Ponniyin Selvan Varalaatru Peravai

Hi

I have very fond memories of college house meeting.
both rahul and ananda natarajan are passionate about their city.
and college house is located in an area so symbolic of madurai- busy, crowded, never sleeping......


venketesh

Some more examples of places that never sleep -
Chennai railway station (of course chennai vaasis can speak for more places there)
Kovai bus stand
Almost 100% of Mumbai...abroad of course NYC and Paris.

There is something about life in these places that can wake up even a severely depressed person.

There are cities that always sleep, many parts of Bangalore are like that. Kovai too some parts, especially residential areas. :)) In US almost all of south is like that, sleepy, slow, laidback..There are some nice things about that also esp once if you have seen the other side.

Wow..very nice to know Venkat..

Thambi Rahul, actually it wasn't like that when i was growing up..of course there were residential areas that would be very quiet even in day time since there were so many affluent large houses but in ordinary areas..tea shops and people walking around very common.

Actually my mom and me used to watch second show and walk home with no escort of coruse the theatre was only two streets away but tea shops and people coming out of other theatres (there were six theatres just around where we lived in RS Puram), people taking flowers to poo market and leaving Annapoorna, the city used to look like 10 pm at 1 am..Strange to hear that has changed. Annapoorna shut their doors officially at 11 pm and unofficially at 1 am back then.

Malathi

11pm..1am..at these times the present day Kovai is seriously deserted. My
friends and i, when i used to work there, couldn't go for a night show as
the bus service was non-existent and even if we had a vehicle the police
checkposts gave us hell!!

Dear SPS,
I have already posted the English version in PSVP. Anyhow from my file I have got for one version. This is the evening and night time of Madurai - This Article based on another article appeared in Madras Christian College old in-house magazine of 1901, something.

Dhivakar





“But time flies all the same: and
as the day wears out the scene changes. In the declining hours of the evening
there pass into the streets, either riding or driving, the obivalrous noblemen
of the city, well garned by their footmen. They are clad in red silk and
flowing upper garments. Their swords hang by their sides, and on their breasts
roll wreaths of undying fame. Being extremely wealthy, these gentlemen spend
the hot hours of the day in agreeable society at home. later on the high
terraces of their palatial residences, appear their ladies, like angels dropped
from Heaven. Their perfumes spread fragrance through all the streets, and their
happy faces, occasionally hidden by the waving banners hung up on their house
tops, shine like the moon struggling under passing clouds.



“[Not far off are] the king’s courts of justice, where
equity is dealt out as dispassionately and impartially as in a pair of scales.
Close by live the ministers of state, remarkable for their insight into what is
good and evil, learned but humble, jealous of their reputation, and ever
watchful of the cause of rectitude. Further on reside the merchant princesses,
who are celebrated alike for their scrupulous honesty and wealth and whose
business embraces everything useful in the sea, mountain or land. The minor
officers of the four divisions of the royal service viz., of the
ecclesiastical, military, diplomatic and secret departments come next in order,
and we finally reach the artisan classes, including workers on shells and
pearls, gold and copper smiths, tailors, and clothiers, dealers in perfumes and
flowers, and painters, who can bring out in colors. Even subtle modes of
movement. All these and other of the town having now come out for business of
pleasure, there is scarcely any elbow room in any of the streets, and we have,
therefore, to stand heel to heel. To add the deafening noise produced by such a
concourse of people there take place in every street grand feastings with such
sumptuous dainties as jack and mango fruits, sugar candies and tender greens,
edible yams and far famed preparations of meat. The bustle of the evening then
is not a whit less than what it was in the morning; and the whole scene
presents the appearance of a seaport town, hurriedly loading and unloading a coasting
vessel that stands already with its sails unfurled to steer out with the first
ebb back into the main.



“The sun has now gone down and the moon is up; but our
city still knows no rest. The lighting of lamps is but the signal for the fair
ladies of the town to prepare themselves for enjoyment. It is for the first
time, like wise, when disreputable characters of both sexes come out and wander
about the streets, some of them so drunk that they are unmindful of the sharp
pricking nails, that are scattered in front of the elephants, when they turn
wild and attack the mahouts that lead them. But more responsible classes of
persons are also abroad. For instance, young women, who have but recently
attained the honour of maternity, are now taken to the tanks for ablutions,
while others go out to meet them and to receive their blessings, in the hope of
becoming equally fortunate. Later on the sooth Sayers of the Velan class gather
in the houses of the sick, and propitiate in deafening songs the particular
deities to whole ill will the diseases are discovered to be due. Each street
has, besides, its merry dances and noisy pastimes.



“So passes the night till twelve, when, step by step, the
dancing and singing parties decline in vigour. The petty traders now close their
shops, by dropping their bamboo screens, and the poor dealers in sweetmeats
sleep in front of their dainties. The actors and performers, likewise, retire
to rest; and the town, like an exhausted sea is wrapt up in the silence of
sleep., but the sea again Madhura knows no completed rest. For now that honest
folks have gone to sleep, devils, human and super human, come out to work their
mischief. But our poet is apparently not a spiritualist, and he fails,
therefore, to give us any further information of the super human or disembodied
devils. With the human or the tangible portion of the class, he seems, on the
other hand, to be perfectly familiar. He minutely describes to us the dress and
accoutrements of the burglars of his days, which we cannot afford to reproduce.
Besides weapons of offence and defense these ruffians appear to have carried
with them certain rope ladders for scaling high walls and roofs of houses. But
their equipments are of no avail since the alertness of the might patrols ever
proves too much for them. If our poet’s description of the police officers of
his days can be believed, they must have been a wonderfully efficient and
exemplary body. With sleepless eyes and fearless hearts they combine consummate
cunning and complete knowledge by law. But it is their high sense of duty that
is altogether surprising. ‘not even in the rainy nights, when the high streets
overflow with water do they absent themselves from their trying posts of duty,
or permit themselves a wink of sleep.’ Watched over by such a constabulary it
is no wonder that the city passes the night in careless profound slumber.



“But there are not many hours for such sweet response.
Long before dawn, we hear the Brahmins reciting the Vedas like so many humming
bees on surface of opening buds. The musicians are next heard tuning their
instruments. The feminine dealers in dainties are now up and are plastering as
usual the floors of their shops wit

I am wondering if any Kovai vaasis know if the 'poo market' or Thyagi Kumaran market as it was otherwise called still exists? It was the only exclusive flower market (I think there are some in Madurai perhaps but not anywhere else) - it was the end of RS Puram, near Shanmuga theatre back then. Thyagi kumaran market was almost buzzing with people 24x7, roses, literally so many varieties of jasmine you could not even name, and so many colorful flowers that would assume artistic shapes under the talented hands of flower makers. Most political rallies had their garlands and other flower based decor ordered from here, not to mention temples.

THANK YOU SO MUCH DEAR DHIVAKAR.

VERY NICELY TRANSLATED..
GOOD .. I DIDN'T ATTEMPT.

BEST REGARDS / SPS

Actually Central was the only theatre that would screen english movies in kovai and the only A/C 70 mm theatre also. TNAU - lots of movies were made there in 50s and 60s. Maragatham, Pavamannippu two i can remember easily.

I don't know about Biryani but Annapoorna Nei Roast dosa was phenomenal, with 4 chutneys for a bargain 7 Rs in those days!! We used to save change from bus fare to get to 7 Rs and go eat that. Sometimes it would take upto six months to save 7 Rs but was always worth it!

And Kovai always had the best fruits and vegetables being at close proximity to Oooty. Not the type of vegetables common to chennai but 'english' vegetables - carrots, green peas and so on.

venkat, no, there were no twin theatres back then, kovai had first twin theatres in late 80s with KG complex.

The only theatres with AC where Central which almost always screened enenglish movies and charged more, and the other was Royal which put on ac selectively, when a new movie or 'color' movie got released.

There were no theatre complexes back then. Balcony was 10 bucks max. You had to go early and find a seat that no tall person can disrupt. If the movie had good songs they would be selling song books for 10 paise or so outside (wonder what happened to old song books now?). There would be photographs of the movie in the theatre lobby which eager fans would be looking at. Then about half an hour before movies there would be some old songs and slowly the cloth screen will go up. Then there would be a slide show with dumb warnings like not to smoke, the usual family planning ads and so on. Then the documentaries that woudl be greeted with whistles and impatient hoots and then the movie. If you went to old movies it was funny sometimes the reels would be screened in wrong order or the movie upside down :)) Looking back everything seems like a funny mememorable experience. Somehow there was something in life in those days which is so missing now...the slow paced-ness and taking everything as it is...

Dear Kathie,

Hope you have seen the translation by Dhivakar himself.

best regards / sps