Martin Luther King Jr quotes

Achcham Thavir

Achcham Thavir | அச்சம் தவிர்

One of the soul stirring & inspiring poem by Mahakavi Bharathi. I have read this before as part of prose but ever since I heard this rendition in the anjathe movie in 2009, I was hooked to it at a different level. It always inspires me and I need the values and virtues of this poem now than ever before.

To listen to this poem in the below voice is giving oneself the boost they need to face the world.

அச்சம் தவிர்   -   நய்யப் புடை

மானம் போற்று  -  ரவுத்திரம் பழகு

ஆண்மை தவறேல்  -    தாழ்ந்து நடவேல்

சூரரை போற்று   -     தீயோர்க்கு அஞ்சேல்

ஓய்தல் ஒழி  -  நேர்பட பேசு

தாழ்ந்து நடவேல்  -  சாவதற்கு அஞ்சேல்

காலம் அழியேல் -   கீழோர்க்கு அஞ்சேல்

போர் தொழில் பழகு  -  தோல்வியில் கலங்கேல்

புதியன விரும்பு  -   வீரியம் பெருக்கு

கெடுப்பது சோர்வு   -   உண்மைக்கு அஞ்சேல்

வெடிப்பற பேசு   -    நன்று கருது

வவ்வுதல் நீக்கு   -   தவத்தினை நிரப்பு நீ

கற்றது ஒழுகு   -   கைத்தொழில் போற்று

சேர்க்கை அழியேல்  -    பேய்களுக்கு அஞ்சேல்

ஞாயிறு போற்று   - மந்திரம் வலிமை

சவுரியம் தகுமே  - நாள் எல்லாம் மெய் செய்

நாள் எல்லாம் மெய் செய்

For those who want to know the meaning in English, please see below. Some of the words may be changed between above and below.

Achcham thavir, Naiya pudai (Rid yourself of fear, Strike hard (the evil/obstacle)) Maanam poatru, Routhiram palagu (Cherish honour, Learn righteous indignation) Aanmai thavarael, Kedilum thuninthu nil (Do not lose your manliness, Stand firm in ruin) Keduppathu sorvu, Thiyoarku anjeal (Fatigue spoils, Be not afraid of evil) Oythal oli, Naer padap paesu (Do not flag, Talk straight) Thaalndhu nadavael, Mikaipada solael (Don't lose your Dignity, Don't over dramatize) Kaalam aliyeal, Keelorkku anjeal (Do not waste time, Be not afraid of what is base) Por tholil palagu, Tholviyil kalangael (Learn the art of warfare , Do not become upset by defeat) Pudhiyana virumbu, Veeriyam perukku (Welcome progress, Increase virility) Pedhamai Akatru, Unmaikku anjael (Eradicate ignorance, Don't fear for truth) Vedipara paesu, Nandru karudhu (Speak with clear articulation, Always think good) Vavvudhal neekku, Thavaththinai nirappu nee (Avoid covetousness, Practise penance daily) Katradhu olugu, Kaitholil potru (Practise what you have learned, Cherish manual work) Saerkay ariyea, Paeigalukku anjeal (Know whom you associate, Have no fear of ghosts ) Maanam potru, Mandhiram valimai (Cherish honour , Mantra is potency) Vallamai pasael, Naal ellam venai sei (Dont self-praise, Strive all day long)

source: http://mundasukavignar-bharathiar.blogspot.com/2012/06/acham-thavir-naayyap-pudai.html

Allergies and diseases - Thanks to GMO food

What are GMO [Genetically modified organisms] or GE [Genetically engineered food] ?  

In an earlier blog, Organic and Organic only, I attempted to explain the fundamental ways in which genetic modification or engineering of seeds are done by the so called food companies, who are in reality, chemical companies, and their actual motive. Contrary to the perception they create about the need for GM or GE food, it is not about feeding the world but driving the profits for few misguided bio-technology companies.

Please watch the below Ted video by Robyn o Brien - a mother and a food activist, whose plea about the state of food economics in US, along with the persuasion in the form of facts and evidence from around the world makes this one of the best videos on this important subject. We must address this malaise at this stage and prevent the same from happening in other parts of the world too. 




While I agree correlation between increasing allergies and health issues with the increased use of GE technology in farming doesn't mean causation, it will be foolish to turn a blind eye to the converging nature of evidence and observations.

Recent example: 

http://news.yahoo.com/study-links-pesticide-exposure-pregnancy-autism-123742370.html

Edward Snowden

Edward Snowden - a man, who is same age as me, has assumed far greater risks for the sake of openness and privacy of world citizens.

Edward Snowden gives a TED talk in Canada, TED2014 - via telepresence robot - Here's how we take back the internet

"We don't have to give up our privacy to have good governance. We don't have to give up our liberty to have security. We can have both open government and private citizens " - Edward Snowden

http://www.ted.com/talks/edward_snowden_here_s_how_we_take_back_the_internet#

Nanba... Ellam Konja Kaalam | Kochadaiiyaan

நண்பா.... எல்லாம் கொஞ்சம் காலம் !!! | Nanba ...Ellam Konja Kaalam !!!
A song that balances practicality and philosophy in the equal measure, "Maatrum ondruthan maaraadhadhu" is a wonderful number from the movie Kochadaiiyaan

VIP - Thalaivar Special - Fan Video

Awesome fan made vide of VIP - Velai Illa Pattadhari, with Thalaivar scenes.

Goose bumps guaranteed !!



Courtesy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijd_YZK2toU

What will your verse be ?

Such a wonderful, aspirational and philosophical advertisement and I love the below line:

"The powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be ?

One of the best TV Ads I had seen and in the same league as Apple's famous 1984 ad. It is aspirational advertising at it's very best and as +Robert Scoble puts it, "so few companies can do this and do it well".

Narration of the Ad:

We don’t read and write poetry because it’s cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering. These are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love. These are what we stay alive for.

To quote from Whitman,

“O me, O life of the questions of these recurring. Of the endless trains of the faithless. Of cities filled with the foolish. What good amid these, O me, O life?

Answer: That you are here. That life exists and identity. That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse.”

“That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse.”

What will your verse be?

---

Such a wonderful, aspirational and philosophical advertisement and I love the below line:

"The powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be ?

Person of the Year - 2013 | Edward Snowden - A Real Hero

Edward Snowden has two profiles :

- a rogue NSA contractor who stole US National data and revealed them to the wider world public.

- a NSA contractor who stood for the freedom of expression and privacy rights.

Depending on which side you come from, you would believe in one of the two perceptions or both of them. Irrespective of how anybody may perceive Snowden, he has changed the world by blowing the whistle on the biggest data snooping methodology by US government. I owe my life to computer science engineering education and love the openness of the Internet. I had always been a staunch supporter of retaining the freedom of internet away from government hands. However, US has killed the openness of the internet by exploiting the openness and technological advantage of US companies in the internet space for it's own benefits. In light of these development, I foresee a world where every country may rightfully demand the data of it's user stay within it's physical borders, there be restricting the openness of the Internet. 

Edward Snowden is only 14 months elder to me and was in a well paid Govt job. He however chose to give up all the comfort of the material world and undergo extreme isolation in this world when he decided to release information on data snooping which he believed is unconstitutional. His stand was vindicated when a US district court gave a judgement questioning the constitutional validity of the snooping process carried out by the US government. I consider him a hero for his guts to take on the most powerful government in the world and it's spy agency, and for the conviction of his belief on what is right and wrong. 

He is a beacon to the entire world on privacy rights and is my person of the year.

WestJet - Christmas surprise. Wonderful !!!

Makes me want to fly #WestJet - for their wonderful and happy gesture. Of course, I won't mind the gifts either ;)

~ ~ ~ ~ Life is beautiful and Miracles do happen if "WE" all work as one ~ ~ ~ ~

Advertising and women

A disturbing but disgusting reality of the advertising world.

How is advertising shaping the image of women - Phewwww

Advertisements, as a medium and message, have transformed from being "what is" to "what we think is". The repercussions of these advertising messages on the sub-conscious mind is very hard to get rid off and creates a pseudo-reality than what is actually the reality. For example, If a women's face is altered/touched on an average 20 times before it becomes the cover of a magazine, where is the reality ? This pseudo realistic image is then used as measure by society at large to compare with innocuous regular women and girls. It is pathetic and I agree we all are part of the society which is in this bandwagon of comparison and feel ashamed.

While I agree that advertisements need to exaggerate and dramatize to capture the attention of the viewer in a limited span of time, it is not acceptable to push down messages which are nothing but LIES. 

Please watch the below video to fully understand the harmful impact of "WRONG ADVERTISEMENTS". 

The speaker in the video below is the creator of the video series - "killing us softly"

Demeaning ads

Nelson Mandela

RIP Mandela - the world is at peace because of your life. "It always seems impossible until it's done." 

A man who inspired millions to shed their differences and come together.



After all that he had done to help the South African nation rebuild, he could have been president till date. However, he chose to step down after his first term and retired. A great example of how a leader should be.

Nearly 22 years after being banned for apartheid policies, South African cricket team was reinstated to ICC and they played their first international game against India at Kolkata in 1991. A matter of pride for Indians to welcome the country that is changing and remedying itself to be a better one.

Nelson Mandela, fondly called as 'Madiba' is no more. A great loss to humanity.

Amazon Prime Air

Are you kidding me ?

I'm not sure how this is going to pan out, however, as a concept and an idea, it is outstandingly bold and innovative in the last mile of delivery. If proved viable, Amazon Prime Air can potentially alter the cost of delivery and tilt the experiences in favor of online retail and Amazon by an exponential factor.

Jeff Bezos "Nutters" attitude probably created this.

Official link : 

http://www.amazon.com/b?ref_=tsm_1_tw_s_amzn_mx3eqp&node=8037720011

My thought on this spectacular and pathbreaking idea is brief coz I'm caught short of words.

Satyendra Dubey - lest we forget this HERO

Satyendra Dubey was murdered in Gaya, Bihar on 27th Nov 2003 for fighting corruption in the Golden Quadrilateral highway construction project - he was a project director at the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). He found malpractices in awarding of contracts, quality of construction, payments to contractors and many other avenues in NHAI. He took it to the higher people in NHAI and got no response. He even wrote to Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee highlighting the impropriety and pleaded to not reveal his identity. Alas, his identity was revealed to NHAI which reprimanded him for writing to Prime Minister directly.

I'm not entirely sure of the sequence of events, but he was killed on Nov 26th, 2003. A very said end to a bright [ Civil Engineering IIT Kanpur, 90-94 and MTech Civil, IIT BHU Varanasi 94-96] and brave soul, that stood up against corruption. India didn't have whistleblower policy back then and it does now thanks to people like you. Although the implementation of the bill in it's true spirit by the government is an entirely different matter, it's very existence can offer glimmer of hope and courage to others who may want to fight against the malice in the community. 

Inspiration to write this blog post: The Hindu

"You would have been scared that first day at the IIT, wondering how you, a village boy from Bihar, would cope with all the fancy boys and girls from the metros. You would have been scared when the road mafia issued you death threats, or when the fact that you wrote to the Prime Minister was revealed despite your plea to keep your identity under wraps…The point is not that you were scared. Courage is not about being fearless. Courage is about doing the right thing despite being scared. And that is something you did with aplomb right through your short life.

You showed us the way by doing the right thing. In an age where someone can become a hero merely by knowing how to swing a cricket bat or emote on screen, you were the real deal; a bona fide hero. You remain our inspiration. The generations to come will feel your influence."

Thank you Sachin !!!

From the time I started watching cricket, I never saw an Indian team/eleven, where Sachin Tendulkar was not a member. He was called the little man, master blaster and off late God of cricket. Honestly, while I always admitted and admired his talent, ability, gentle nature and HUNGER to play cricket, I felt that Sachin was treated a little different from few other cricketers who were also doing equally good for the country and the sports. Hence, I was never vocal of my admiration or support of Sachin Tendulkar. I loved Rahul Dravid dearly and felt the need to support him coz I know for every one person who will support Dravid, there will be a hundred more who will support Sachin. I remember fighting with my friends in School/college on who is best/better - the cricket card game of boomer/big fun in the class is the highlight. My friend +Shiva R may remember me fighting for Dravid and in the process not supporting Sachin. I remember arguing with him about how many fours Dravid would have hit in a 50 and how may Tendulkar would have hit in his score of 50. Even till date, it is a given that if Tendulkar scores a 50, there will be close to 7-10 boundaries in that and it is not the case with Dravid.

It is a given that Sachin is a genius - how else can one debut at the age of 16 for his nation in International cricket ? His technique, stance is one of the most recognized in the world, including the famous guard adjusting knee jab he always does. His voice is one of the most mimicked voices in cricketing world. I can never forget waving at Tendulkar during India-Australia cricket match  in 1998 at Chepauk, Chennai - he came to field close to boundary line and looked right in my direction. He waved at all of us in the stands but still I was one of them. This is the closest I had ever seen Tendulkar, unlike +Dharma R sir who has tonnes of pictures with him. His popularity knows no bounds  - I remember 9th std holiday on april and on Sachin's bday, Doordarshan came out with "Sachin-25" event. We had an additional class to teach us 10th syllabus in 9th holidays and my teacher postponed the class to let us watch Sachin 25 TV show and come to school. Enough said of the level of adulation and respect you commanded and to have been in stardom for as long he has been, his conduct is impeccable.

Sachin Tendulkar :

1. His front foot drive. 
2. Dancing down the crease - it is such a fluent action when he does that
3. His balance and stance.
4. Desert Storm
   
   
5. Ind vs Pakistan at Chennai.Ind vs Australia at Chennai.
6. Sachin vs Warne - Though there are many battles Sachin won, Warne was most haunted of Sachin.
   
   Warne says: "I'll be going to bed having nightmares of Sachin just running down the wicket and belting me back over the head for six. He was unstoppable. I don't think anyone, apart from Don Bradman, is in the same class as Sachin Tendulkar. He is just an amazing player"
7. Sachin vs McGrath - Australia was at the receiving end of Sachin for the most number of times. He scored most centuries against Australia than against any other country.
   
   
   
8. MRF Bat.
9. 2003 Cricket world cup
10. Sachin's on and off field conduct and many many more !!
    
    
    
    
    Finally,
11. Sachin's final respect and worship of the 22 yards - it brings tears to my eyes every time I see it. It is indicative of what cricket meant to him and he lasted as long coz he wasn't playing for anything else but for the love of a game.

To quote one wonderful article I read in The Hindu, His game is his personality:

"Tendulkar’s style, and this is perhaps the true measure of his greatness, demanded we assess nothing but his cricket. Yes, it is routine to affix such descriptors as humble, gentlemanly, focused to his character but I suspect we never really knew him — or needed to know him — like we knew the others (or thought we did). Tendulkar, to use that dreary cliché, let his game speak for himself."

Although I adore Rahul Dravid equally, you carried the hopes of a billion people more times on your shoulders than anybody else. You are dream and you lived a dream. What it tells me and rest of us is that, perhaps, if we also follow our dreams and do it to the best of our ability, we shall hope to attain success and most importantly, contentment and love out of it.

I cried.

One of the living example of genius, perseverance, hard-work ethic and love for the game. True Bharat Ratna indeed !!

Thank You - Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar !!!

Boycott Express Avenue | Express Avenue Suicide and Negligence

I had never been to Express Avenue or EA (as it is called) but after seeing this incident, I don't have any inclination to go that place anymore. Im boycotting EA coz their staff, security and others in-charge of the mall have little or no training in emergency management, first-aid medical care and behaving with the public. This is highly disgusting on two counts:

1. The EA Mall: From the mall point of view, people are their source of income. More the footfalls, more the income for them. It is in their best interest to take care of customers in the mall by providing them basic facilities and proper management of the facility. What is seen in the below video is pure apathy displaying lack of preparedness to handle emergency and failure to provide basic first aid. A mall is a place where thousands of people gather on a regular basis and it is imperative of them to foresee emergency needs and plan for them. The behavior of mall authorities is just disgusting, unworthy of my patronage.
2. Police: Police often forget for whom they work for. Police have various responsibilities: Crime prevention, law and order maintenance, traffic management, providing security etc. However, all of this is done to serve the public and a developing public situation has to be handled with care and respect. What we see in this video is authority and direct threat issued to responsible citizens of the city. Of course, people were spilling over to the road and creating a ruckus by blocking traffic, but they are doing that as last resort as their earlier demands were not met by police or the evasive mall authorities. If their genuine questions are met, they would have dispersed on their own. Instead, police resorted to threaten then and fudge their responsibilities.

I'm really disappointed and sad. I'm boycotting EA

https://www.change.org/petitions/boycott-express-avenue-mall-in-chennai-india

http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/techie-jumps-to-death-at-city-mall/article4870489.ece

Salute to the brave lady who fought for the departed soul and for thousand of soul-less living people.

!!!!!!! Man of Steel !!!!!!!!

The Freaking AWESOME cut of Man of STEEL - the REAL MAN OF STEEL.



The most apt cut I've ever watched - matching the dialogues, emotions and feel that only Thalaivar can evoke.

Awesome fan made Trailer !!!!!!!

Vinod Rai - the man who made the government accountable !!

Vinod Rai, quiet, well spoken and hard working accountant, is India's change man. Nobody really knew who a Comptroller and Auditor General of India is and what are the responsibilities of such a constitutional position in Indian Democracy. A Position so sacred that it doesn't have to report to any executive and enjoys the same privileges as a supreme court judge. However, nobody really knew of such an authority or office in Indian democracy till Vinod Rai took over office in 2008.

He will be remembered as the man who brought awareness amongst millions of Indians by performing audit of government expenditures fearlessly, with clear objective and without subjecting to any outside influence. 2G Spectrum allocation scam, Coal mine allocation scam , Common wealth games scam were all uncovered by CAG after carefully and clearly auditing the records and bills submitted by government of India vs the stated objective of the same projects. Such was the impact of the findings that it shook the entire central government, lead to the fall of several ministers in the cabinet and lead to the rise of awareness in the minds of the people.

He is one of the people indirectly responsible for the rise of India's movement against corruption for he never urged them directly to confront the government against it's malpractice but just let his work do the talking.

The man who held the Government of the Union of India accountable, is serving his last day as CAG. Salute Sir - you are one of my heroes of modern India. 

Audacity of Hope

Imagine a guy - who flunked his SSLC exam, came back to his home in village, lied that he had cleared it, then without informing anybody, ran away from home. What an audacity, good/bad is the secondary layer to it, but the audacity stands out for me.

In fact, audacity and possibility are two things that define my thattha. With him, everything is possible. It doesn't matter to him if it is hard or easy, if he wants, he will make sure that he will get that somehow. At the very least, give a super best shot at it.

His whole life has been a super shot!!!

He earned his living by doing accounts and was really good at it. Irony, right, for one to flunk schools and then go around earning a living from doing accounting for organizations. As I said, he was trusted and so good that, till few years back he used to have one or two clients give their personal/small organization accounts for him to do. And, he was earning from that while doing the accounting from home. Apparently, we are good at doing maths :)

And, all of his children are graduates - thanks to both thattha and aachi for all their hard work. Thattha, I was told, did 3 jobs; one day-time job and 2 firms accounts management separately at different hours in the same day/week. And, thattha had that "Gambeeram" - when he walks in or if he is in a room, you can know that he is there. He is not dominating, but he is very influential. 

Lastly, he is straight forward, has a pinch of swagger along with his audacity and to the point, blunt at times. And, his way of doing things has a flair, style to it. In fact, some of my straightforwardness in speech, lack of inhibition - I attribute to my thattha. His enthusiasm, is something, that I have probably derived on.

~ ~ நான் தாத்தா மாதிரி ~ ~ May 2012 pic above

I cannot complete the list of all good times that I have had with my thattha but here are some of them

• There was this one time, during summer leave, I had gone to thattha place. And, after waking up, I, for a change, decided to fold my "padukai". This is something I never do, even now too. But, when he saw me doing that, he was so impressed with me doing this and immediately wanted to award me something - and I, being the kid, asked for the most expensive tooth brush at that time. 30 Rs it cost (must be in mid 90's) and the same day evening, I had that brush.
• He sent me across to learn swimming in IIT madras for few weeks, along with few friends in Medavakkam. That was the only structured learning of swimming I have had till date.
• And, guess it was for my bday in 8th std - I wanted a Hero Ranger Techno cycle, the first cycle in India with front and back suspension. And, he helped me get that.
• Countless number of eating time outside, the number of times he got the saturday morning parcel of rava dosai/dosai for me and my sister when he comes to our locality for his monthly check up.
• The saravana bhavan cheedai for my sister - a small pack whenever he visits SB.

All Thatthas are like that, whats so special, one may wonder. Well, for me, my  name is the same as that of the other thattha (Dad's dad) but he (this thattha) is the only one I have ever seen. He is also not just thattha, he is like the Kavingar Vaalee - ever youthful in our family. He is so well informed of everyday activity, sports and politics of TN. In fact, he is an encyclopedia of the politics of Karunanidhi, Sivaji and MGR times to till date. The countless talks I have had with my thattha on politics are very much informative to know of the past, which I wouldn't have known otherwise. 

There is a tradition in family - all of the grandchildren name begins with "A", coz my thattha name is Arumugham. It all started with me.

• Arvind
• Anand
• Ashwini
• Ajay
• Aarthi
• Akshaya

80th Bday of Thatha - 2010; all except Anand

His humor nature, is simply mind-blowing. He is second only to Goundamani for me - his comedy has such a timing sense that all people - his peers, his friends, his elders, his children and grand children - we all laugh. That is a tremendous quality. He pulls people, left and right and engages actively in arguments.

More than all this, he is like a friend for me - a partner in crime types. We had planned and done countless going-out things, small events or things like that. The last phone he got, which I helped him buy - a flip phone and he thought it was cool to flip it open and take call. The touch screen technology came little late for my thattha as he was never interested on that. 

I don't know what is it with 2012 - two of the people in family, I had looked upon as role models, had chosen to leave all of us, all little too soon, for me. Or so I feel. My periappa left in June - the architect of my dad's family resurrection. Now, thattha. He is the only person who is my role model, not for any thing he did, but just for being himself.

I cannot think of anybody doing things that he has done - beating death 3 times so far and to succumb on the fourth time a day back :(. I was so hopeful of his will power, that given a small chance to survive, my thattha would be back to his usual or ok state in a bit. Alas, he didnt get his chance this time :(. In 2006, he surprised all of our family members; after suffering his second heart attack while he was in haridwar, he flew back to Chennai, all by himself, and in airport we had an ambulance waiting to take him to the hospital. And, those drivers, didnt know the shortcut to reach Kamakshi hospital, and my thattha, lying down in the ambulance, gave directions. WOW....such acts by thattha defy me.

Death, which is, and has to be a biological phenomenon; but not sure why it evokes such an emotion within me. :(.  May be its coz, I wont have the same place to go back to - thattha veedu, with out thattha, it is just a void place. The place where I go and open fridge, kitchen, almirah all with so much rights, is going to be an all together different place - for all of us. He is such an independent man, lived his entire life, all by himself; both him and my grandma . They lived alone till date and were doing their daily chores all by themselves with help from my chitthi on cooking coming in the last few months. This for me is such an astonishing thing, given how old my Thattha is. He has lead his life, managed and maintained that house, all its accounts till the very last - all alone. He is such an organized man, that you will find all things neatly in place.

I share his disappointment in not having his "Sadhabhishekam" held; for some reasons, it never really materialized.

Alas, Im sitting all alone now, having decided yesterday night not to fly back to India for last rites but since morning, Im all blahhhhhh. Im not doing anything. I have no real clue why am I even blogging all these. Not sure why Im not going - Im in two minds. And, now it is that Im not going, Im sitting with a feeling of void that is too big and tears that roll down, ever so slowly when I see pictures from different times. But this distance -arrrrggghhhh is killing :(. I just wanted to go there and dance my heart out in front of his procession, don't know why but that is what I felt.

He has interest in tamil literature and a voracious reader, his almirah is full of books, which by itself can fill three to four book shelves. 

I'm not sure how to say good bye to my thattha coz he is our biggest support. I will miss his "Ganir" voice in phone call, his exaggeration of things he like - are all the wonderful traits that we have got so accustomed to and enjoy. 

He began to go weak in the last few months and his voice started showing that he was suffering. All the while, I was hoping for his pain to subside and didn't want him to leave now - may be he could have stayed for few more years, 3 years may be :(

Such a stickler for time he is, he will be the first person to arrive to any function or event in the family/elsewhere. And, he follows the same, while leaving too, will be the first person to leave back home as well. So much so, my aachi always says, "Kal le sudu thanni oothukittu than eppavum nippa thattha". 

I think he has done that one last time, again :(.

With tears rolling down, here is to my thattha, my friend - Arumugham