Sunday Santhai

During my recent travel to Thiruvannamai attending my father’s friend daughter marriage, I come across a Sunday Santhai (market), where livestock’s and agriculture products are brought to sale by farmers from the surrounding villages at a public place. The Sunday Santhai is very famous among rural villages and it is the only place for local farmers to buy and sell their produce and the Santhai is also gathered on Wednesdays.

A scene near the market where an old man diving the goats to market. 

There are many Santhais in Tamil Nadu renowned for specific products and the Manaparai Mattu Santhai between Tiruchi-Dindigul highway is popular for bulls and Pollachi host the second largest market in the country doing business at coconuts and cash crops at intense. The Tamil Nadu government has also developed ‘Uzhavar Santhai’ (farmers market) in each district and little towns for the benefit of farmers to sell their products directly to consumers than middleman who exploit both as well.

We passed the market while driving towards Thiruvannamal after attending the marriage and the market was at its peak business and the place was crowded to unable to stop and take photos, so we shot few of them from moving car. Both sides of the road were parked by bikes and bicycles and we witness number of cattle brought to sell and being Sunday there are many meat and fish stalls installed allover… and there’s one of a dried fish stall above.

Big Fish

Watched the 2003 American fantasy drama, Big Fish, based on a storytelling series by a father to his son despite his distrust on his stories, he continues telling stories from the deathbed on his eventful life across young age and what interesting was the characters in the stories are extraordinary. The film’s major plot was reconciling between a father and son and the son’s attempts on mending their relationship were all dramatic and heartwarming at climax… when he reveals that whatever his father said is true and only he had exaggerated them.

The stories at flashback is radiant and have characters that are fairy tale sort and the places are all prototype and classic at viewing; and the fall of the father (played by Ewan McGregot) in love at young age with Alison Lohman is very cute and adorable. The hidden town of Spectre is fascinating with all friendly people; the circus is somehow hilarious and the show of conjoined sisters is an excellent image on graphics and the giant man (Matthew McGrory) is a show stealer.

Albert Finney’s approach on his character is award winning and his expressions through storytelling is alive and elegant; and Marion Cotillard is bewitching and her attitude and compassion towards her father-in-law is beautiful. The movie deals with the motion pictures are quite wonderful and alongside the simple screenplay were obvious reading through senses and after all, the profound between the father and son is inspiring.

The film adapted from the novel titled the same, was directed by one of a notable director Tim Burton and the film was highlighted through number of nominations award. Since I leaned this film deals with father son relationship, I want to watch it sometime and having been cherishing a strong bond with my father, I couldn’t stop giving way to the perspective by watching the movie two nights before. 

Deepavali 2012

Deepavali, the festival of lights switched off lately was enchanting like each year with dose of firecrackers, sweet, snacks and sharing... even I felt little lonely this time, the memories caught up with fire of previous years of delight, cherished. The day began for me as usual except the constant roar of bombs which kick started the explosion earlier than the allotted period (between 6am-10pm) to blast firecrackers; it’s impossible to imagine a Deepavali without noise of cracker... but maybe one day mind set to appreciate the silence on Diwali.

The day was spent partially in front of the television watching those advertisements and special programs that flashed in-between, but the interesting part was the ‘Pattimandram’ (poet’s discussion) on who helps a lot – younger ones or elder ones, in general and the speakers were all well brought up the points at discussion with a lot of sensible humor. It’s good to see many younger ones joining the discussion latterly and they all draw a greater attention and develop an interest towards their attitude on Tamil and discussion.

Like every year, the neighbors shared the happiness by distributing sweets and snacks, prepared by them or bought from the shop; I enjoyed tasting them all at great zeal and we also shared the traditional sweet and snacks – Athirasam and Murukku – made by mom, to cheers the festival spirit. I sent few SMS to friends as wishes and called out one of my best friend from Tirunelveli and it is something we usually do during either of our festivals and it was wonderful talking to him as well his mom who is so beloved and heart full of blessings for others.

It was a day I haven’t touched the laptop and switched off the television sometime after the noon and in the company of boom, mind took backspace for a moment triggering the roll cap memories and time spent together with kith and kin. In the evening we left to our grandma’s sister house for lighting some firecrackers and they live in Neelankarai – the down south of Chennai, and they hold much space for leaving fireworks and the area itself beholds a lot of firework display during Deepavali give me some wonderful opportunity to capture the colorful sky.

We spent more than an hour watching the various Arial outs bursting into the sky and illuminating the moonless night into many twinkling lights and radiant colors, which was a remarkable sight ones in a year. I well know its disadvantages and noise and environment pollution but I couldn’t stop myself enjoying the display of fireworks and this time I got a wonderful camera to shoot much pretty photos.

Will post more on the firework display later... 

Joint pain and Joint family

This week I received a supplement on orthopedics along with ‘the week’ magazine and it reveals many a causes and treatment for joint pains and knee replacement and one of the reason that doctor’s point out make me feel hit the nail on the head. Apart the active lifestyle and life expectancy, fall of joint family has been noticed by the doctors for the increase of joint pain, where one remain to take care of things independently.

I wonder how true the joints has been an important part in our lives to make a move and it should remain forever in motion with emotional cord chained within near and dear ones in family. I truly acknowledge the doctor’s perspective on joint family and I have a reason too to come to an agreement and the supplement came on time in my hand when I could feel the pain (not at the knee) of disjoint at heart.

I have experience on living as a joint family during my childhood and those days were never been same again and we were accompanying my uncle’s family (family of dad’s bro) and grandmother then. In the 1bhk house of own, we divided the huge kitchen with a barrier to make it as a bedroom for my uncle family and the arrival of aunt was very helpful at mom in sharing the household chores and taking care of us as kids.

Later my cousin born, we are forced to shift to ground floor of the house to give more space for them and even then we were like live together at through and practice and no event were celebrated at parted. There were some renovation and rebuilding take place at house in later days and we still continued to support each other at despite desperate and share common festivals and celebration and even after we shifted the location for my comfort my mind kept joint with them.

First time I feel the pain more in lately when they decided to go on individual basis on taking the custom related to Deepavali and for me the matter is not the custom or ritual related, which I don’t have faith but sharing the festival spirit and happiness. I believe the festivals are created for get together people and sharing the moment of happiness and love, but their decision to disjoint at traditional level makes me feel despair and anguish.

The sharing means not only about happiness or celebration but also involves helping each other when it comes to work or preparation of stuffs; and in a joint family there’s much chance for such tendency and if one wasn’t well the other take care to give rest for another to quick recovery. This is the natural state of a joint family and during this festival season we really miss the helping hands from our aunt, and mom solely had to prepare the Deepavali ‘sweet and snacks’ to share with relatives and neighbors.

I always wish for a joint family and it has a lot of positive aspects on life and the main reason was sharing and it may sound selfish if I say that a person with disability or old age, the joint family becomes a great backbone for their survey in case our parents or the children of old age find stubborn or struck with other chores. The joint family is one of a dream that often haunt me into the thoughts and I know it is impossible perhaps there is only way of disjoining families these day, I hope the best gift that life gives for us is the joint family – where there’s lack or less joint pains.

Diamond Ring

Pic by jeevan (sparkle ring)

Light over darkness

life brighter like clay lamps

cheer the leader of joy – Diwali!