An `ordinary' man - Book Reviewமரபு விக்கி இருந்துAn `ordinary' man LAKSHMI KANNAN
Those who have the good fortune of knowing him personally, get to know soon enough that Chitti is not only a critic, scholar, creative writer but also an extraordinary human being. In life, as in his writing. For the personal and literary values he stood for, uncompromisingly. His phrase for Va Ra, "The Amazing Va Ra", could well be applied to himself. Naturally, it has been a formidable challenge for his biographer Narasiah to make this man credible to his readers. One strategy was to call him "An Ordinary Man", as he has in the title Sadarana Manidhan and it was supplied by Chitti himself with an interesting analogy from his life. Chitti was born on April 20, 1910, the same day when Halley's comet was seen streaking across the sky. Astronomically though, that year was considered "an ordinary year", so it was considered "the comet of an ordinary year". Chitti promptly decided to call himself "an ordinary man" on the argument, "If a comet could be named like that, it's surely appropriate to call me who was born on that very day, an `ordinary man'?" And that is how Narasiah found his title, as well as his foothold on his biography. The comet on the cover design is by Narasiah himself.
Chitti is disarmingly modest about his achievements, always taking in his many accolades with a disconcerting Wodehousian wit and humour, often self-directed. One example is in the choice of his pen name "Scribbler" for his early writings in English. His early poems in English are remarkably fresh, spontaneous and written without any affectation. When his poem won a prize, Chitti remarked, "it was a sad day for English poetry." Following the Agni award for his writings, he was honoured by the Bharathi Golden Celebration of Tamil. During the ceremony, much to the discomfiture of many, Chitti declared that he was respected and honoured mainly because he did not write too much! Going by his modesty, it is just as well that Chitti allowed Narasiah to write his biography, because on his own, he could have never written his autobiography. Typically, he would not have done justice to himself, he would have planed himself down, avoided talking about himself and written about others instead. And he would have unhesitatingly included the negative, often unjust, criticism of his works by others. Even in this book there is a mention of Thanikachalam's ("Ilangovan") remark that Chitti who wrote the superb short story "Andi Mandarai" need not have written the story "Padmasahasam" for films. Also, an autobiography is as much about remembering as it is about forgetting. Just how much Chitti would like to "forget" had he written an autobiography is food for thought.
For the biographer Narasiah, writing this book has been some kind of a quest. The moment he started writing about Chitti he realised that it was like writing about the history of contemporary Tamil literature and the political, social and cultural history spanning 40 years of pre- and post-Independent India. Age makes the man and man in turn, makes the age. In Chitti's case, as in the case of some other rare individuals, life and writing are welded inseparably. As a person who has spent 90 years on this planet, Chitti is witness to a whole lot of political, literary and social movements.
Writing about someone like Chitti who has packed a lot into his life, crowded as it is with personalities, happenings and momentous events posed a challenge to Narasiah. One of the ways he deals with it is to make Chitti talk about his life in his own voice, to let him recall things, which is why we often get a feeling of "listening" to them first hand. We sense his immense happiness when the former Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru personally conveyed his happiness to Chitti for writing the biography of the spirited freedom fighter Satyamurthi. Another method of the biographer is juxtaposing the viewpoints of his close friends so that we get a picture that glitters like a diamond with sharp cuts, which reflect the many facets of his Chitti's personality.
The other objective data about Chitti's life, culled in the book, point to an interesting paradox. Like most of us, Chitti had his share of many highs and lows of life. They impose an "ordinariness" on him, his chequered career — a passion for teaching in a school, a short stint with the Archaeological Society of India, and then his long tenure with the All India Radio which he turned to his advantage by his creative zest, his interest in people and in writing.
The book is invaluable for the historical events, for literary movements like the one spearheaded by B.S. Ramiah and the magazine Manikkodi which became a vehicle for the nationalist movement, for the epoch-making meeting of minds between Chitti and other luminaries such as Ku. Paa. Rajagopalan, Si. Su. Chellappa, the father of modern Tamil fiction, the late T. Janakiraman (Thi. Jaa. to everyone), the dance choreographer Chandralekha, Gemini Studio's Vassan, C.N. Annadorai who joined the Justice party but kept a warm friendship with Chitti of the Congress party and many, many others. With Thi. Jaa. he co-authored the lyrical travelogue Nadandai Vaazhi Kaaveri which R.K. Narayan considered the best Tamil book. He enjoyed a long period of warm friendship with Thi. Jaa and with "Krittika" (Mathuram Bhoothalingam), one of the finest women writers in Tamil. It was a mutually fostering one. For what is a writer without his circle of literary friends — fellow writers, critics, scholars, editors and translators? With the late Shivapada Sundaram he co-authored two invaluable critical chronicles in Tamil — A Hundred Years of Tamil Novel and A Hundred Years of Tamil Short Story. Friends are very important for him. It is easy to see how they enjoyed a deep, enduring friendship with Chitti. The eminent poet Cha. Thu. Chu. Yogiyar composed an interesting poem on Chitti and friendship per se, referring to him as an elfin "Shilvandu" (cicada). Aside from friends, the influence of spiritual leaders such as Sri. Sringeri Shankaracharya, Sri. Chandrashekara Swamigal of Kamakotipeetam and Sri Paramacharya on his consciousness is pervasive. It is with their grace that we have him with us today, his mind razor sharp, his humour undimmed, his affection warm and genuine as ever.
The Chitti we get to know from his writings, his friendship, his life, is also the Chitti who has grown on the strength of a wonderfully supportive family. His late wife Smt. Janaki exuded charm and hospitality, his eldest son, the bachelor Vishveshwaran, who has dedicated his life to helping his father write and organise his programs, his other sons and only daughter Sri Vidya, are all pillars of strength for him. The shadow cast by Chitti on the Tamil literary map is a long one, for he truly stands tall.
May he live long. And may his tribe increase.
Sadarana Manidhan, Narasiah, Kalaignaan Pathipagam, 2002, Rs. 80. Thanks: The Hindu: Sunday, May 04, 2003 --Ksubashini 18:05, 20 ஏப்ரல் 2011 (UTC) |