July 1972
My romance with Tamil Nadu started when, at the age of
seven or eight, I saw my first Bharat Natyam performance in Delhi. I was fascinated. I
hadn't seen anything like that before. The dancer saw my eagerness and invited me to join
her dance class. My mother came from a very traditional Kashmir home which had been under
tremendous Islamic influence and music and dance for girls were taboo. In the social
milieu from which my mother came from, the dancing girls were looked down upon.
All my persuasion fell on her deaf ears and she did not
allow me to learn Bharat Natyam and it was a great disappointment to me. My wish was
fulfilled when my daughter went on to learn Bharat Natyam from Dr. Padma Subramaniam and
also completed her arangetram.
As a teenagar I used to put eye makeup like a dancer, adorn
my hair with flowers and plait them with a kunjalam. I adored South India and was
fascinated with everything from Kanniakumari to Rameshwaram, from wood carvings to bronze
icons, from sandal wood soap to turmeric powder and from Kancheepuram Sarees to South
Indian temple jewellery.
Even my dreams used to be South Indian. Though I never
dreamt of marrying a South Indian, When the first man from Madras came my way and proposed
to me I promptly said ‘Yes.’ I instinctively knew that is where I have to go. My
parents were not surprised and gladly gave their consent to a trans-Indian marriage, which
was very rare those days.
Meanwhile I had got selected to IAS. Allotment of the
officers to the states is done at random and I was not at all confident about being posted
to Madras, where both me and my fiance wanted to settle. I gave a representation to the
then Prime Minister Mrs. Gandhi telling her how much I loved Tamil Nadu and how I wanted
to settle there willingly and voluntarily and how I wanted to marry this dedicated doctor
who wanted to serve only at his alma mater ‘Madras Medical College’. Even though
all the bureaucracy of India was against it, somehow Mrs. Gandhi fell for my argument and
ordered my allotment to Tamil Nadu.
By the time the news reached the National Academy I was
already a heroine. I was going from Kashmir to Kanniakumari (even after being in Tamil
Nadu for 35 years this slogan is still repeated in every public function I attend). I was
following my true love to Tamil Nadu. I was a joyful volunteer to serve the people of
Tamil Nadu and not an unwilling bonded labourer.
There was maximum excitement among the Tamil officers who
saw it as a great tribute to the Tamil Thai (mother). Everybody became my self appointed
teacher in Tamil art, culture and language. At the head of this mob was my dear batch mate
Ravi Arumugham, a police officer who thought no end of me and felt I was a big catch for a
small town like Madras (at the time) and left no stone unturned in grooming me in the
great Tamil Culture.
He had actually prepared a training module for me which
consisted mimicking Shivaji Ganeshan on one day Gemini Ganeshan another day and revered
Anna Durai day after. Every night after dinner songs like ‘Rajavin Paarvai Raniyin
Pakkam’ and ‘O Nila Nila’ were played, for my benefit, in the lounge of the
National Academy to the chargrin of everybody else sitting there.
He coached me in the language at every available moment
starting with ‘Vanakkam’ and tutored me on Tamil politics on the dining table
with every meal. He enriched me with the stories of Kannagi and Kovalan and Avvayar. While
leaving for National Police Academy he presented me with a copy of Thirukkural as a
parting gift and warned me to not to enter Tamil Nadu without by-hearting one dozen Kurals
which he had marked with a red pen.
It was because of people like Ravi Arumugham that I felt so
much at home in Tamil Nadu. He made me feel as if I was needed there, I was wanted there
and I was welcome there. He saw to it that when I land up in Coimbatore I should have
local friends and guardians. Ever since then I have been one with the people of Tamil Nadu
and have enjoyed tremendous love and affection from them.
Because of Ravi I could appreciate the true hospitality and
the greatness of the Tamil Culture much more than an average Tamilian does. I have done my
bit in promoting. I do believe that Tamil Nadu is a repository of whatever remains of
Indian culture. I brought out two publications on the State - one called ‘Splendors
of Tamil Nadu’ by the Marge Publication and the other one called ‘Tamil Nadu the
Splendor of India’ by the Tourism Department. I also made more than fifteen films and
sports films about Tamil Nadu and its fairs and festivals. I helped in developing Dance
festivals in Chidambaram and Mahabalipuram. I know more needs to be done but I am sure
some one will pickup from where I have left.
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