Tomichan Matheikal's blog

I’m not fond of long vacations.   Work keeps me engaged and happy.   This is the first time I took a long holiday (one full month) in Kerala.   I needed it. One of the first persons I met after returning to Delhi (whose afternoon sun reeked of malice and vengeance in stark contrast with the monsoon that drummed a relentless yet enchanting rhythm on the roof of my brother’s car as he drove us to the Cochin airport) was the boss of a commercial conglomerate in the national capital.   I met him this morning, two days after I reached Delhi.   Why didn’t I meet anyone in these two days?   People seem to be hiding themselves somewhere on the campus.   Did I smell fear on the campus?   Not even the children played in the courtyard of the staff quarters as they used to do till late into the night in summer.   Why weren’t my colleagues coming out of their homes on their usual evening walks, I wondered. Even those who dared to come out did not seem to dare to start any communicati

Cheruthoni is a small town in the hill district of Idukki in Kerala.  I passed through the town the other day.  Sitting on the first floor of a small restaurant facing the bus stand, I clicked this photo.   It's a small bus stand. The rain hummed a soothing music. No crowds, no hustle and bustle. Quite a different kind of bus stand, I thought. Dominated by a gulmohar whose flowers had not vanished yet in the heavy monsoon rains of Kerala. This is my last post from Kerala.  I will be in Delhi in the evening where a different kind of music is on...

"Hey, you're eating a croton!"

Somerset Maugham narrates an anecdote in the Foreword to his majestic novel, Of Human Bondage .   Celebrated French novelist, Marcel Proust, wanted a periodical to publish an article on one of his great novels.   The novelist wrote the article himself thinking that none would be a better critic of his than himself. Then he asked a young friend of his, a man of letters, to put his name to it and take it to the editor.   The editor called the young writer after a few days.   “I must refuse your article,” said the editor.   “Marcel Proust would never forgive me if I printed a criticism of his work that was so perfunctory and so unsympathetic.” Authors are touchy about their productions, says Maugham, and inclined to resent unfavourable criticism.   But they are seldom self-satisfied.   “Their aim is perfection and they are wretchedly aware that they have not attained it.”   Not only authors, but any person or institution should be ready to accept criticism from others as well a

Re-reading Colleen McCullough’s novel, The Thorn Birds , after a gap of about 25 years was as much a delightful experience as the first reading.   The novel that runs into almost 600 pages tells the story of three generations of the Cleary family.   Paddy and his wife Fee lived in New Zealand along with their 6 children (and more would be born eventually) and managed to eke out a living until invited by Paddy’s sister to Australia.   Paddy was to inherit the fabulous wealth (13 million pounds) of his aging sister after her death. Mary Carson, however, changes her will when she sees the relationship that unfolds between her young parish priest, Fr Ralph, and the little Cleary girl, Meggie.   Meggie is a charming young girl.   Mary knows that she will grow up to be one of the prettiest women in the parish.   Jealousy, more than malice, motivates Mary to write a new will according to which her entire property will go the Catholic Church and Fr Ralph will be its manager.   Mary

Cartoon from Deepika This morning's Malayalam newspaper, Deepika, delighted readers with the above cartoon on the front page. Modi is portrayed as Bhima in quest of the Sougandhika flower.  He encounters Hanuman on the way and is unable to meet the challenge posed by Hanuman.  Finally Bhima will understand the real power of his interceptor and seek his blessings. Fabulous cartoon, I mused.  It depicts the present situation tersely.  And there's a deep irony too in it. Neither Modi nor Advani is worthy of any comparison with the epic characters.  Both have acted from selfish motives thus far and continue to do so. But the nature of the Kurukshetra has changed too today.  Today our heroes are no better than these characters.   

The way to heaven is narrow...