Bharathi Gaja--an elephants story

sathya · Dec 11, 2006

Today is the great poet subramanya bharathis birthday . here is a kutty story i wrote in tamil and translated in eng for u.. enjoy it .

year 1921.. july-aug

my concience is killing me no end but i'm not dead yet. i'm getting more and more mad .. the person i almost killed is not dead yeat. me either. mercy killing would definitely be good for us..dear lord parthasarathy if u are the kindhearted, the generous, the loving one, please, please i pray u take us to your abode soon...
there may be several names for an elephant. but i have chosen to name myself bharathi gaja. for the past few days im living in shame, or carrying a conscience that keeps telling me ive committed a crime. have i committed a murder? he is not dead yet . he could have died , atleast i would have been at peace then. he was almost crushed by a mad elephant they said.. little did they know why i got so mad.
do you wonder whether an elephant can appreaciate poems, stories or essays. whether im attached to his works or not im attached to that great great poet of ettayapuram, subramanya bharathi. atleast my life is better.. kept tied to a post all day. eating whatever is given . doing any work allotted in the temple..
his daily visits to the temple make me even more attached. i just love him for his work, his boldness, his patriotism. i just admire the way he speaks, the way he looks..
but what a waste of energy poor man.. what is the use of his writing.. neither did anybody listen to him nor give him recognition for his writing.. they say he went around asking people to buy his literary works.. what a shame to people who are so engrossed in their own life's upcoming, making money, getting power and the like. bah! they just refused to buy any of his works and he is living in poverty. the great poet living in poverty. poverty has stuck to him like a shirt that cannot be removed..and yet he never realised that people were such thankless beings.
he feeds the sparrows, cats, dogs and even elephants when he has almost nothing to eat!!
i think i have become mad because i keep thinking about this injustice that society has done to this great poet.. mad mad at everything and everyone..
one great crush and he will be dead i thought. in anycase people will just say that a mad elephant killed him. i felt atleast then he will get a release from this thankless world and poverty.
somebody advised him dont give the elephant fruit its mad.. but he wouldnt listen and i took the opportunity to crush him.. was i wrong.. ? i'm mad, mad mad..please somebody help me..

sathya

Vidya24 · Dec 12, 2006

good writing,sathya

Hi Sathya,

I read your story, it was unusual and interesting. I hope u will post more such pieces in IL.

Preethi · Dec 12, 2006

A different dimension...

Dear Sathya,

I must first appreciate you for your different dimension towards the incident of Bharathi's untimely death. As you rightly said, all of us know the 'mad' elephant killed the maha kavi , but to give feelings to that elephant and justify its killing bharathiyaar was a different approach.

True, as a mahaa kavi, so many people admired him. But as a person, he was too far ahead of his times which was quite unacceptable by his soceity those days ! The tamil movie on Bharathi clearly potrays that !

V. good attempt ! keep posting such different articles !

All the best to you !

Love,
Preethi

safa · Dec 12, 2006

Have heard a lot about Bharateeyar. It is a different approach from your side, Sathya, justifying the deed of the poor thing..
Good story, keep it up..

varalotti · Dec 20, 2006

A new angle!

Dear Sathya,
I was just wondering how I missed this piece. Maybe I thought because there is a name of an elephant it is some forwarded message.
Take it from me Sathya, make this into a full fledged short story and send it to some mag. No one has seen through this angle. You can make the story even more touching by bringing some of the incidents in Bharati's life.
Nice piece of writing.
regards,
sridhar

sathya · Sep 11, 2007

hello

bharathiar again

today is bharathiar's death anniversary...we did get to hear a couple of his kavithai as movie songs...

when i posted this story of mind ...i had an unusual experience... we were on our way back from chennai and boarded the bus to pudukkottai...it was not a luxury bus...it was the usual state board transport...and as soon as the bus started ...started the music as well...usually i hate blaring music /songs from different movies called kuthupattu...they kuthu paatufy the ears as well with their nasty words and blaring music...sometimes the conductors or drivers do not oblige by putting the volume down and we have to `enjoy' the music...
that day was different ...the whole lot of songs for almost half an hour was from poet bharathiars poems of tamil film songs... we were in for a happy surprise....attaboy ...!nice way to remember him we thought... the songs took a lullaby beat in our minds...
on landing in pudukkottai i felt we have to thank the conductor for having been so thoughtful ...i said hello sir... you do have a way of entertaining people while some buses host songs...yech...! yours was a ear(s)full of honey as the saying goes..! all bharathiar songs! keep it up and thanks a lot...!
know what he said?
mam i never knew they were bharathiar' s songs...just got a casset from my friend...
gosh it was my turn to be surprised...will they ever remember him right?

sathya

Vysan · Sep 15, 2007

Dear Sathya,

It is a good one....

As long a Tamil is there and people read, Bharathiyar will be remembered.... Aru you worried that he is not being remembered or his works....

In todays materialistic world, even if GOD himself comes in front of you and tells you to do something, we will not do... At the same time if a favourite cine star or sports personality tell us, we will do that immediately.... We will not question Him/Her... Whereas for GOD we will ask proof, and why we should/benifits etc.etc...

So, Be a Roman in Rome... If you listen to Good Songs of great people listen to that and enjoy.... People dont have the time to know who wrote it and what is his history and all.... Unless they are forced to them in their school/college...

Veda

Kamla · Sep 28, 2007

Dear Sathya,

Read this out of pure curiosity provoked by the unusual title you gave.
It is very original and you have looked at a very popular incident with a totally different view point. Very unusual indeed and I applaud your vision. I second Varalotti, you should elaborate on this and send it to publications. It has future.:clap

Kavithaiyil than rani endru ninaithen
Ezhudhilum queenie endru purindhukondein !

L, Kamla

sathya · Sep 28, 2007

hello veda

avar kenjiyum
konjiyum thaan
paathar viduthalai mattuminri
nobel parisu thamizhukku
kodukka thaguthi illaya enru...
avarayo avar ezhuthayo
ninaivu koorvathil
namakku venaa perumai
irukkalaam....
avar than alatchiya paarvaye....

am a hypocryte as well
i know his birthday deathday...
and a few songs melodious
a few dramas ive seen
the little tid bits of his life
his penury...and a small aquaintance of
his distant pethi
and although i would love to have
known more of his works
i know very little and that means
katrathu atom naduvil irukkum nucleus
alavu avarai patri
theriyaathathu...ulagalavu illayappa....athu
galaxy pala alavu...
netrum inrum naalayum
avare kavithai thanai avar aala vendum
enra peraasai avarukku mattumillai
enakkum undu.....

sathya

sathya · Sep 28, 2007

hello kamala

long time no c
perhaps you are busy
with two generations
or three...?

intha pakkam amma
adutha pakkam perakuzhanthaigal
naduvil kudumbamum il lum
kondaattam thaan

nirka...actually itharku peryar ennavo
nenju porukkuthillaye......
and although they didnt return the
posts
ananda vikatan and kalki have not been
kind to it...
the original is tamil

thanks a ton for writing on it even if it
is so late....avar pirantha naale
vanthuvidume...avarukkum
pidithirukkumo?

Kavithaiyil than rani endru ninaithen
Ezhudhilum queenie endru
purindhukondein !
thank you for your kind words...

sathya