Varadarajan Krishnan Iyengar was my Great Grand Dad (GGD) - my father’s
father’s father !
I inherited his entire name.
And a couple of his genes as well
And that’s about it ! Nothing more , No less !!
Great Grand Dad (GGD) was a very big and wealthy landlord. He owned huge tracts of fertile paddy fields, vast acres of palm groves and large plantations of banana trees . And all of this in a rich agricultural belt near the border of Tamil Nadu and Kerala – 26 Kms drive from Coimbatore .
His land would have easily supported more than a hundred families, farm hands, casual laborers, plantation workers and odd job migrant workers from neighboring states as well .
In those times there were no man-made disasters, no El Nino effect & no global warming problems either.
Monsoon came in , poured its heart out and went – on time , every time !!
The sun shone brightly each day and the crops flourished.
I would imagine GGD’s coffers must have been overflowing and he had more than enough to share generously with workers and all his relatives as well .
I inherited his entire name.
And a couple of his genes as well
And that’s about it ! Nothing more , No less !!
Great Grand Dad (GGD) was a very big and wealthy landlord. He owned huge tracts of fertile paddy fields, vast acres of palm groves and large plantations of banana trees . And all of this in a rich agricultural belt near the border of Tamil Nadu and Kerala – 26 Kms drive from Coimbatore .
His land would have easily supported more than a hundred families, farm hands, casual laborers, plantation workers and odd job migrant workers from neighboring states as well .
In those times there were no man-made disasters, no El Nino effect & no global warming problems either.
Monsoon came in , poured its heart out and went – on time , every time !!
The sun shone brightly each day and the crops flourished.
I would imagine GGD’s coffers must have been overflowing and he had more than enough to share generously with workers and all his relatives as well .
GGD was a simple man with a large heart !!
Interestingly GGD also had a mistress, in the adjacent village – as it was common amongst most wealthy landlords in those times . It was a once a months affair .
Interestingly GGD also had a mistress, in the adjacent village – as it was common amongst most wealthy landlords in those times . It was a once a months affair .
The double ox drawn cart would be
prepared for the journey. Post noon, fresh after bath, generously sprinkled
with sandal powder, Great Grand Dad ( GGD ) would dress up in a spotless white
zari dhoti and a comfortable silk Jibba ( kurta ) . Great Grandmom would
specially and thoughtfully pack for him , his pillow , mattress and a change of
clothes and a big silver gooja ( Jug ) filled with Kesar milk !!
Next morning when GGD returned , he would have to go to the rear courtyard, have a good bath, perform regular surya namaskaram and then only enter his house for his first tumbler of hot coffee .
So convenient , so elegant – a simple ctrl-alt-del operation to reset and then get going on normal mode as usual !!
While GGD was very wealthy , he was also very trusting, extremely gullible , unsuspecting and probably plain stupid as well.
Next morning when GGD returned , he would have to go to the rear courtyard, have a good bath, perform regular surya namaskaram and then only enter his house for his first tumbler of hot coffee .
So convenient , so elegant – a simple ctrl-alt-del operation to reset and then get going on normal mode as usual !!
While GGD was very wealthy , he was also very trusting, extremely gullible , unsuspecting and probably plain stupid as well.
An ideal combination that
attracts suspicious friends, bad company and rotten advice . GGD was no
exception and he quickly succumbed to all of it and within a quarter of his
lifespan he lost all his wealth, eroded his entire family property and notched
up a pile of debts .
Pride or plain stupidity ?
Pride or plain stupidity ?
GGD employed two British hunters
in his fields to shoot and scare away rampaging elephants and other wild animals
that came from nearby forests . I am sure that the amounts he would have paid
these British gents – in silver or gold coins would have created a bigger dent
to his coffers than all the damage done by those poor elephants !
Bad advice ?
He built a medium sizedl clay-mud dam to arrest the water from the small river and store it for irrigation. When the dam developed cracks , he was advised to pour molten lead (Eeyam Kaachi Kuttinal) to fill them up . Cannot imagine what a huge amount of money must have got flushed down thru this dam !!
Greed ?
He was coaxed into growing tobacco crop because it would yield better profits per acre. So huge tracts of coconut groves and banana plantations were erased to make way for the tobacco crop . And very soon he got into trouble with government regulations, corrupt officials & unscruplous authorities . Very soon and predictably the tobacco mafia from Kerala smelled blood, moved in quickly and stripped him of everything !!
GGD sired 9 daughters – never gave up shooting for a son . And when grand dad finally arrived , it was a great occasion for him – but an extremely challenging and adversely loaded dice for the infant . And by the time all the daughters were happily married off and all the debts settled , there was nothing left but just memories.
Bad advice ?
He built a medium sizedl clay-mud dam to arrest the water from the small river and store it for irrigation. When the dam developed cracks , he was advised to pour molten lead (Eeyam Kaachi Kuttinal) to fill them up . Cannot imagine what a huge amount of money must have got flushed down thru this dam !!
Greed ?
He was coaxed into growing tobacco crop because it would yield better profits per acre. So huge tracts of coconut groves and banana plantations were erased to make way for the tobacco crop . And very soon he got into trouble with government regulations, corrupt officials & unscruplous authorities . Very soon and predictably the tobacco mafia from Kerala smelled blood, moved in quickly and stripped him of everything !!
GGD sired 9 daughters – never gave up shooting for a son . And when grand dad finally arrived , it was a great occasion for him – but an extremely challenging and adversely loaded dice for the infant . And by the time all the daughters were happily married off and all the debts settled , there was nothing left but just memories.
Grand dad gave up his graduation
midway, moved into a small house in Mylapore in Chennai along with his parents and
took up a clerk’s job in a government office .
GGD must have been a sad and a broken man . Having lived in a palatial house with dozens of servants he now had to make do in a one room and wash his own clothes.
GGD must have been a sad and a broken man . Having lived in a palatial house with dozens of servants he now had to make do in a one room and wash his own clothes.
And his end was very sudden and
tragic too . He got run over by a speeding bus opposite Chennai railway
station. He was returning back home after helping Great Grandmom board her
train to her village .
You see, village folks are not very adept at crossing busy city roads .
And the young speeding Chennai bus drivers are not very forgiving either !!
You see, village folks are not very adept at crossing busy city roads .
And the young speeding Chennai bus drivers are not very forgiving either !!
Krish..
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