presided over the final session. In 1962, an Akshara Sloka festival was held in the palace, and eminent scholars such as A V Krishna Warrier, P C Vasudevan Elayath and K Achyutha Poduval, participated in the competition, G Sankara Kurup, A D Hari Sharma and P C Devasia sat among the audience. Kanchi Sankaracharya, during the Raja's brief tenure, gave him the title, Dharsana Kalanidhi. 

He ruled for only a year,1948-1949. The first election to the Cochin legislature coincided with his coronation. It was the first election in India on the basis of a unified adult franchise. Cochin Rajya Praja Mandalam got a majority in the elections. It merged with the Indian National Congress; E. Ikkanda Warrier assumed office as the first Chief Minister on September 20,1948. So, Parikshit Thampuran had no role to play and he saw the writing on the wall. On July 1,1949, Travancore and Cochin were integrated to become Thiru-Kochi and Parikshit ceased to be the King. The ruler of Travancore was offered the post, of Rajpramukh, the Governor. Parikshit politely declined the post of Uprajyapramukh. He asked only two things: the official panchangam of the government should be sent to him annually; the eldest member of the royal family should be called the Valiyathampuran. He gave up royal powers unconditionally. He died in Tripunithura, on November 12, 1964.

The Hill Palace Museum is named after Parikshit. 

The story of Swati Thirunal was the reverse; he was declared a ruler while he was in the womb of Rani Lakshmi Bai. Hence he was known as Garbha Sriman(glorified while in the womb).

Reference:
1.Sadara Smarankal/T M Chummar 
2.Raja Vamsam/Tripunithura Smaranakal/R T Ravi Varma 

© Ramachandran

See my post,KRISHNA MENON AS A HEADLOAD WORKER