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‘vadhiyar’ ( a priest ) in the community Subbu and Ranjana were pensive, as they
and by the simple living of his own father,
a practising chartered accountant of
high integrity and his mother, a loving
homemaker famous for her heart-warming
generosity and cuisines.
Subbu was frugality personified and
saw nature holistically as a sharable
and preservable cosmic gift. He never
compared himself with anyone nor did
he ever rue his financial condition with
the firm belief that the divine will provide
him with enough sustenance to manage
life. So it was, the temple management
and his patrons for whom he performed
religious rituals and ceremonies were
relatively generous in their ‘dakshina’ to
him and he somehow managed providing
for his family, nary a wrinkle or a furrow
on his forehead. After all he had a roof
over his head, courtesy the prescience
of his father, and a loving family in his
wife, Ranjana and two gifted children,
Raghavan and Ragini. Like his father,
Subbu too managed to secure and ensure
some good foundational education for his
two children who were about to finish their
college graduation and looking forward
to post graduation programmes abroad.
Little did the children realise that while
Subbu and Ranjana could manage their
children’s basic education, they had no
resources to fund their expensive overseas
studies. Neither did it ever occur to the
simple living and high thinking couple
that their children would want to take
wings and cross the seven seas. Their firm
belief was that India had enough to offer to
every aspirant. After all, did not Subbu’s
two siblings make a mark for themselves
in India, having passed the best of the
competitive examinations and making a
mark in their envious careers?
SENIORS TODAY | ISSUE #48 | JUNE 2023
sat in their sunny balcony on a Sunday
morning, quaffing the ubiquitous filter
coffee and discussing how to cope with
their current situation and satisfy their
children’s dreams. It was daunting to say
the least. They personally were very happy
with their lot and have had a wonderful life
of limited needs and manageable wants.
Their children too had been happy and
contented and excelled in their studies,
but of late had started thinking differently
about the paths they want to tread and
experience life beyond the borders of
Mumbai and the shores of India. The fact
is also that neither Subbu nor Ranjana
were comfortable asking anyone for help or
financial support knowing fully well that
they will never be able to repay it. They
believed firmly that no one should pass
with unpaid debts.
In this state of helplessness, Subbu
could not help recalling and sharing with
Ranjana the story of his grandfather that
his father had often recounted to him
in his childhood. His grandfather was
apparently holding an important position
in the mill that he was employed in and
the chief manager had entrusted him the
job of scrutinising all cotton purchases
for their quality and quantity and passing
the invoices for payment only after
ascertainment. As a necessary internal
process, the mill had three suppliers for the
purchase of the cotton. One of the vendors
was a person named Iman who had
founded Iman Cotton Enterprises and had
been supplying cotton to some of the best
known mills of those times including the
one where Subbu’s grandfather worked.
Iman was an adventurous trader and
was financially highly geared. Because
of this, he always chased his clients for
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