december-2011

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The Inheritance of Gain: Nadaswaram Maestros S. Kasim and S. Babu

December 2011 Volume 2, Issue 25

Sponsored by:Free

Madurai Messenger wishes readers a joyous 2012!

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Editor

Dr. Nandini Murali

Editing Assistance

Mr.Krishnaswamy

Senior Journalist

Media Relations Officer

Ezhil Elango

Journalism Supervisor

B. Pooja

Coordinator

J. Venkatesh

Technical Support

T. Jesuraja

Reporters and Designers

Adam Al Ghafri

Anne-Mariji De Koning

Anna-Dora Maron

Mathew Penticost

Ariane Lecuyer

Clara Hill Fors

Yuka Maruyama

Leonie Rodenbuecher

Yuta Nishimoto

Kaito Ishizawa

Cover Picture

Adam Al Ghafri

Sivakasi Projects Abroad Pvt. Ltd.,

Contact:

[email protected]

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COnTEnTSDecember 2011 | Issue no. 25

EDITOR’S CORNER

01 A Golden Arrival COVER STORY

02 S.Kasim and S.Babu- From one generation to the Other WIlDlIFE

07 Elephants on the EdgeWORKSHOPS

10 Writing as a Gateway to the self12 Photography workshop

SOCIETY

14 Bonds Crossing borders17 Commendable aspirations of the Young DISABIlITY

20 Disability: Moving beyond StereotypesPEOPlE

23 A Teacher, a Friend, an InspirationHERITAGE

26 The Museum Company: Art with a Cause BOOKS

28 Publishing in the Era of GlobalizationFIRST IMPRESSIONS

30 Embracing the Indian Experience31 Listening to the heart beat of Madurai32 A Stairway to Heaven33 Diversity of Impressions

CUlTURE

34 When the evil face of the soul AppearsVIllAGE VOICES

37 Paravai: A Village with a VisionFIlM

40 The Love for Music

She stood before me—a golden bundle with melting brown eyes. Her tail traced an arc and she looked up at me. In a flash, she dived into my arms that instinctively encircled her. Love at puppy sight. Welcome to doggiedom, I told

myself. I gazed at the two-month-old Golden Retriever who would share the next 14 years of my life. Bitten by the curiosity bug, she wriggled out of my arms on an exploration spree—sniffing and trying to territorialize her “home.”

Although I love animals, I never had a pet. Having a dog was a new experience. As a first time dog owner, would I be able to cope with the challenges of pet care? As if reading my thoughts, she relieved herself, creating an ever-widening puddle, while I stood paralyzed. The realities of caring for a pet overwhelmed me. First things first, I steeled myself. Usurping naming rights from my husband, I named her “Goldie”. When the vet came over, I bombarded him with a fusillade of questions – What and how many times a day do I feed her? How do I toilet train her? Would she adjust to life in an apartment? First time jitters, he reassured me.My rite of passage into doggie care began when the vet showed me how to leash a dog. He then initiated me into dietary requirements, vaccination schedules, and an ensemble of canine care products—brush, comb, shampoo, powder, bath gloves, and towels. Over the next few days, I came to terms with the idea of sharing personal space with another living being. Although it was not easy, I was a determined learner. My resources were the Internet, dog care books, and helpful friends who owned pets and shared their accumulated wisdom with me.

The first step was to give Goldie a sense of belonging with a niche of her own. A bathroom upgraded to a room became ‘Goldie’s den’. She moved in with the pride of a teenager who graduates to separate room status. Later when I tried to shift her to another room, she resisted and exhibited a proprietary attitude towards her room.

Goldie and I began a process of mutual discovery. I assimilated all the information I could find on Golden Retrievers in order to ‘know’ Goldie. Golden Retrievers, my sources unanimously proclaimed, were the most lovable companionable dogs. Goldie’s behavior, however, was the antithesis of what sounded like a glib copywriter’s promotional ad for Golden Retrievers. As hard as I tried, I couldn’t predict when she would launch into one of her barking sprees or do the “job” with an insouciance I found amusing. No place was sacred for Goldie who chose to do her business wherever and whenever she chose.

Here was a live dog; with an identity and autonomy of her own; not a stuffed toy. If I had to reach out to Goldie, I needed to respect and value her rights and dignity as a living being. Praise and reprimands were the currency of our transactions. As I learned to read her body language, it was easy to understand her mysterious barks, foresee her bodily urges and be prepared for unscheduled toilet trips. Soon her body filled out with pads of puppy fat that made her even more cuddlesome. Thanks to regular baths and grooming, her coat turned golden brown with subtle color gradations like the shimmering desert sands. Every strand of hair looked as if sprinkled with gold dust. Today, Goldie is an eight-year -old happy, well-adjusted dog. Her sunny temperament is contagious. She is a stress buster and the world’s best antidepressant. My husband and I find her presence soothing after a hard day’s work. Goldie reminds me of the wisdom that there is no greater joy than that of giving oneself unconditionally. After meeting Goldie, I agree with a veterinarian’s remark, “God created dogs, and when he perfected them he created Golden Retrievers.”

Dr. nanDini murali Editor

A Golden Arrival

EDITOR’S CORNER

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Madurai Messenger Cover Story December 2011

S.Kasim and S.Babu -FROM ONE gENERaTION TO ThE OThERFor Kasim and Babu, grandsons of the late Nadhaswaram maestro Sheikh Chinna Moulana, playing the Nadhaswaram is not only a passion, but even an obsession and mission as well. They had picked up the threads from where their grandfather had left and made the euphony of this instrument of Tamil Nadu echo all over the world, leaving lasting memories among those who listened to the lilting strings of Nadhaswaram.

By Adam Al Ghafri, Muscat Ariane Lecuyer, France Clara Hill Fors, Sweden

S.Kasim and S.Babu performing

More than 300 years old, the Nadaswaram was a classical wind instrument coming

from South India. It is used to play Carnatic music. Played by two people and with two accompanying drums called Thavil, it is traditionally used for Hindu processions or other particular celebrations, like weddings, but during the last 40 years, some concerts have been organized to celebrate this music. Living in Trichy, are two brothers: Kasim,

music. Babu on the other hand, decided at an earlier age, that he wanted to devote his life to the music and so he only studied up to the 8th grade and then he went on to study music with their grandfather as the teacher.

Kasim and Babu have played together all over the world since 1992 and have received many honours and awards for their skills as musicians. Kasim and Babu’s children are now carrying on the family tradition. Kasim, who has two daughters, says they took to singing, because it is very difficult for women to learn to play the Nadaswaram. Babu’s two sons are both practicing the Nadaswaram, but never as much as Babu and Kasim. When we ask them if the family tradition of famous Carnatic players will continue with their children, they, without a doubt answer, “Yes! Definitely!”

Dr. Sheikh Chinna Moulana trustDr. Sheikh Chinna Moulana gave all of himself to music but also to his grandsons who consider him as a god in the family:” He is the top person in our musical family”. Everything they know comes from this artist who they love as a grandfather, respect as a teacher and admire as a great performer. He won so many awards and titles, did so much traveling all around the world and worked so much for the Carnatic music industry, that every music lover and artist has the same respect for him. Immortalized by the term “living legend”, everybody bows to his playing and to his contribution to the development of Nadaswaram: he succeeded in popularizing this Indian instrument all over the world, but he also managed to go deeper in the playing of this 300 year-old music. For people who knew him personally, it is also important to remember the person behind the instrument. Dr. Sheikh Chinna Moulana was not the standard kind of renowned artist, always busy and arrogant. Despite the size of his talents he was, on the contrary, a model in terms of humility and generosity. This is why his family and friends decided to create a trust in the year 2000, a year after his death, called the “Dr. Chinna Moulana Memorial Trust.” They wanted to keep alive the memory of this brilliant musician who performed with passion and humility.

Their wish is not only to remember this great artist but to also go on with

their own journey, especially in terms of passing on the Indian tradition to the next generation. “We have to transmit our knowledge to the next generation; my grandfather did it for us so we have to continue his work.” As the two brothers started to learn when they were 8 years old, students can learn with them at the age of 8 without any fee or exams, just on the condition to be passionate about Carnatic music. Besides, most of their students have already decided to spend their lives playing. They don’t take any courses in other schools and they are able, even at 10 years old, to tell you that they just want to be a musician. They can only take 5 or 6 students at a time, which would normally surprise people because their grandfather had between 10 and 15 students, but because of their travels and concerts, the two brothers don’t have the time to take more, and they don’t want to take the risk of lowering the quality of their teaching.

Their grandfather was the only teacher for both the brothers. They proudly say, “We inherited the talent and influence from him.” So we can see his influence in their teaching style, which continues to reflect Dr. Sheikh Chinna Moulana to his students through Kasim and Babu. Thus, improvisation, which was his special skill, is really important in this school. Indeed, Dr. Sheikh Chinna Moulana was able to improvise raga without any repetition during one hour, sometimes even more. Without forgetting academic knowledge, their goal is to emphasise the most beautiful

(49), and Babu, (47), both passionate Carnatic musicians who decided to dedicate their life to this fabulous instrument. It must be said that they were somehow predestined to take it up, with a family of Nadaswaram players and a grandfather, Dr. Sheikh Chinna Moulana, who was one of the best exponents of this instrument. Fortunately, they both agreed to spend some time with us to explain, at first, about Nadhaswaram, because as

foreigners we had not heard about it, but also about them, their grandfather and Carnatic music, with pictures and video clips of them performing. Kasim explained that it is similar to the American Obo and bassoon, a double reed instrument. The interview took place in Kasim’s house in a really impressive hallway with walls covered with an astonishing amount of prizes, awards and pictures of Kasim and his younger brother Babu, performing. In

Dr Sheikh Chinna Moulana

the interview, Kasim did the talking, and they were both very welcoming and made us feel at home, even though our time for the interview was short. During this short time though, we could all feel the passion radiating off Kasim.

Keeping the tradition“We are from a very big music tradition from Andhra Pradesh; our tradition is about 300 years old, a very great and ancient tradition,” Kasim tells us with pride. About 40 years ago, the music was mostly used traditionally in Temples and celebrations such as weddings. But nowadays, it’s more common that people go and listen to the music in concert halls, not just for traditional purposes.

Kasim tells us that he and his brother moved away from their parents in Andhra Pradesh to live with their grandfather in Trichy, when they were only three years old. Dr. Sheikh Chinna Moulana was already at that time one of the most important Carnatic players in the whole of India. The main reason they moved in with him was to learn to play the Nadaswaram. The brothers started learning the big and complicated instrument when they where only eight years old, which we all found very impressive! It is also an instrument that needs a lot of practice to perform, Kasim tells us. It took their grandfather around ten years before he was considered a professional Carnatic musician! Kasim and Babu’s father also learnt to play the instrument from Dr. Sheikh Chinna Moulana when he was growing up, but he never decided to take it up as a career.

Kasim says that in the beginning he decided to follow another path. He chose do his bachelor’s degree in physics, at St. Joseph’s college in Trichy, but at the same time, he did learn and practice Nadaswaram in his free time, with his grandfather as a teacher. “The difficult thing for me was managing the academic education and the vigorous training for the instrument, but I could manage,” he said and when Kasim finished his education in the year 1992, he decided only to continue with the

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Kasim explaining to us his story, under the gazeof his brother

way of playing Carnatic music. But academic courses and improvisation are not the only way to learn this traditional music; they also want the students to be able to render composition, which means to play some other compositions in a Carnatic style.

The trust and their teaching started modestly but with all the help of family, friends, music lovers or just the people who recognized Dr. Sheikh Chinna Moulana’s talent, it quickly became a renowned achievement. It is now an institution, where Kasim and Babu are teaching this traditional music in the way their grandfather taught them, and as a place where his well-respected memory is still kept alive. However, they will not stop with their success. They want to continue to improve their teaching and their next wish is to set up a school with full accommodation and classes, to provide intense teaching like they had received from their grandfather.

TravelBy starting to play with their grandfather, Kasim and Babu started an international career, and thanks to their talents today, they now perform all around the world. From Finland to Sri Lanka or Germany, Malaysia, France, Russia….the list is long and growing longer! Every year these two brothers undertake a three-month tour of the United States, from April to June, for a special festival. They realized that even on the other side of the world, the audience was still mostly composed of Indian people, but also raga music lovers and artists, from all different religions and all the different nationalities. For them, there are three aims with this kind of international festival and concert. The first of which, is for them a way to keep practicing and to be before a different audience for each concert, because in each place and each type of celebration skills are always different. But it is also a way to promote the understanding of this traditional instrument, the Nadaswaram, all across the country. Now, especially thanks to

we learn a new scale or composition we learn it perfectly.” Being brothers, born musicians and lovers of the art, of course some degree of their synchronization will be natural, as in all musicians’ talent is natural to some extent, but it’s true what they say that the key is consistent and hard work. Kasim explains, “That unison though is only by perfect practice, perfect understanding and perfect body language.” Body language is essential for improvisation in order to work in time with the other players. If body language is not there, then the piece can become disjointed and lost. “Of course we have natural passion, but the natural passion will not bloom without hard work, it’s the foundation in which we build on top of with determination.” These are words that every artist should take note of, I certainly have.

Music is religionMusic can change lives, break down walls of diamond and move mountains, I believe that, and so do Kasim and Babu. During our time with them, I was captivated by the way they passionately spoke about their art and its style,


their grandfather, it is very famous in America and Europe and even if people have heard about it they don’t really know this wind instrument. This is also the reason why big audience comes to see Kasim and Babu; a lot of people are curious and want to know a little bit more about Nadaswaram, Carnatic music and raga. Finally, this kind of concert is also an opportunity where they can have in interaction with others artists.

For example, once during their US tour, they met a clarinet maestro named William Paul, with whom they could discuss music for several hours and share a lot about musical experiences. This is exactly what they especially like in international festivals, because the audience can’t be the only ones who are influenced by musicians; musicians can also receive inspiration from others to discover and learn another way of playing. But one of their best memories was in Cleveland, during a big raga festival, where 100 or 120 artists played with more than 50 main musicians, all coming from South India, a big gathering which allowed an intense connection between all these passionate musicians.

So what are their plans for 2012? Of course the US tour in April, but also a lot of concerts in India, in temples or for particular celebrations (like weddings). Besides, they will play a lot in Madurai for this kind of celebration, even in the Meenaskhi temple which is a great place for them to play their music. But for Kasim, the best place to play is the Himalayas, because nothing is more beautiful than the sound of waterfalls.

PerformancePerformance is a key part of music; without the ability to perform one obviously cannot show his talent. It doesn’t necessarily have to be in front of an audience. Even when recording music, the ability to fully convey the passion is what makes the music, whatever method the musician uses. I think that anyone who is passionate about his art has the ability to perform,

and in Kasim’s and Babu’s case, performance is at the core of their music. Since Carnatic music is made to be preformed to an audience, learning performance techniques is as important as learning the instrument. Both of them practice relentlessly in order to keep up their skill.

“Everything is about breath control. We have to practice breath control at least 3 or 4 hours a day,” asserts Kasim. This is essential to them because the Nadaswaram is a wind instrument, and when playing concerts that can go on for several hours, they have to be physically able to do it. Another massive part of their performance is improvisation; it is what Carnatic music is really based on. During performance, in order to keep the music fresh and enchanting to the listener, the passion is sent directly to the ears of the crowd. “If you take the major scale, you can work with it to make it anywhere between 5 minutes or half an hour and we have thousands of scales,” Kasim explains in order to show us the breadth of freedom they have when it comes to improvisation.

The most amazing performance they have ever experienced was in Finland, during the mid 90’s. It was a music festival that had styles of music from all over the world; Kasim says however, “It was organized in a very strange manner.” While they were on stage, a Finnish saxophonist parachuted down from a helicopter playing the major scale, and as soon as he touched his feet on the ground, they started the major scale in Carnatic. Kasim describes it as “The most unique performance they have done.” I think we all wish we could have been there to see it.Playing in a duet can be a difficult task; both musicians have to be completely in sync with one another. After seeing Kasim and Babu play on YouTube, the way their parts flow seamlessly together to create the overall piece is mesmerizing, so I asked them how they managed to achieve this. Kasim says, “I can say it’s 25% natural and 75% hard work. Daily we are practicing, if

introducing me to a whole world of music that I knew nothing about. You could really see their art radiating in Kasim’s words. As he put it, “Music is in our body and soul, we live with the music.”However, personally I feel that the commercialization of music has stifled the art to some extent, but I wanted to know what they thought the media has done for their traditional style of music and whether or not new-age pop has threatened their art. I have to admit I was inspired by their answer. With regard to the media, Kasim says that its support has allowed the art to grow and grow and it has also allowed younger artists to become recognized. “When we were young, we were not allowed to play in public unless we had some skill or proficiency. Now there are small children with amazing skill playing to everyone!” Kasim says with enthusiasm, he believes that this is due to the exposure the media has given artists, and without it this exposure, it would not be possible. He also believes that now music has spread, and young kids from villages have musical influence, which changes their life and in some cases, gives them

the opportunity to become artists themselves. In the words of Kasim, “Music has reached the common people.”With regard to mainstream media being a threat to traditional music, Kasim’s answer was just what I had hoped for, “We cannot compare the mainstream and the traditional. They are completely different. The influence on each other is there and we cannot stop it. We can’t stop the eruption of them mixing, so this is why music is great today.” I couldn’t have put it better myself. I think it is true that in order for music to grow and evolve, we must remember its history and bring it into the present. Artists now have the ability to do amazing things with music by morphing sounds from all styles, modern and traditional. Kasim also believes that even though traditional music may change as time goes on, the base of the style will stay constant. As Kasim poses it, “Is it possible to change the flavour of coffee? No. You can add some ingredients but in the end of the day coffee is coffee. You cannot change the mode of the raga; there will always be traditional Carnatic musicians as the traditional music is timeless.” Personally,

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However, this doesn’t matter to them. “It’s just like water, anyone can drink water, if an American takes water, it’s water, if an Indian takes water, it’s still water.” These are the words of wisdom from Kasim. He concludes his answer in four very simple words, “Music is our religion.” These are words I think every musician who lives and breathes the art will agree with.

Being a strong believer in the thought that music can truly change the world, or at least help change the world, I wanted to know what they thought of it. Once again, Kasim dazzled me with his answer: “Music is essential in life, it can change the world and it has changed the world.” Personally, I couldn’t agree more. Music has the power to break down walls and boundaries and help countless people across the entire world, whether it’s just getting through life or fueling a society to fight against oppression, and these two are living proof of that fact. Kasim finishes by saying, “Music unites people; you cannot see this kind of unity without music.” In my opinion, these are beautiful, truthful words. Throughout time, people have gathered to listen to music together. Whether for a cause or for pleasure, art is one of the things that brings us closer to each other as a society, without it we would be nothing.

The two brothers with their prizes


I hope Kasim is right, we need these styles to stay so that new music can be made, if we lose our grounding and our past, we cannot progress into the future, we will be lost.

I was really shocked when I asked Kasim the difference between their traditional music and that from the West. In Western music, you have an ensemble of musicians, none of whom know each part of the piece for each instrument but only their own role and they have the notes in front of them. Kasim tells us that the scales in Carnatic music are completely different to that of Western classical; they have no notes and have to memorize all the songs and compositions no matter how long it is (some pieces can be up to an hour or more). “This is the unique part of our music culture,” says Kasim with a smile. However, when they practice, they do write down notes for the piece, but they memorize what they have written and do not perform with the paper. Also, he tells me that in their culture each performing artist has to know the entire composition. “This is the greatest thing about the Indian music style” Kasim re-iterates. As a musician, I can understand how this makes Indian music so vibrant with so much depth; if every artist only knows their singular roll, something is missing. Each artist, in my opinion, must know the whole piece in order

anne Marij de Koning visits elephant training centres in Kerala, where elephants captured from the wild are trained using rather inhuman methods. The animal activist pleads for humane methods of training that respects the right of animals to live a life of dignity and respect—a trait that humans too often forget is equally shared by all creatures—big or small

ElephantsON ThE EDgE

By Anne Marij de KoningDenmark An elephant carrying its own chains

For Indians, the elephant is not just another animal. When you think of an elephant in connection with India, you quickly think of the elephant-headed god Ganesha, one

of the best known and most widely worshipped deities in Hinduism. In the Hindu tradition, Ganesha is revered as the Lord of Beginnings and the Lord of Obstacles.

Holy touch The elephant is regarded as sacred and most temples have a temple elephant. During the festivals, the temple elephants are decorated with gold plated caparisons, bells and necklaces. The elephants are brought to the temple premises where they are stationed throughout the day. It is common to see elephants give a ‘holy touch’ with their trunks on people’s heads, after which people make offerings to the elephant either in cash or as food. Wild elephants are usually captured and then domesticated, primarily to be used as temple elephants and for festivals.

The Savagery amidst the Beauty Beside a beautiful river surrounded by mountains and nature, four elephants relax and enjoy their time in the water. They are being washed by their trainers and shutter-happy tourists are busy clicking away, their ooohs and aaahs renting the air as they carefully try to touch the elephants. The two small elephants are of course, the tourists’ favourite, especially when they splash some water with their trunks and intertwine their trunks with each other. That’s the so called ‘elephant kraal’, where the elephants are washed every morning. Because of the beautiful surroundings and the appeal of the elephants, you forget to listen to the shouts of the cleaners in Malayalam and their use of wooden sticks to force the elephants to get up after a wash and prodding their mouths with a hooked stick to make them pose for photographs.

To see how the temple elephants live and how the trainers take care of them in the training centers, we visited three

to become conscious of the music and work in perfect harmony.

A common question they are asked is: “Is it difficult being Muslims to play in Hindu temples?” When I asked this question, their answer brought a smile on my face. They believe music is apart from religion and it has nothing to do with the faith in itself. As Kasim puts it, “If you take the major scale, anyone can play it or at least appreciate it. You cannot narrow the music to religion or else the music will become narrowed.” He tells me that most artists who play the North Indian Hindustani style are Muslims, whereas Carnatic musicians in southern India are mostly Hindus.

“We cannot compare the mainstream and the traditional. They are completely different. The influence on each other is there and we cannot stop it. We can’t stop the eruption of them mixing, so this is why music is great today.”

8 9Captured elephants at Punnathurkotta training centre

centers in Kerala. We first visited the Kodanad centre, where the elephants which had just been washed were staying (at least that’s what we thought). Despite chains on their feet, the elephants were walking free and some of them were doing some work like replacing branches. Of course the trainers stayed constantly with them to keep an eye on them. Also present was a baby elephant there which was captured in a small cage. Kodanad is more a care centre than a training centre. So, we went to another camp called Kafrykaad, two kilometers away from Kodanad.

Arriving at Kafrykaad training centre made us happy in the beginning because we thought we saw an elephant walking free in a big forest. But the moment we came closer we saw that wasn’t the case. The elephant was chained to a tree with just a 50 cm chain and hence it had no space to walk or move. The elephant had some branches in front of its feet to eat but it had no access to water. While standing there and taking pictures of the chained

elephant, a man from the training centre protested that we couldn’t stand there. He told us that the elephant could be potentially “dangerous”, as it had been chained for a few years now.

Later on, we heard an elephant scream and went back to Kodanad. We saw two more elephants –the ones that had earlier been washed, being chained to a tree by their trainer. We wondered why. So we came closer to the place where the trainers were chaining the elephants and asked them why they were doing so. Born Free, Forever Chained “The elephants are chained the whole day and they are only free to walk in the morning and the late afternoon when they are being washed.” It was so shocking for us to see that the elephants were chained and you could see that the little elephant was really traumatized because it made rocking motion movements with its head (which is proved to be a sign of traumatized elephants by different researchers

such as G.A. Bradshaw in his book ‘Elephants on the Edge’).

As we wanted to know more about the care of elephants in the training centers, we visited Punnathurkotta, which is actually the biggest training centre in Kerala with 63 temple elephants.

Because of the sacred associations evoked by temple elephants, we expected better treatment in the training centre this time. But the moment we got there, it appeared that we were in for a disappointment.

Even before we entered the centre, we saw around ten elephants chained to trees with their back and front legs, without any space to move. Later, we discovered that all the 63 elephants were chained onto a tree or a big stone with their front and back legs. Although some of the elephants had access to water; most of them did not. That was clearly insufficient, when you consider that elephants should eat 150 to 200 kilograms per day and that they need 80-150 litres of water.

Chained temple elphants as entertainment

The elephants were emaciated, some of them had big wounds on their feet because of the chains and most of the elephants were making rocking movements with their heads. One of the trainers said that, every day five elephants visit the temple and that they are also used for different festivals. The rest of the time they are chained to a tree with a small quantity of food and if they are lucky with some water to their access. When we asked why they chained them, one of the trainers replied, “I would also rather see them in the wild, but then people can’t visit this centre.”

A Life of Dignity I am horrified to see elephants chained to a tree. Back in the Netherlands, we have zoos where elephants and other animals are also captured and relocated from their natural surroundings. I find even this deplorable and hence I don’t even visit zoos. But the plight of the elephants in the elephant training centers is pathetic. As a lover of animals, I am pained that this is a form of entertainment for tourists and a revenue spinner. While the tourists are

Screaming elephant at Kafrykaad Training Centre

happy clicking way, the poor elephants are reduced to being passive actors in what seems like a theatre of the absurd!

While I do understand the traditional use of elephants as part of the temple rituals, I certainly feel that the animals deserve to be treated in a humane manner. In our arrogance as the most evolved species, let us not forget that

Madurai Messenger Wildlife December 2011

all living creatures are interrelated in the web of life and animals too have every right to a life of dignity and respect. It is not just a human right; but a right of all living creatures—great or small.

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WRITINg aS aGateway to the Selfa two-day workshop on creative writing that blended art and writing techniques enables Projects abroad journalism volunteers discover themselves and others, through the medium of writing that enables them to plumb their inner depths and yet connect with the collective experiences of others

By Ariane LecuyerFrance

American sculptor and writer Katherine Keefer, based in California, US, with more than

40 years experience in teaching art and writing, conducted a two-day workshop for Projects Abroad journalism volunteers on the 1st and 2nd of November 2011, at the journalism office, to share her experiences on art and link it to our writing.

Exploring the self through Writing Ambitious and confident, she had just two days to show us how to express ourselves and to discover our own style of writing. The workshop opened with an imaginative collage-based exercise. We had to cut pictures out of magazines and later, individually explain to our choice. Keefer wanted to get us to open up, so that each of us could see ourselves for who we really are. After we pasted all the pictures on a paper, she explained to us that pictures on the left are related to our past, those in the middle are related to our present and on the right, our future. Thus we discovered that any creative exercise, even when it seems to be very simple, says something about the deeper workings of our consciousness. By doing this, she created a safe and trusting space which relaxed the group so the creative juices could start flowing. We covered many topics such as poetry, concrete imagery, and repetition… with six different exercises.

Because of her creative pursuits, Katherine Keefer seemed to be an interesting person, but at first, we were not very excited by this workshop and we were a little apprehensive that it could be boring. However, never has the office been as alive as in these two days.

“Amazing,” “very useful,” “so interesting,” are just a sample of responses from the participants. All of us discovered a little more about ourselves, but what is really interesting is the fact that each of us has learnt something new, despite our different levels of writing. Some learned a way to write personally, where feelings and emotions are more important than the mechanics of writing such

Madurai Messenger Workshops December 2011

as punctuation, spelling and rules of grammar.

Spontaneity, Creativity’s Twin We understood it especially with an exercise where Katherine Keefer called out a list of words, one by one, and for each of them we had a few minutes to write our first thoughts as soon as we heard the words. Here we didn’t have time to think about any kind of writing norm, sometimes we could just write a series of words, but sometimes we also were inspired to write a little poem. Others learned about the importance of a simple word, which could be sufficient enough to express a complicated feeling or emotion. But we also all learned

Katherine Keefer- The Trainer

goes on… at least not in this case! Here, on one hand it helped changed our style of writing for the better: to be more creative, to use concrete images, to take some time to find the right word, or just to be careful when writing. On the other, it changed something about our own personality: “I discovered that poetry is a really good way to express yourself,” says Matt Penticost, who is now writing poems for his own pleasure. As for Lea, who discovered another view of daily life in India, thanks to the exercise where we had to describe a street scene. Leonie managed to clear her own feelings about her experience here, because she succeeded in explaining them in the workshop. Even Yuka, who had just arrived in Madurai, discovered our group and could introduce herself deeply without be embarrassed.

“Before this workshop, everybody was in their own world, now we know each other better,” says Leonie

We shared our varied experiences at different levels in a totally comfortable atmosphere, which is so difficult with these kinds of personal exercises. Katherine Keefer gave just all of herself to allow each of us to be open to the art and to others.

about each other, thanks to the first exercise (collage) and the fact that we always shared our writing. Katherine Keefer knew how to manage personal and collective needs in order to make the workshop deeply instructive in a creative way.

Stepping beyond Comfort Zones But a creative way doesn’t mean easy. “It was a real challenge for me,” said Leonie. While some of us were used to writing, many of us were not used to writing in English. Trying to write a poem in English or even finding the right word to define your thought when it is not your mother tongue, can be a real difficulty, especially with the two exercises on using concrete imagery. In one exercise, we had to describe an imaginary scene with more details than we normally use. In the other, we were asked to go out on the street and find a scene and then describe that scene in as much detail as possible. Here, the difficulty for us was our lack of specific vocabulary. But even those who wrote in English had difficulties in making the reader feel the smells and hear the sounds of our scene.

Another exercise, called Inside/Outside, also posed a problem for the group, English or non-English, because of its

Active participation- Projects Abroad Volunteers

personal tone and feel. Here the aim was to describe two scenes, totally different, one being inside of something and the other outside. Because of the example and the instruction that Katherine gave us, automatically we linked the inside part to our own mind and the outside part to our gaze on the exterior. This exercise was then really personal, “the question was: which aspect do we want to share with others” wondered Lea when she tried to explain the most difficult feature of this workshop.

Despite such very valid fears and the boundaries that we all tried to maintain between sharing and intimacy, everybody did this exercise and tried to give a little bit of him/her in his/her writing. In fact, it was easier because of the good atmosphere among the participants during these two days and mostly to Katherine’s skillful facilitation. She told us there were no wrongs answers; we are all trying so nobody will judge you. To make us feel at ease in this exercise she told us of her own experiences and mentioned the fact that for her also it is still difficult for her to do this kind of exercise; thus we were all equal in this work.

A two-day workshop is not just two days of work and then your daily life

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Photography Workshop`Photography is not mere pressing the click button of the camera. It is an art and science experience that demands skill and technique. To learn that from a master photo artist, Selvaprakash Lakshmanan, was an enjoyable and invigorating experience as the Volunteers found out. Selvaprakash taught them not only the trade, but its finer nuances as well. The article may inspire shutterbugs

By Matthew PenticostUK

On Friday, the 18th November, Projects Abroad Volunteers were visited by Selvaprakash Lakshmanan, a professional photographer from Bangalore.

The purpose of the visit was to educate and provide the volunteers with tips and teach tricks of the trade. I honestly think it covered more than that. It was more of ‘how to turn a good picture into a great picture’ or ‘how to escape the genre of holiday snaps’. I think we all had our own idea of what we were to expect from the sessions. The journalism course includes a whole spectrum of different photographic abilities, ranging from those who need to double check if their camera is on and facing the right direction and those who class themselves as ‘die hard camera enthusiasts’. Leonie, one of the volunteers, said, “The workshop was very complicated at first but became very interesting as it progressed. The technical side was a bit boring for me because I don’t have a high spec camera and it is inapplicable to me. However, I really enjoyed the practical side of the day.”

Personally, I felt the workshop would have been better, had it been divided into basic and advanced courses, covering aspects such as techniques to stop motion blur and how to naturally frame a photograph for the beginners. Then, in the afternoon, we could have covered more in-depth aspects, such as automatic depth field etc.

While some students may have felt that some of the points were not relevant to them, there definitely was something for all to learn. After speaking to the rest of the group, most agreed that they enjoyed the fact the workshop was interactive. We were asked to go to the markets and surrounding areas near the Meenakshi Amman temple and take photographs. We then showed Selvaprakash our photos and got his feedback. I think this was good, because it was ‘on-the-job learning’ and getting experience, which is always better than sitting in a classroom.

Selvaprakash and his style of photography:Selvaprakash shoots in what’s known as a RAW format, the

out put from each of the original red, green and blue sensitive

pixels of the image sensor, after being accustomed to an

array of electronics and passing through an analog to digital

converter. This was shown to us when we had the privilege

of seeing his work. He showed us two projects that he had

done. One project was about a fishing community and the

to exhibit his work at the Noorderlicht International Photo festival 2011, Delhi Photo Festival 2011 and Lagos Photo Festival 2011.

He was the Grant Prix Winner at the MAN AND SEA Photography Competition at the International Festival of Photography Photovisa in Krasnodar, Russia 2010, and his works were displayed at the San Francisco Art Commission Gallery.He won the Robert Bosch Art Grant 2009-2010, and recently bagged the NFI National Media fellowship 2011-2012.

Selvaprakash is now a Chief photographer with TIMEOUT in Bangalore, and his photographs have been published in Asian Geo, New Internationalist, Paris Match, and several leading newspapers and magazines across India.

other about immigrants moving from villages to cities and mainly to work in building sites for wages. The photos taken were particularly poignant as Selvaprakash managed to show the human suffering in just one photo, with the perfect balance of light.

Although Selvaprakash shoots in black and white, this isn’t for everyone. In fact, he told us that we need to find our own style. I, for example, like to work on any project which has something to do with the symmetry of nature. Some people like to shoot portraits and some may just concentrate on shooting wildlife.

Selvaprakash Lakshmanan: A brief biographySelvaprakash was born in 1978, in Tirunelveli. He got his Master’s degree in Communication from Manonmaniam

Sundaranar University. Selvaprakash started his career in photography as a staff photographer for Dinamalar, a Tamil newspaper and later, he was employed in Dinakaran and DNA (Daily News & Analysis). He has taken part in many events such as the Angkor Photography Festival, and has also won the Paris Match Award for ‘The Best Emerging Asian Photographer’, in 2007.

He was awarded a fellowship to attend the TPW Changing Idea Workshop.In 2008, he won the India Press Photo Award and exhibited his images at the PourIInstant 15th Young Visual Artist Residency Programme in Niort-France.

His works were exhibited at the 2008 World Photojournalism Festival (ChinaTOPS), Singapore International Photo Festival 2008 (SIPF), Angkor Photo festival 2010 and Photovisa International Photo festival, Russia 2010.He also plans

“The workshop was very complicated at first but became very interesting as it progressed. The technical side was a bit boring for me because I don’t have a hi-tech camera and it is inapplicable to me. However, I really enjoyed the practical side of the day.”

A Breathtaking picture clicked by the photographer

Selva Prakash Lakshmanan- The Photographer

Madurai Messenger Workshops December 2011

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Madurai Messenger Society December 2011

BondsCROSSINg BORDERShosting volunteers, contrary to popular conception, has been a joyous and engrossing experience for the host family. This leads to blending of cultures and forging new family ties with volunteers from across the world. This hosting is not confined to merely food and water, cleaning the rooms and making beds. But goes much deeper and promotes a spirit of friendship which continues even long years after the volunteers leave Madurai to their homes.By Yuka MaruyamaJapan

Imagine - one day, a stranger who has a completely different culture and language comes to your house, and you are forced to live together. What do you do? Here

in Madurai, there are some families doing this as their jobs. They accept foreign volunteers from Projects Abroad, the international organisation that offers many opportunities to do volunteer work in twenty four countries, including India, for people who are interested in them. Host families serve meals and water to these foreign volunteers every day, and clean their rooms and beds for their comfortable stay. These are, however, just a part of their life with the volunteers. All host families give them a hearty welcome, sharing their culture and customs with each other.

Why do they accept foreign volunteers? Why are they always so kind to them? What does ‘accepting’ mean for both host families and volunteers? I visited some host families to get to know the reality of accepting foreign volunteers and find the answer to these questions.

Until they have the volunteersThis is the process in which host families accept volunteers; normally, Projects Abroad informs the host families regarding the number of volunteers they would have, even a month prior to their arrival, and host families welcome them home when they arrive with a Projects Abroad staff member. They clean the rooms and prepare the beds, their hearts filled with happiness imagining what he or she is like. Basically, they serve meals and water and keep their rooms clean. They can accommodate a maximum of six volunteers, from all over the world. Most of the volunteers stay in India for a couple of

Saradha- A Caring Host!

months, but some of them stay even for six months. Whether their stay is short or long, they spend a lot of time with their host families’ houses, and share values, culture, and lifestyle.

Having new family members‘Volunteers are not my guests,’ says Saradha, (57), who has been accepting volunteers from last year. “All volunteers are my family”, she says, with a warm smile. It felt just like a mother talking about her children. She has two daughters, but one of them had got married and is living with her new family. Another one is working, living by herself close to her parents’ house. Saradha, however, does not feel lonely, even though her two daughters are away because all volunteers become her daughters, as they are welcomed into her home. They call their host mother and father ‘Amma’ and ‘Appa’, which means ‘Mum and ‘‘Dad’ in Tamil. Saradha’s own daughters sometimes visit their parents and spend time with their ‘sisters’ there. Also, she told us about a relative’s wedding, where she took all her volunteers. All of them wore Indian traditional saris and attended the wedding as a part of the family.

Jebakkani, (40), and Jebamalar, (34), who have been accepting volunteers for eighteen months, told us about the good factors of having them in their house. They have been accepting volunteers of various nationalities such as French, German, Swiss, Japanese, Chinese, and so on. ‘We have two kids: a son and a daughter. They can get to know the different cultures from all our volunteers,’ says Jebamalar.

When foreign volunteers are just walking on a road in Madurai, children come and try to speak to them quite frequently. Usually, they just ask the volunteers their names and nationalities, but their radiant eyes show their curiosity about these strangers. Evenwhen just seeing and talking with foreigners is extremely interesting for them, you can imagine how much more exciting it would be

for Jebakkani and Jebamalar’s children to have volunteers living with them in their house. Jebamalar added, “We use English when we talk to our volunteers, so our kids start speaking English too. It’s good for them to improve their communication skills as well”. It is not just volunteers who can get major stimulus from unfamiliar cultures.

Considering each otherI, however, was wondering that it is not always easy and happy to live together with people who have completely different cultures and languages, but all host families agreed that they do not have any difficulties about it. “We don’t allow smoking inside our house, so we ask them not to do so; also we ask them to come home by 9:30 p.m.,” assert Srinivasan, (42), and Geetha, (34), always tell the volunteers about their rules as they arrive. Even when they want the volunteers to change something afterwards, they just tell them about it and discuss it. Of course, both host families and volunteers need to understand and accept each other,

even though sometimes it is so difficult. The important aspect is that both of them must always communicate with each other whatever they want or need, without hesitating. It is just same as you do with your own families. The reason for all host families agreeing to have foreign volunteers is that they try to keep having deep conversations with them whenever they need. “We celebrate all festivals together, like Christmas even Hindus don’t celebrate it. Also we celebrate birthdays of all volunteers at home. We like that. We are all happy and can learn new things from them”. They are so happy that volunteers are willing to learn about their culture too. Understanding different cultures is hard, but you will find it joyful when you have the intention and interest to learn more. What is life with the Indian family like for the volunteers? Anna-Dora, 20, from Denmark, had been working at a journalism project for three months, living with Saradha`s family. She looked back heart the time she spent with the family; “It was very interesting, you

Jebakkani and Jebamalar

“We celebrate all festivals together, like Christmas even Hindus don’t celebrate it. Also we celebrate birthdays of all volunteers at home. We like that. We are all happy and can learn new things from them”.

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can get to know about another culture better than visiting Madurai just as a tourist.” She talked about the memory of Diwali, one of the biggest festivals in the whole of India, as an unforgettable episode. She had a big party with her host family and other volunteers, having some good Indian food and lot of fireworks. “But also all evenings were just so nice. We talked about our countries, families, host parents’ younger days, some daily stuff… anything.” Even just normal days can be special for the volunteers. She continued, “It’s good to have someone who cares about you. You don’t feel lonely.” Most of the volunteers feel terribly homesick at least once at the beginning of their stay. But host families’ kindness and warm smiles ease them quite soon.

Their family bonds are foreverWhen host families have to say good-bye to the volunteers, it must be the saddest moment for them, irrespective of whether the volunteers stayed with them for just two weeks or half a year. For host families, it is the same as sending their own children to faraway countries. Sometimes their when they leave, it makes both of them emotional. But still, most of the volunteers are keep in touch with their host families even after they go back to their countries. “One of my previous volunteers calls me once a month,” says Premila, (49), who is mainly accepting the volunteers who work at hospital nearby her house. ‘We talk at least thirty minutes every time,” she says with a smile. Her own sons are also keeping contact on Facebook. Their family bonds are still so strong even if they are far away, says a host.

Gifts given by volunteers!

Commendable aspirations OF ThE yOuNgTo a Westerner, the aspirations and dreams of young children here is not only amazing, but astonishing as well. Their anxiety to become professionals to serve their community is overwhelming. Values inculcated by their parents to be compassionate to their fellow beings is what promises to make them men and women with good morals and good human beings. They dream of great things and aspire to create an egalitarian society, coming from poor families and equally poor surroundings

By Adam Al GhafriMuscat

While growing up, I must have changed my career choice countless times. From rock

star, to actor, to astronaut, to policeman

and I think even at one point, a cowboy.

All of these were of course based on

superficial reasons, as are a lot of early

choices in life.

However, when I came to India and went to a school, I was completely flabbergasted by the ambitions of the children. I met children between the ages of 10 and 15 years and all of them wanted to be doctors, engineers, social workers or teachers, and a lot of them wanted to do these jobs so that they

could help their own society. I am not lying when I say that I had tears in my eyes.

Outstanding young minds, regardless of class or creed When I originally started writing

Adam answering questions from the students of Little Kingdom

Srinivasan explains the role of volunteers

Geetha is happy to learn new things from volunteers


‘Yes, of course!’ all host families answered, when I asked them ‘Do you want to keep accepting volunteers in the future?’It is not always easy, but when they accept and understand each other openly, their ties would cross borders and cultures. Accepting foreign volunteers is totally different from having them as just guests. It means that host families can have their new families and also share a few memories of the world that they live in and Madurai will always remain the second town for the volunteers.

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this article, I wanted to compare the different aspirations between private and public school students. I visited the Little Kingdom Private School in Theni and the Velli Vidhyalaya Girls Higher Secondary School. Much to my amazement, the dreams of the kids were so similar in both schools, that they appeared very mature for their age. Even though there were fewer kids in private schools whose aspirations were to help society, nonetheless most of them still wanted to be doctors, engineers and scientists.

I met with Mr. Vivek Goutham Kannan, who is the son of the principal and works as the staff coordinator for the Little Kingdom Private School, and he told me that the school places a lot of emphasis on empathy and charity. He explained, “Aspirations of kids these days differ a lot. Indian kids these days are influenced by a lot of factors, three of the main ones being: 1) their parents, 2) the society and 3) themselves.” He said that there are students who are not really successful in what they actually want to do, such as being a designer or a journalist, due to the fact that the society has contempt for such creative professions; when it comes to being doctors, lawyers or managers, however, these are professions in which their parents want their kids to be successful and therefore, there is no stigmatization.

Vivek told me that the school places great emphasis on charity and that the parents also tell the kids about the importance of empathy and care for the society. When I interviewed the students, a majority of them wanted to be engineers, doctors and IT professionals, the reason being either because of their parents or their own personal interest, and only a couple wanted to do it purely to help the society.

When I went to the Velli Vidhyalaya Girls School, however, I was overwhelmed. Most of the children I spoke to there, had the same types of aspirations, that is to become doctors, teachers, engineers, etc., but all of them had

these, because they wanted to come back to help the community. These girls were only between the ages of 12 and 14 years and I was moved to tears to see these kids have such a commendable social conscience. I will always remember one girl, whom I asked what she wanted to be, and she said she wanted to be a doctor. When I asked her why, she replied, “Doctor are like gods, they save lives every day and give hope to the people.” This is now deeply etched in my mind.

I spoke to several of the teachers about why these kids felt this way and all of them said virtually the same thing: because these kids come from poor

families and poor areas, but they have been exposed to the higher society in their everyday life and they feel that this inequality is an injustice and they are the ones that have to be responsible enough to find a remedy. These children are the light of the future, and for our sake, let’s hope that they do follow their dreams, the teachers express their hope.

Differences from developed societiesI was surprised at the students’ mature goals in life, but I was just as surprised at their lust for knowledge. They repeatedly asked me questions about my culture, what I thought of India, art, music, etc. One girl from Little

The Girls of Velli Vidhyalaya

Keen to Learn-Students of Velli Vidhyalaya

Kingdom Private School even asked me what my views on world politics and the environment were! These children were 13 to 15 years old, and it was a pleasant surprise to see the amount of bubbling enthusiasm about the world. The reason why this is such a surprise is because I grew up in societies where kids were not interested in any of these; they would be pre-occupied with the latest trends, playground gossip and trying as hard so that they could to be accepted in the social group, which usually means sacrificing what you like for what everyone else likes. A lot of students growing up in developed societies simply are not concerned with what is happening in the rest of the world – for them, it’s a popularity contest and nothing more.

Though this is sad, it does highlight the differences between these students and the ones I grew up with. I think the difference largely comes from the

The students of Little Kingdom

emphasis on world struggles that is put on the kids not only by the school but by the parents as well. One of the biggest problems I find in developed societies today is that the parents do not teach their kids even basic values of acceptance, being good to others and working hard to achieve your dreams. Whereas, these students in Little Kingdom and Velli Vidhyalaya have parents who teach them not only these basic values, but also to give back to their own society. This truly warms my heart, and if this world is ever going to change for the better then it is these values we have to be teaching to our students.

Even in the schools, however, I find that in the West these values are not strongly emphasized, and yet, here I find that even the teachers and the general education teaches the students to be more loving, open minded, worldly and empathetic, something

I could only dream for in schools in England or America.

ConclusionI have never believed that the future is bleak. I believe that things can only progress, but unfortunately, it is tragedy which begets progress. This is shown through these kids, whether they actually experienced or have simply seen the travesty of society, it gives them a social conscience, which other students who grow up in isolated comfortable lifestyles do not usually have. As I said before, these children are the light of our future, not only for India but for the world; they are the candle in the dark that I will put all my faith in to change these dark times in which we live. I only hope for our sake that they pursue their dreams, realize them and make this world a better place.


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Madurai Messenger Disability December 2011

DISaBILITy:

Moving beyond StereotypesDisabled, though the nomenclature had changed to `differently abled’, continue to suffer due to deep rooted, though superstitious beliefs of their families and society. But undaunted by constraints they face, a band of men and women pick up the gauntlet to give them a place in the sun


As I walked along the streets of Madurai, I saw some of the most beautiful sights in

my life. Also, I saw the struggle and perseverance of some unfortunate people whose lives these were stories of tragedy. As I walked, I saw people with obvious mental problems and those without limbs on the streets with no support. This inspired me to find out more about the lives of the disabled and what sustains them.

So I met several inspiring people: S.M.A. Jinnah, founder of IAB (Indian Association for the Blind) School, Nicholas Francis, founder of one of the most successful blind libraries in India, Amutha Shanty and Selvam, from the Thiyagam Women’s Trust, Dr. R. Vikram, a Psychiatrist at Ahana Hospitals, and K.S.P.Janardhan Babu, Assistant Director at the M.S.Chellamuthu Trust & Research Foundation for the mentally disabled.

After meeting these incredible people who do everything they can to help those who were victims of terrible circumstances, I was dumbfounded and at the same time inspired to an unimaginable degree. I found that these people, as well as others, do more than I could ever expect to help the disabled in and around Madurai, particularly since things are always more complicated then they seem, especially in a developing society. Yet, even with lack

Nicholas Francis, (second from right), interacts with the students

the disabled, and they apply them not only to the individual who needs help but also to these organizations. Dr. R. Vikram says “There are lots of families today who are reluctant to bring their affected loved one for psychiatric care. They prefer to use ‘spiritual healing’ methods; and bring them having failed.” With regard to the mentally disabled, religious and spiritual methods are thought to cure the disease, yet for the physically disabled it’s a different story.

Nicholas Francis told me that “Families who have a blind child do not like to admit it. In a lot of cases, they keep the children locked up or chained and throw food to them.” This is also true of the physically disabled women whom the Thiyagam trust helps. This dark truth has stifled these programs from helping these less fortunate people, but thankfully things are beginning to change. All people I spoke to say that the mentality of the public is slowly changing. All of these organizations are finding more cases voluntarily coming

to them for help, but as Selvam from the Thiyagam Trust says, “This is only a small dent in breaking the society’s stereotypes.

Despite these struggles, the organizations are facing, they have not just helped the disabled, but given them a life that they would never dream of having otherwise. While I was at Nicholas Francis’s blind library, there was a group of about 20-30 students, all of them either laughing or working hard. One of the girls there, who is now doing her teaching degree, tells me: “Without this, my dreams would never be realised. I never thought of going to university let alone becoming a teacher. This gave me a new life.” This is just one out of the thousands of students the organization has helped across Tamil Nadu. But even though these organizations still have a long way to go, they have also come a long way with the constraints they have.Another problem they have faced is that of funding: although some organizations receive money from the government, most rely on donations

Dr. R. Vikram

of funding, support and being met with hostility from the society, these people, undaunted will not give up trying to make the lives of the disabled better. But there is still a long way to go.

Achievements of the past, struggles of the presentEvery single person I spoke to, said exactly the same thing, that in the changing times of the 21st Century awareness of these organizations have grown, and more and more people have been coming in seeking help. For instance, the Thiyagam Women’s Tust has helped nearly 3,000 disabled women and village children through its work and education programs since it was established in 2004, and IAB now has over 300 pupils in colleges

Awareness is only one part of giving these people the opportunity to get hope, as shattering stereotypes have posed a huge challenge for all these organizations. These stereotypical attitudes are held by family members of

“There are lots of families today who are reluctant to bring their affected loved ones for psychiatric care. They prefer to use ‘spiritual healing’ methods; and bring them having failed.”

22 23

ConclusionIt is impossible to put into words, the amount of feeling in the hearts of these organizations and the people who are part of them. I feel it is unfair trying to put the amount of work these organizations do and how far these people with disabilities have come into a two page spread. I believe that this is a part of the society that needs to be more strongly emphasized, for the people I met in these programs were some of the most passionate people I have ever met, and they deserve a chance and a real life. My hope is that these organizations continue with their work and break the stereotypes that are imposed upon these individuals, because if they cannot do that, then nothing will change.

Entrance to the Thiyagam Women Trust

and sponsors. The perseverance and determination the organization and the individuals have shown, despite the difficulties faced financially and with the society, is truly heartwarming and an inspiration to everyone.

There are 6-10% of people in India, born with physical disabilities according to the UNO, but the government census puts it down to only 2-4%. This is due to the fact that people are still ashamed to admit when a family member is disabled, and there are several campaigns whose aim is to tell people to provide proper details for census, so that disabled people can get the help they need. Continuing to raise awareness is still a struggle that all of them are facing, as well as the discrimination prevalent in the society, although they all believe that awareness will slowly break these stereotypes Mr. K.S.P.Janardhan Babu told me with regard to mentally ill patients that “The message we are trying to give to the public through our awareness programs is that the illness is preventable, it is curable and it is treatable.” This doesn’t only apply to the mentally ill. The ethos of all these organizations is to show the public that these individuals are not a burden, but rather deserve a equal place in the society to everyone else.

I shall never forget one of the interviews, where I asked a group of students from the IAB blind school,

whether they felt that they belonged there. They replied: “No, we don’t belong here, we don’t want to belong here, we belong in the society, we want to work among other people equally and not be treated as second class people. As much as this school has given to us, it is its own world, not the real one that’s out there.”

My opinion after seeing these organizations is that there is no drastic change that needs to be done to further help the less fortunate, but they must keep up their perseverance in order to help more people. After achieving so much already in the past decade, (and for some even less) the struggles they faced then, still persist and yet the walls put in front of them are surely but slowly breaking.

Students from IAB

a TEaChER, a FRIEND,

An inspiration

Being a teacher does not mean dealing only with the subject: a teacher should teach the pupils to become good human beings with good morals, advocates ambai Manivannan, a teacher, researcher and writer, who is also a good friend, philosopher and guide. having authored many books on Madurai, especially the Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple, he continues his journey to guide and enlighten visitors to this temple city

By Clara Hill Fors

Sweden

Teacher, writer and a research guide for PhD scholars, Madurai-based Ambai Manivannan, (45),

with his passion for temple art and

architecture of Tamil Nadu, is a multi-

faceted person. Author of seven books

on religious customs and temple art

and architecture in the state, Ambai

Manivannan’s latest is Potramarai, a

guidebook in Tamil on the Meenakshi

Amman Temple for tourists and locals.

The Inspirational role of Teachers “Being a teacher should not mean only dealing with the subject, it should also be to teach them, (the pupils), to be good human beings and inculcate in them good morals and ethics, in order to lead a good life. He, (the teacher), must be able to inspire them,” explains Ambai, about his vision of a perfect teacher.

Ambai Manivannan believes that education is the key to a progressive society. Good teachers are the only solution. That is exactly what Ambai has been doing all along: devoting his life to teaching and in turn inspiring other people.

Ambai Manivannan’s success and the path he has taken, is because of his inspirational teachers at school and college. One of the main reasons for

Ambai Mannivannan and his student

Madurai Messenger Disability December 2011

“No, we don’t belong here, we don’t want to belong here, we belong in the society, we want to work among other people equally and not be treated as second class people. As much as this school has given to us, it is its own world, not the real one that’s out there.”

24 25Ambai pursuing his Bachelor’s and Masters Degree in Tamil Literature at the Melur Government Arts College and Madurai Kamaraj University respectively, was his Tamil teacher, Mr.Lakshmanan, who handled classes for him in his 9th and 10th grade at Sri.V.V.Hr.Sec.School, Venkatachalapuram (Theni). “He taught in a humorous and light hearted manner, that made all students adore the subject,” he comments. “You can’t resist liking the subject,” says Ambai with pride. Lakshmanan was a mentor who continues to influence him even today.

Education and CareerIn 2000, Ambai joined Thiagarajar College of Arts as a professor of Tamil. It was then that he started to realize that hard work, dedication, and the ability to capture the interest of the students are those that make teaching a most challenging profession.

Before joining Thiagarajar College, Ambai did his PhD in Temple Arts at the Madurai Kamaraj University, with Dr.Sethuraman, (58), as his research supervisor, who has written ten books on history, art and architecture. With

a beaming smile, Ambai recalls that Dr Sethuraman motivated him and taught him everything that he needed to know on this topic. Like Dr.Sethuraman, a prolific author, and the best critic, Ambai too wanted to author books.

Ambai also talks about Dr.Venkatraman, who has been his main source of inspiration for wanting to enter the field of Temple Arts. He has authored eight books on Archaelogy and Tsemple Arts.“When you take out any book from the library, you can see notes written by Dr.Venkatraman on almost every page and he has read almost all the books in the main library of Madurai Kamaraj University,” says Ambai, a voracious reader.

These are a few titles authored by Ambai: Art and Architecture of the Vaishnava Temples in the Pandya region (1999), Temple Research Methodology (2000), History of Temple Art in Tamil Nadu (2005). Ambai has authored a lot of books on art and architecture. His most recent book, ‘Potramarai’, published in 2010, has been written with the view of educating the general public and tourists. Ambai

wants to make people interested and educate them in what he considers as the historic nucleus of Madurai, the Meenakshi Amman Temple. The book contains directions to the visitors to the temple from the entrance to the exit and it aims at guiding them through the temple, so that they don’t lose their way. It also talks about the history of the temple. Dr.M.Srinivasan (M.D.), the founder of A.R.publications has been instrumental in the success of this book.

When asked why he chose this name, Ambai said that ‘Potramarai’ refers to the big golden Lotus tank in the middle of the Meenakshi Amman Temple, and it is considered to be one of the most important and mystified parts of it. According to legends and stories, the water in the lotus tank is magical. The petals of a lotus are considered to have medicinal qualities like helping in the treatment of skin diseases.

Ambai plans to distribute the Tamil version of the book all over South Tamil Nadu, and he also has future plans of translating it in English and distributing it in the whole of India. He thinks it is important for the common people to

Ambai’s Awards and Trophies Potramarai- Ambai’s Work

Interview with Ambai’s student,Sheela Devi.

Good guides lead to good people / The Perfect StudentI met one of Ambai’s students, R.Sheela Devi, (42), who is a teacher in the Corporation School in Madurai for the past fifteen years. Devi pursued her Bachelor’s and Master’s in Tamil too, similar to Ambai. Ambai is her guide for PhD.

Devi is as passionate about studying and learning as much as Ambai and she also seems to share the idea that a teacher should do more than just teach. Ambai, she says, plays a very important role in her life. “He is a very good friend and philosopher. He is a very straight forward person who really puts his heart and soul into whatever he does and he is not a money-minded guide. He doesn’t give up easily and all he asks for is good, hard-working students. I am really grateful that Mr. Ambai Manivannan is my guide. He introduces me to the right people and whatever I am today, is because of him, my Guide,” says Sheela with pride.

know about ancient sculptures and temples, because one has to always be aware of their religious customs and traditions. He also says it is useful for children, as they can learn a lot of moral values from it.

Future Dreams!Ambai seems to be very pleased and proud about his job. He voices out that would always like to remain a teacher. In the future, he hopes to work in colleges as a Tamil Professor, and if he gets the opportunity, he also would like to work at the university. He has a lot of future projects in mind. But one such idea that he shares with us is that he would like to author a novel about the past four generations of his family.

Apart from that, he aims to do research concerning agricultural engineering technology, the way it developed and its use to the farmers. He is doing a major research project titled, “Temples of South Tamil Nadu - An Intertextual approach”. Ambai still has within him, the thirst for knowledge and explains that there is so much about architecture, which has not yet been explored. His teachers and guides have been his role models and have taught him to be an inspiration to others.

Ambai’s Grandfather- A Founder and visionaryIt seems historically interesting as well, since Ambai’s grandfather was the founder of his native village, Ambasamudram, which is also Ambai’s native place. That was where all his family members were till he was twenty three years. Then, their family moved to Manapparai in Karur District. But one can still see the love Ambai exhibits towards his native place. He is still in touch with the locals there and makes it a point to be present at all the festivals and functions there. He says that even now, people in the village respect him and treat him as one among them.

It all started when his great grandfather and his family migrated from Sattur and Kovilpatti to this village, which was then not known to people. The village was founded approximately 200 years ago. Govindanagaram, a nearby

village, was the only place the villagers were aware of. But he says that it is believed that Ambasamudram came into existence five years prior to that of Govinda Nagaram. When asked about his thoughts on why they would have moved here, Ambai said, “I believe and was told that they were forced to migrate to Ambasamudram because of drought and famine in the previously settled areas. This was a place comprising of fertile lands and hence, maybe they felt that it would be best to move here. Later, more people started their lives in this village and now it has become a very important village and all the people are aware of the village’s existence.”

Ambai Mannivannan

Madurai Messenger People December 2011

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One day, while I was exploring the area around the temple in Madurai a man came up to me invited me to see an art shop. Since I was in a very good mood,

and being an art enthusiast, I said ok. This was the first time that I set foot inside The Museum Company in which I was immediately surrounded by spectacular pieces of bronze sculptures and wood craftsmanship as well as very welcoming people.

The person who runs this shop in Madurai, Mr. Syed Adeel Hassan, took me through the shop, passing amazing hand-carved pieces placed all along the walls and all the way up to the roof. They freely present a rooftop view of the inside of the Meenakshi Temple, into the parts where non-Hindus are not allowed to go. He continues to tell me one of the most important things about their business, which is that all their artifacts, crafts and jewellery are procured directly from the artisans themselves, rather than dealing with suppliers, so that both the artisan and the buyer get the best deal.

After spending a good couple of hours admiring the works in the shop, as I left I was sure that I would be back again and I knew with absolute certainty that it was well worth a story.

TimelessThe company started around 90 years ago in Chennai, while the shop in Madurai is about 60 to 70 years old; they also now have a branch in Cochin. “When the shop first started, there was only one floor, and when you go to some holy places you are not allowed to wear footwear, so before going into the temple people used to keep their chappals here,” Mr. Adeel tells me, who has been working in the shop for more than 15 years now. “When they return, they could see if they’d like to buy something or not.”

Since the shop first started, they have managed to collect some truly spectacular pieces of art. They receive the pieces either from families who have inherited them and need to sell them or from artists and craftsmen who make them in abundance. “The artists have no financial backing from the banks or other institutions, so they rely on shops like ours to

give them what they deserve. It’s really hand to mouth for them,” Mr. Adeel states. Some of the pieces include a huge idol of Ganesha, carved out of a single block of wood, and then kept immersed under water for 6 months before being brought back into the hot sun in order to condition it. Every time I go to this shop I still gasp in awe at the sheer skill and minute detail shown in the sculpture. Other incredible artifacts they have acquired are four Victorian rings from the 1800s: these rings are embedded with diamonds and with either a ruby or emerald gem in the middle. The rings were procured from families who gained them from past generations who lived during the British rule. This floor also contains various handcrafted sculptures from villages, as well as a section at the back dedicated to traditional cloth paintings.

The Museum Company: aRT WITh a CauSE

Madurai Messenger heritage December 2011

here is an arts and crafts emporium which showcases not only exquisite artifacts, both antique and contemporary, but is committed to help the artisans who craft them as well as the art buffs. a visit to this museum is not only eye filling, but soul satisfying as well


Mr. Syed Adeel Hassan with a look of empathy

the shop, packing and delivering the products, as well as basic administration work. The employees are also offered full healthcare and pension. Mr. Adeel says and treats them like his family, “Every sale has a certain percentage that goes to the education of our employee’s children. Its better they work for us, rather than committing crimes and becoming drug addicts. We try and provide their children with good education, so we pay for their school fees and books.” Personally I’ve always believed art can change the world, and this is one example of how it can. I hope this shop only grows and others adopt its philosophies. Mr. Adeel passionately tells us “You would not believe the poverty I have seen in India. It really makes me cry when I see a child go through garbage to find food. Even if you give them 10 rupees, they might not be able to build a castle, but at least they can survive another day.” This is the kind of compassion and empathy that should be prevalent in shops of all kinds, one that really understands the struggle of the people, heart of the people, and knows that it’s all about people, and not money.

The next floor is full of shawls and carpets. The different thing about this particular shop is that you can see the carpets being woven right there and then. Mr. Adeel enthusiastically talks about the different types of carpets and explains how they are woven. They have silk on silk carpets, which makes you feel as if you are walking on air and are designed with traditional tribal artwork, as well as more classical carpet designs. You can see for yourself Mr. Mohammed Ayoub, who has also been at the shop for around 15 years, tirelessly working hard on a new carpet. A lot of the carpets they have there are from other sources, but a good number of the silk carpets they weave themselves.

“We have been doing this for around 25 years,” says Mr. Adeel, while laying out a number of different carpets in front of us.

I believe this shop can truly be a sight to behold for anyone, but those of us who are art lovers will surely be astounded by the uniqueness of this shop. Mr. Adeel has also exported pieces of work all across the world for enthusiasts. He says “I like to sell pieces to the real art lovers; it gives me great satisfaction knowing that the people fully appreciate the work and love it for what it is.”

Mr. Mohammed Ayoub weaving his next masterpiece

You can’t spell “Heart”, without “Art”As I said earlier, the real beauty of this shop is in its love and care for the people. “When you buy here, you’re helping the people,” Mr. Adeel says, because they get their work directly from the artist and so when a customer buys a piece from the shop, the artisan gets what he deserves. This is different to other shops which deal with corporate suppliers and middlemen to get their products, where commission has to be paid to the corporations and therefore the artists lose out. This is what makes this place so special, in that everyone benefits”. Mr. Adeel tells us “These people put their every nerve and sinew, blood and sweat to earn their bread and butter. Sometimes they get hurt and they don’t have special tools so sometimes their hands get burned.” It’s this kind of social conscience that should be present in all shops, rather than the heartless corporate greed that is too manifest in the world today.

As well as helping the artists themselves, the shop also employs about 60 to 70 people to work for them. These are people with no education or qualifications and they do simple tasks like finding people to come and see

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PublishingIN ThE ERa OF gLOBaLIzaTIONa review of publishing sensation David Davidar’s latest book Ithaca, is a primer to the ruthless world of 21st century publishing, where the bottom line is profits and more profits! With all the elements of a greek tragedy, the book is a great novel, says Matthew Penticost

By Matthew PenticostUK

Madurai Messenger Books December 2011

When I was asked to write a review of Ithaca, I looked at the cover and smiled weakly. This was not a book I thought I would enjoy. A standard gloomy front cover which, normally, I would pass over in a

book store for something more to my taste. However, I started reading and by about 15 pages in, I felt I could be onto something good here.

David Davidar, born in 1958, is an Indian novelist who has written three books: The House of Blue Mangoes (2002), The Solitude of Emperors (2007) and of course, Ithaca (2011). He was a founding member of Penguin India, which gave him the inside knowledge and background to write Ithaca.

Ithaca is set in the early years of the 21st century and tells the tale of a publishing firm, struggling to keep up to date with current trends and technological changes in the publishing industry. The main character is Zachariah Thomas, a middle aged publisher with a London publishing, Litmus. Zachariah has brought the company from the brink of failure by discovering a new writer called Massimo Seppi. Suddenly, he is the hero of the firm. Massimo Seppi is the author of highly successful books and is akin to J.K Rowling. He produces three books in total and makes the company millions but when it comes to the fourth book, Massimo Seppi passes away and once again the publishing firm looks to Zachariah to save the day.

Zachariah details the life of a publisher with its ups and downs. He is required to be stern and cold when it comes to firing people and saying ‘no’ to publishing ideas. But he also needs to be soft, gentle and caring in order to get the job done. When people see both sides, feelings are of course hurt, and in just a few paragraphs, Zachariah can transform from hero to villain.

Of course, this is the case with any Editor, CEO, or Executive. One moment you’re the toast of the town, and the next moment, you’re outcaste. Unfortunately,

Zachariah has issues in his personal life as well. Mixing business with pleasure, his failing relationship with his wife and failing to deal with the loss of his mother. To top it all, a giant publishing firm is hell bent on taking Litmus over, mining it for its authors and dissolving the company. The villain of this book is Mortimer Weaver, the CEO of this publishing firm: a cruel and egocentric captain of the industry; ruthless and brutal. A man with a napoleon complex and the stature to match. Is he Zachariah’s greatest threat yet?

When Massimo Seppi passes away, Zachariah is tasked with finding something they can use for the forthcoming book. With the company and his personal life collapsing around him, he seems to through himself into his work and covers every angle.

The book is split into several sections. All of them revolve around Zachariah and his travels for both business and pleasure from London to India and from New York to Sydney and Toronto to Frankfurt.

David Davidar- The Author of Ithaca

David Davidar, born in 1958, is an Indian novelist who has written three books:

The House of Blue Mangoes (2002), The Solitude of Emperors (2007) and of course, Ithaca (2011).

Title: Ithaca

Author: David Davidar

Publisher: Harper Collins

Year of Publishing: 2011

Price: Rs. 499

This book has the makings of a Greek tragedy with love, sex, laughter, despair and death but brought in the New Age and conveyed in a way we can all relate to on some level.

Obviously, the point of a book review is to get you to read the book. So,

when passed a copy by a friend or looking in a book store, don’t do what I would have done and pass this opportunity over. Smile, say thank you and enjoy a great novel.

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As I arrived at the Madurai airport, I saw a very huge, flat land. Madurai seemed very

crowded even around the airport, but actually it was quieter than I had expected. I left the airport and soon crossed a part of the city. That area was exactly as I had imagined before coming to India—dogs were lying on the ground, women were wearing traditional, beautiful saris, colourful notices crowded the walls of every building, and rickshaws, cars, and motorbikes were racing each other. Although it was an overcrowded and a mixed place, I felt a distinctive coordination here. I was attracted by this unique atmosphere already,

Despite being unused to being ogled at, to being asked intrusive questions, the maddening traffic and everything that leaves her completely unprepared, anne Marij de Koning finds herself falling in love with India…. The temples, the temple elephant, the food…. and well, even being more open and accepting of the natural curiosity of Indians, says anne

Embracing theIndian Experience

Before going to India, I tried to prepare myself by reading, reading and reading. But can you prepare yourself for a country such as India, which is so

different from your home country? You can read about it as much as you want, you can have your own imagination about it, but you can’t really prepare. You can’t prepare yourself for the chaotic traffic, where people honk loudly and constantly. I was really amazed the moment I saw the ‘horn’ traffic sign on the road, and when I read signs at the back of cars and buses, which say, ‘Please sound horn’ .

Curiosity seems to be another common trait among Indians. It’s a habit I both liked and disliked from the moment I arrived here. The curiosity of Indians can be really uncomfortable when people stare at you the whole time, or when they ask how much you paid for the clothes you’re wearing! But at the same time, I really do like the curiosity of Indians when they like to know where you come from and why you’re visiting India. What impresses me is that Indians have a collective mindset and not individualistic, like most European countries.

The moment I really fell in love with India, was when I entered a temple for the first time in my life. I love the colours, the atmosphere, I even love the fact that you have to walk bare foot and I love watching people doing their Hindu rituals. But honestly, what I love the most at the temple is the temple elephant. It really makes me happy to see the elephant and I love the way they paint beautiful decorations on its head.

Unfortunately, I can only visit the beautiful temples for the next three months. But I can adopt the lovely and tasty food served here. I can try to be more sociable and open, to be even more curious than I am already. And maybe, I can even get used to the chaotic, messy and noisy traffic in a while!

By Anne Marij De KoningDenmark

Madurai Messenger First Impressions December 2011

Listening to theHeart Beat of Madurai

By Yuka MaruyamaJapan

yuka Maruyama from Japan says her stay in Madurai offers her glimpses of a diverse culture. Despite the chaos on the streets, she discovers a distinctive coordination. The friendly smiles of the kids warm her heart and despite being shocked at the door less buses, Madurai has cast its spell on her.

The inside of the temple in Thiruparankundram close to Madurai

The flower market in the Meenakshi temple

Mountains of bananas!In the city – every time it’s so crowded.

although I arrived at Madurai just a short while ago.

It was just a five-minute walk from my place to the journalism office. Even that, however, is still a little adventure for me every day. A lukewarm breeze wafts across carrying the scent of spices. I always hear so many kinds of sounds including traffic, people, radio, and clucking of birds. Children say ‘Hi!’ to me with a smile and ask my name. It warms my heart every time.

Night time is also exciting. The streets are full of people who try to buy or sell almost anything and everything. The neon signs are so gorgeous and each

shop is so colourful. At the railway station, there are a lot of people who are waiting for trains or sleeping inside the building and on platforms. Also, travelling by bus is one of the most exciting experiences in India. Despite the many people who travel by buses, they do not have doors at the steps! Everything I find here is very fascinating and never makes me bored.

I can hear so many sounds from outside, even when I am in the journalism office. It sounds as if Madurai herself is breathing. I hope to meet a lot of people in this amazing city. I would like to walk, see, and discover for myself, the magic of this ancient city.

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anna-Dora Maron from Denmark writes that, despite all the reading and talking to friends who had been to India, nothing prepared her for the actual experience of being in India. Like many before her and perhaps many after, she fell in love with India, especially the Meenakshi temple, because it is like eating a good meal after days of starvation!

A Stairway to Heaven

Like anyone who is to stay in India for three months, I read all the guidebooks in the local library. I also talked for hours with friends and acquaintances who had been

to India in order to be prepared for the big culture shock in India. No matter how much I tried to prepare, I never became fully prepared for the culture shock I faced when I arrived in Madurai.

no Mid Way At first, I was so scared of going to India. People told me that either you hate India or love it. There is nothing in between.I was warned about no toilet paper, people staring and lots of beggars who follow you wherever you go. I was frightened. Though I came to India as a paranoid and insecure girl, my feelings about India changed the moment I stepped out of the Madurai Airport.

The first thing I experienced in Madurai was that people drive like crazy down here. From the first time I travelled on the main road, I pictured myself dying in a car crash, several times a minute! People on the roads do not think about others and they all have the same philosophy: “Drive for your life!” Even though I felt like dying on the main roads of Madurai, I came to love the city right away.

A City of Contrasts What I love about the city is that there are so many contrasts everywhere you go. You see the beautiful and tremendous Meenakshi temple and next to the temple there are lots of plain and boring apartment buildings. In the temple, you see beautiful women in saris with flowers in their hair. Soothing music plays in the background and there is a scent of oil and flowers. You walk on your bare feet and feel connected to the temple and absorb all the sights, sounds and smells around you.

The contrast to this peaceful and beautiful place is the streets of Madurai. Everything outside the temple is busy and chaotic. Some people stink of dirt and sweat and wear only the most necessary items of clothing. The street is dirty and the temperature is hot; unlike the temple. This contrast is amazing, because when you come from the busy streets of Madurai and walk in to the Meenakshi temple, it is like a stairway to heaven.

By Anna-Dora MaronCopenhagen, Denmark

Madurai Messenger First Impressions December 2011

Rush hour in Madurai

People having a ceremony on the streets of Madurai

The most fascinating but also the most shocking aspect about India is the diversity of impressions.

When I walk across Madurai, I am over flooded with different colours, smells and noises. Everywhere, I see a lot of bright colors because of the gaudy clothes, the formidable temples and all the small stores on the fringes of the street. I smell different snacks of the many takeaways mixed with the stench of traffic and waste. And the row of the scores of people and the continuous hoot of vehicles makes it nearly impossible to have a conversation.

The inordinate, aggressive traffic makes me feel lost in chaos. There seem to be no clear rules because all the trucks, cars, rickshaws and motorbikes ruthlessly wind their way through the other vehicles. In between, walkers and cyclists try to cross the road. On my first day, I was so overwhelmed that I was very relieved to cross the road not alone, but with the other volunteers.

After a few days, I got used to the many sensations and the chaos on the street. But what is very difficult for me to become accustomed to, is that every public place is so crowded. Scores of people are walking, working and even living on the streets. And as a stranger, you’re always attracting attention. Lots of seemingly poor people are staring at you and even want to touch you just because you look different. Seeing such people and all the poverty makes me very reflective. I have a lot of respect for how they make a living.

Many Indians, however, are in the lap of luxury because they benefit from rapid development and adapt to the Western culture. In Madurai, you experience first hand, the social and environmental problems the one-sided development in newly industrializing countries implicates. And you can see that large sections of the population are left out in the process of development.

Despite it all, Indians seem to take life as it comes and are happy about what they have, instead of complaining. A lot of locals greet me with a contagious smile on their faces as if meeting me was the highlight of their lives. When I asked a poor farmer in a town near Madurai the problems he faces in everyday life, he answered that everything was fine, although he has to work a lot to earn money for his big family which lives in an ordinary mud house. Another man from the city, proudly showed us every room of his house although it was small compared to other houses we had seen.

For Europeans, it is very hard to get used to Indian standards and be confronted with all the problems here. But if you look around with an open mind and return the smile of the locals, they welcome you with warmth and you can learn interesting things about you and the society.

Diversity of Impressions

By Leonie RodenbuecherNuernberg, Germany

Despite the many discrepancies and oddities about India that seem bizarre to a European, nevertheless, an Indian sojourn is a great way to learn interesting things about another culture; and most importantly, about oneself, says Leonie Rodenbuecher

The chaotic traffic on the streets of Madurai

A Bird’s eye view of Madurai

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When the evil faceOF ThE SOuL aPPEaRSDriving the devil from the body of those possessed is no daunting task for the two exorcists Boopathi and Kumaran who operate this ‘Devil Driving’ ritual near Madurai. an agnostic from germany, who is skeptical about the existence of ghosts and poltergeists, visits Ngammal Temple near Madurai, to find out if this exercise of exorcism is a hoax or mass hypnosis. however, the answer is not clear if the ‘possession’ by a ghost is a sickness or mental aberration.

By Leonie RodenbuecherGermany

To see the strange culture in India as a foreigner, often feels like being in a different world. Inside

the Hindu Temple, it is so colourful and vivid, that you don’t know where to look at first. But the experience that affected me the most, was my visit to the Pandi temple in the east of Madurai. Locals, who blame the strange behavior of a family member on the bad influence of evil spirits, bring him/her there to liberate him from the clutches of evil spirit. In western countries, only a miniscule minority believes in ghosts, so it was very fascinating to see how Indian people feel about this issue.

Before we could enter the Temple, we had to make our way through all the small stands where you can buy materials for the altar. Inside, it is cool and gritty and a lot of people in colourful clothes are carrying baskets with coconuts, bananas, flowers and rum to offer their Lord Pandi. For that, they join the end of a long queue confined by iron railings. Among the crowd, a few women with ruffled hair are shaking their bodies back and forth. Holding their convulsive shackled hands over their head, they are screaming with alert eyes. The noise fills the hall and

Madurai Messenger Culture December 2011

Alagan- The Head of the Temple

re-echoes from the walls. I was told that they are predicting the future, but for me it sounded only like a chaotic Tamil mumbling. A group of men carry the carcass of a goat which they beheaded a short time ago across the hall. Its blood drops on the floor and leaves a red stain. Speechless and stricken, we left the scary building and were glad

to come into the sunlight again. All we experienced was so alien to my culture that I couldn’t wait to find out more about this subject.

The person who knows all about evil spirits is Boopathi, (29), who works together with his cousin Kumaran, (29), as an exorcist at the Nagammal Temple

sentences and you can hear the fear in her voice. “That’s the spirit in her”, I was told “it doesn’t want to come out and that’s why it cries”. A few strikes and suddenly the woman becomes quiet and motionless. The exorcism was a success, the ghost is gone.

One of the treated women was possessed for more than 5 years. Her sister told me that she got sick, had fever, wasn’t able to speak coherently and lost a lot of weight. She was not able to treat her with the help of a doctor, so they tried to heal her with exorcism in some other temples earlier, but it didn’t work. “She had three ghosts in her”, Boopathi explains. A lot of people try to get the spirits out in other places before. When it doesn’t help, they come here because we send every ghost fleeing,” he says. Like other families, Nagammal temple was the last hope for her sister to relieve her from the strange behavior which manifested after their mother’s death, she says. According to Kumara Vadivel, these are the people who really get affected by ghosts. “Spirits favour people who experience an unexpected death, mostly suicides, murders or accidents”. The cousins explained to me that only

about 20 km in the North of Madurai. Boopathi’s uncle Alagar, (59), built the temple 10 years ago in the small village of Palamedu, as lord Vishnu appeared in his dream and commanded him to do so. 300 people ask them for help everyday and even celebrities such as the Stunt Master Benjamin, the folk singer and actress Paravai Muniamma and the co-actors of the movie Renigunda visited the holy place.

When I asked him how to find out whether a family member is possessed by ghosts, he tells me that they will get sick and suffer from restless sleep. “They will bite their teeth before sleeping, shout at others and will not be able to take care of themselves”, he explained.

At first, Alagar who sits in a sheltered place in front of the temple, checks the people who are suspected of being possessed by evil spirits, to see if they are in the grip of evil spirits. Hundreds of scraps of clothes have been fixed under the roof which makes the place of prediction look friendly and inviting. Surrounded by worried families, the round man with gray hair lies on the floor. With his poise, he imitates Lord Vishnu, the supreme god of the Hindus.

A devotee at the temple Nagammal Temple

A handful of sand and some shells on the ground help him predict the future. When their suspicions are confirmed, Alagar sends this person inside the temple to meet the exorcists. So far, the possessed person acts quite normal but after the exorcist gave his blessings and throws sacred ashes on the possessed woman in front of the idol of goddess Nagammal, she starts screaming and shaking her body. The entire exorcism exercise we watch is all about possessed women and they all proceed in the same way. With his palm he strikes her head and start talking with a forceful voice. Asking questions like “Where are you from” or “Who are you,” Boopathi stares in the woman’s eyes. The spirit answers and it is only audible to the exorcist’s ears. “Leave her body and never come back,” he says to the spirit. But the woman continues to sit there slumped down looking like a picture of misery. The evil spirit seems not eager to leave her. “Either you leave or I will beat you” he bellows and the whip hanging over his shoulder demonstrates that he is not afraid to do this. Then the whip lashes for the first time on the woman’s back: a rapid intensive strike. The moaning of the woman becomes a loud sob. She blabbers out a few pleading

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Exorcist Boopathi at work

Madurai Messenger Culture December 2011

people who are afraid and mentally fragile were vulnerable. The evil spirits belonged to human beings who lived years ago and died. These humans were not satisfied in their life and especially in their sexuality and began searching restlessly for other people’s bodies to enter. That’s why they come back to enjoy life in a foreign body. “To protect yourself, the only thing you can do is to believe in something. No matter what it is, the ghosts won’t affect unafraid believers.” When I asked the exorcists, whether they worry about getting attacked because they are in touch with spirits every day, they tell me that they were protected by their god and that their minds were too strong for strange spirits. “I feel it when I’m getting attacked because the ghost tries to seize my neck. Then my god helps me”, said Boopathi. After forcing the evil spirit to leave the body he chased it away to the place it came from. Relieved about the cure of the formerly possessed woman, the family presents the exorcist a bell as a token of gratitude. It is hung as a symbol of success along with dozens of other bells which decorate the temple.But this is not the only benefit they get. “Some families spend 5000 or

6000 rupees a day on exorcists”. Dr. R. Vikram, the psychiatrist and director in a local hospital explains, “When one exorcist couldn’t manage to heal the person, the family keeps searching for other specialists on this field. They travel long distances with the hope of finding a temple where the possessed can get healed. If you ask me whether exorcism works or not, I wouldn’t have an answer”, he admits. “It can cure some people but for others it makes the complaint even worse”. This depends on the individual case because every instance of exorcism is caused by a different mental illness. In many parts of India women are not equal and are expected to be decent and obedient. “That’s why mostly women are patients

for the exorcists. Some of them try to pretend or persuade themselves that they are possessed to get attention and make their rude behavior acceptable”, the worldly-wise psychiatrist explains. For these kinds of patients, the supernatural treatment helps, not at least because of the placebo-effect but not for these with serious mental sicknesses.

Highly emotionally disturbed personalities who suffer from mania, depressions or schizophrenia, waste too much time on exorcism. When they realize that this treatment is ineffective, some of them switch to Scientific Psychiatry. “The more time lapsed after the onset of the illness and the starts of the therapy, smaller are the chances of cure”, explains the expert in cross-cultural psychiatry. According to a survey in Chennai, 70 percent of the patients in Psychiatrics, tried an alternative healing method before and came to academic psychiatrists after its failure. “There are a lot of different healers who promise cure with homoeopathy, ayurveda or exorcism, but you have to figure out which one suits you” he adds.

PaRaVaI:

A Village with a vision

Rural Scenario is fast changing in this part of Tamil Nadu. The author of this article visited the village of Paravai and discovers a hidden past which had metamorphosed into a vibrant and busy locality with her sons migrating to urban areas in search of employment and returning with assets to start a new life not only for them but for their brothers and sisters

By Yuta Nishimoto and Kaito Ishizawa

Japan

In just a few minutes, we turned a corner and got over a railway crossing to enter the village, when the view

before us changed dramatically. There were few people, no auto-rickshaw and no frustrating noise. The silence of this village was clearly different from the center of Madurai, which is always crowded with people, animals, cars and horns. It looked like a small hamlet, though it comprises of twenty thousand inhabitants.

from the Madurai railway station. It lies across a railway trackand the Madurai-Dindigul Road, alongside Vaigai River, and surrounded by some ponds. It has over 10 temples, some of which were built more than 150 years ago. The name of the village, Paravai, which means oceans in their local language, reflects their hope to make it much larger and more developed.

Tiny tots of the Village!

We didn’t see many people there, but those of them whom we saw were quite amicable, as other people in this religious state are. We found a man-made pond with plenty of green water near the entrance. We became aware of its importance for people there.

PlaceParavai is located in the north-west of the center of Madurai. It is around 10 kilometers or about 30 minutes drive

“There are a lot of different healers who promise cure with homoeopathy, ayurveda or exorcism, but you have to figure out which one suits you”

38 39

PopulationParavai has a population of approximately 25000 souls, with an equal ratio of males and females. About 5000 children go to school.15000 people are voters. 99 percent of the population are Hindus, and others are Muslims or Christians.

Production and LabourThe main products in Paravai used to be textile. It started when a big textile company, Vijaya Mills, built its factory there around 30 years ago. This company gave people a lot of job opportunities.

Today, the condition of the workers in this village has become much more complicated, because some companies came to Paravai both from cities and from foreign countries after Vijaya Mills. Now, there are various kinds of companies, for example Pepsi and Skoda, in this village. Also, more people go to urban areas or foreign countries seeking jobs. Now, 10 percent of people in the village are working in places such as Delhi, Mumbai, Singapore and U.S.

According to the President of the village panchayat, that was good for them, because the workers can come back to village with knowledge. They can learn how to make products efficiently, how to do business, and how to become richer in other cities or other countries.

In the future, the number of labourers working outside would increase. They would make Paravai richer and happier.But he said it had the problem of environmental pollution. “It could become a serious issue in the village, for we could hardly develop cities without environmental degradation. And it is impossible to solve the problem without the cooperation and understanding of local. It could mar the beauty of the rural scenario and even the order of this village. We hope they can develop their village and keep their culture and peace,” he adds.

Pass timeAlmost all the land area in Paravai

was forest or wild until 30 years ago.

Majority of the people in this village

earn their living by farming. There were

no buses or cars.

However everything changed in 25

years and since then gradually the

living standard of this village has

become higher. Because they gladly

accepted that foreign companies came to Paravai for the benefit of the people in village. Generally there is a problem over continuance of culture and development. Those things are antinomy. If you put development before continuance of culture, it may spoil your culture.

But in their case, they can keep their culture along with development. According to the president, they are

“It could become a serious issue in the village, for we could hardly develop cities without environmental degradation. And it is impossible to solve the problem without the cooperation and understanding of locals. It could mar the beauty of the rural scenario and even the order of this village. We hope they can develop their village and keep their culture and peace,”

with equal respect regardless of how wealthy they were when they lived, although in other places in India their status was important during funeral rites.

ProblemsFrankly speaking, we could’nt find any serious problem in this village like the ones we often find in other country areas. Actually, it has good accessibility both to hospitals and to schools.

People can see a doctor easily thanks to a government hospital 2 kilometers away from the village. There are 7 government schools, including an elementary school and a high school, approximately one kilometer away enables children to receive enough education and contribute the higher literacy rate than that of all India.

Parting waysIt was around at 4 p.m. when we finished the interview with Ramamoorthy. Then, we found some children in school uniforms outside, who were on the way from school to home. Their vigour seemed to make the whole village more vibrant than it looked on our arrival, and their broad smile made it more difficult for us to say goodbye.

never affected by outsiders. On the other hand, outsiders are, rather, affected by Paravai.

That is why there are two different views which are protected and changed by people in Paravai.

PeopleRamamoorthy, 58, is the president of the Paravai panchayat. He does proper management and takes care of sick people as a social work, besides farming which he took over from his father. He told us about a temple festival held in this village for 21 days during September to October every year. During the 21 days, they dance, run and pray to gods carrying fire-pots in their hands every day. The festival is conducted with donations from the villagers, which usually amounts to ten thousand rupee. They invite some dancing groups from outside. They play music with keyboards or drums, sing and dance on a stage near the pond every day. In daytime, women pray while men work, and at night both celebrate the festival together.

This festival also plays a great role in forging the unity among inhabitants and making it stronger, which Ramamoorthy said is very important. Thousands of meals were cooked and given to poor and local people. He is proud that people live as a family there, which the festival might be a contributing factor.

He also talked about an interesting custom about funerals in the village. He said that the dead people would be buried

A smiling vendor of the village!

Madurai Messenger Village Voices December 2011

The Village President, Ramamoorthy and his wife

40 41

accident when she gets to the bridge and gets off the bus. The concert gets cancelled. But she starts taking carnatic music classes for Pinky, who lived in Swarnalatha’s house. Their bond becomes stronger gradually as Pinky’s singing skill improves. Then, they get an opportunity to perform in a concert in the city again. Abhinai asks her to come to the city this time, and Pinky tries to persuade her saying nothing would happen on the bridge. Pinky also tells Swarnalta and Abhinai that it was her father who was driving the car which crashed with the bus twenty years ago.

On the day of the concert, Swarnalatha goes to the city. Abhinai’s father also comes and sees their performance. Swarnalatha hesitates to sing at first, but stands on the stage eventually and is applauded by the whole audience. There are also comedy sequences. The theme of this film is quite serious and thoughtful. It does not tire the audiences. The music is amazingly enchanting and fascinating, creating a great atmosphere for the whole film. It strongly draws our mind into the story.

This film is basically English, but sometimes people speak Telugu with English subtitles. It will be a treat for people who like Carnatic music, but even if you are not a buff, it is worth watching.

‘Morning Raga’, a captivating film, takes the viewers to a calm and peaceful India and keeps them enthralled with enchanting music. The artistes transport the audience on a journey of joy, shock and revival of a saga lost by tragedy. Enthralled by the theme and presentation, yuka Maruyama awards a commendable certificate for the film with the words, ‘Worth Seeing’

The Love for Music

By Yuka MaruyamaJapan

Morning Raga is an Indian film focussing on three main characters, who love music in

their own way. It links the past and the future for them and bonds the people, created by their passion for music. This film, directed by Mahesh Dattani, released in 2004, featuring Shabana Azmi, Prakash Rao, and Perizaad Zorabian.

This story starts in a small and peaceful village in the West Godavari Disrtict of Andhra Pradesh. Swarnalatha (Shabana Azmi) is a talented Carnatic singer, and was classically trained. One day, she gets a chance to sing in the city. She asks her best friend, a violinist, to join the concert with her. She was not willing to go there at first, but finally she decides to play the violin with her. On the day of the concert, Swarnalatha, her son, her best friend, and the friend’s son take a bus to go to the city. But on the way, the bus collides with a car on a bridge and Swarnalatha loses her best friend and her own son. She is shattered and shuns the world and starts living like a recluse after the terrible accident.

Twenty years later, Abhinai (Prakash Rao), the son of Swarnaltha’s dead friend, quits his job to start his life

as a musician. He goes back to his village and sees his father. The father understands his son’s dream and suggests that he succeeds in his job, but Abhinai does not listen to him. He is still tied down by the memory of his dead mother twenty years ago.

He happens to see Swarnalatha in the village, but she avoids talking to him. Abhinai also meets Pinky (Perizaad Zorabian), who is also interested in music and decides to form a band together. They enlist a bassist and drummer in their band, and start creating their own music in Pinky’s house. Thanks to the help of Pinky’s mother, they start playing at a restaurant, but most of customers are not interested in their music. Abhinai gets stuck with his band.

One day, a package is delivered to him. It was the violin of his dead mother. It reminds him of the happy days with her, so he decides to visit to his village again to see Swarnalatha. He wants to her sing with his band in a fusion piece, because he knows her skill in Carnatic music. She rejects his offer at first, but eventually agrees to join them. Their band gets a chance to perform at a concert one day, so they need to go to the city. Abhinai asks Swarnalatha to come to the city with them. She, however, does not want to go there because she remembers the

Madurai Messenger Film December 2011

Title: Morning Raga

Cast: Shabana Azmi,

Prakash Rao, Perizaad

Zorabian

Director: Mahesh

Dattani

Language: English

and Telugu

For Private Circulation Only

Printed at Icons Design Studio

www.maduraimessenger.org

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december-2011