Kommandamparai - My Childhood Stories

I am Savitha Shinto, I have a son named Anish Shinto, and we live in UK. Anish loves to hear my childhood stories every night and wanted me to write a book about it. He misses India alot

I was born in a beautiful small village in Coimbatore called Kommandamparai, which is situated in the edge of the Western Ghats. Appa (Dad) told us, the name Kommandamparai means "Kombu Adum Parai" (meaning dancing horns in the rocky hill) was given by hunters in olden days, who use to hunt in the forest and tie the horns of the animals in the big tree in the rocky hill.

My parents are farmers. Appa's name is Mylswamy Muthugounder and Amma (Mom) is Velumani Mylswamy. We are three daughters Savitha, Priya and Divya for them. 

Aatha (Lakshmi, Appa’s mom), Appuchi (Muthusamy Gounder, Amma's father, who comes and stays with us very often) and Shakthi Mama (Amma's cousin, like Amma very much and never like to go to his house) were lived in our farm house which was built by Aatha on her own and after Appa & Amma’s marriage, they renovated that house. We had two dogs "Mani" and "Vicky", two cats "Puchcha" and "Sony" and many cows and chickens lived in the farm. Aatha, Appa and Amma are very kind and generous people in the village. When any orphans or homeless or poor people comes to our village seeking for stay and food, the villagers will send directly to our farm, Appa and Amma accept them, give them shelter, food and  job.

Our village is in the border of Tamilnadu and Kerala. In 1980’s there is no proper bus services in those border villages. So, everyone has to walk or cycle or go in bullock cart by miles and miles for everything like hospital, schools and markets. These border villages use to get more rain, nearly 6 months and there is no proper roads which connects these villages, the connection will be mostly mud roads. In rainy seasons, the mud road will be like a muddle paddle. Our farm is on the way to nearby villages, so people will stop in our farm for rain shelters. Aatha is known for generosity in all the nearby villages. If anyone comes for shelter, she feed them with food, snacks, tea and coffee and make them comfortable. She is also well known for charity. She have done lots of charity and also treat all people same.

Every day, Appa and Amma goes out to the farm in the mornings and Aatha will be doing the household work like cooking, cleaning, washing and looking after us. We love Aatha so much and Aatha loves us very much too!

This is our family and we are happy little joint family in a little village had so much fun and laughter.

Our pet names

My family and villagers never call us with the given names, instead they call us with pet names.

My given name is Savitha but I used to call as perusu my sisters and Amma sometimes, periya samy was called by my appuchi, periya kaluthai - Amma calls when she is angry or in too much love, periya thangam - Aatha calls me always, Savi - Appa calls in my love always.

My next sister, Priya was called by many ways. Nadusu by Amma, Kunju by Appa and others in the village, Kunja by Aatha, me, Kanna mama (Amma’s brother) and all periyama’s (Amma’s sisters). Pri nowadays by everyone.

Divi was our last sister who was very adorable and beautiful when she was a baby and even now. She also got lots of pet names. Chinna Thangam and Chinna Kunju by Amma, Aatha and villagers, Chirusu by Appa, me and Pri and Chinna Kaluthai by Amma when she is angry and Divi now by everyone.

Divi playing with chicks

We had a furious hen (verithanamana koli) in the farm who hatched her eggs recently and was in the barn covered by a big basket. She never likes anyone coming close to her chicks. If she sees anyone close to her precious chicks she will start chasing them. 

One fine day, when I and Pri went to school, Appa and Amma went to work in the farm and Aatha was busy cooking, Divi who may one or one and half years old was playing with the baby kitten Sony in the living room and went outside cheekily without Aatha knowing.

She went to the barn, searching for the hen and her chicks. The hen and chicks were covered up in a big basket. She opened the basket and went inside and the basket closed over her. After that, she started playing with the chicks. Surprisingly, the hen did not hurt her. Aatha was looking for Divi in the living room and the whole house, nowhere she was found.

Aatha started panicking and started searching everywhere and the villagers came to know the news and they also started searching for the baby.

They could not find her anywhere. Aatha started crying at one point. Supiyan mama, who works in our farm heard lots of chicken’s sounds in the barn and he went inside the barn and opened the basket. You know what, there she is! The little cheeky baby was playing with the chicks. Aatha was relieved after seeing her. She took the baby and cuddled her and the villagers burst into laughter after hearing her story!

Pri brushing Cinnu's dog

When I was 7 years old and Pri was 5.5 years old. Near our farm there was a farm called "Cinnu Kadu".  Cinnu is a girl and she never gone to school and her parents are very old and their name is Kalaiamma Athai and mama we dont know his actual name. 

               Cinnu would be similar age as us. We go there once in a while to play with her. Mostly, she will busy in the farm work. But, if we go there, she will be very excited and would love to play with us. In the weekends sometime we go to see Cinnu and she take us to river bank for grassing the cows and she makes little pots and vessels in the clay from the river bank and we three play with it. She got a dog and the dog name is Mani. Mani doesnt like any new people coming to their house and Pri loves dog so much and she doesnt know how to play it. She was trying to brush Mani's teeth and Mani bitten her hand. Cinnu ran to my home to tell the message. 

            Kanna mama, Amma's brother, came to visit us on that day, come to know the news and rushed to Cinnu's house and took Pri immediately to the hospital. The doctor put 8 injections in her belly button. From that day onward, we ran away from Cinnu's dog. 

Long lasting names for goat generations

In our farm, Palaniappan Mama and Rukmani Athai used to work for many years and they have four sons and all the sons work in our farm except the younger one called Nagaraju. Nagaraju may be couple of years elder to us. He brings his goats to our farm for grassing, they had lots of goats. He is very funny and likes to play with us. He come to the farm after finishing his school and in the weekends. We play kannaboochi, thief police and detective officers to find out who was stealing mangoes from our farm by climbing up the tall mango trees using a telescope made up of palm leaves. 

He picks nice ripen mangoes from the tall trees and give to us. We also pick nice colourful mangoes and hide it in the hays. Once the ladies working in the farm found out our hidden spot and taken all the mangoes and we got very disappointed by seeing that. Nagaraju tells us nice movie stories and he is known for telling lies. One of his lie is, he told us that, he bunked his school went to see a movie and story of that movie is completely his imagination we found out that by seeing that actual movie.  We love their family very much and love to play with their goats and little lamps. Nagaraju’s family loves us so much. So, they keep all the new born little lamps with our name like savi kunju, periya kunju, chinna kunju, nadu kunju, kunja etc. There were so many generations of goats with our names.

Built a temple 

After a while we got some neighbours. Koyila, Paapu, Shakthi, Annanmaa and Priya. Koyila is my bestie and we both play together. I go to her house and we talk a lot. In the school holidays, Shakthi, Koyila, Paapu, I, Pri, Divi, Nagaraju and Cinnu all go to the river and learn swimming. There used to be a rock in the middle of the river we climb up the rock and jump into the water. Ladies coming for washing their clothes doesn’t like us doing this, because the clear water gets muddy water. To send us out of the water they lie to us that I have seen a snack in the water so get off from the water soon. We get scared and we get off from the water. Sometimes we do fishing in the river and put it back again. We take the peanut and tapioca from the farm and set up the fire in the river bank and burn it and eat it. We built a small hut temple and do celebrations for the temple. Aatha makes sweets for our temple celebrations. Aatha will be the chief guest for our temple opening. In the rainy season, we built dam in the streets with the flowing rainy water and play paper boat race. We had so much fun with our friends. 

Poor Athai caught in my motorcycle.  

           I remember how excited we were when Appa brought home our very first bike. We don’t know how to ride the bike but all of our friends were teaching me cycling. For their help I get them a lime juice from Pattamparai Tea Kadai (nearby village Cafe) or give the bike to them for a free ride. There is no stabilizer in the bike, So, I fell many times in the fences and bushes and got hurts. But I never gave up and eventually I learnt riding our first red bike. 

Pri was so lucky in bikes. Shakthi mama taught her. She can riding very fast and can do many stunts in bike like ride without hands, stand and ride, wheeling etc. I was jealous on her and wanted to do better than her. So, I started learning motorcycle (TVS 50). Shiva Anna, who works in our farm taught me and soon I learnt.

One day, we had guests at home and Amma sent me to the shop to buy cardamom for Payasam (Indian Sweet) and I was over confident in ride the bike, took the bike which doesn’t have proper breaks and horn, Amma warned me not to take it. I convenience her that I can manage with it. 

Chinnathai Athai and two other old ladies where carrying bunch of grass on their head and walking in the middle of the road.

I was trying to break my bike but I couldn’t, I was terrified and was not able to shout to alert the ladies to move from my way. I dashed the bike on Chinnathai Athai and I spanned the front wheel, the other two ladies got freaked and fell into the fence.

Poor Athai got bad hurt. I was very nervous to tell this accident to Amma. Before I went home, the news gone to Amma she was waiting for me and I got good scolding from her and Amma took me to Athai house to say sorry.

I was embarrassed and afraid to see Athai. For a while I never like to ride that motorcycle again into the village.

Cat Sony dream to go to school:

One night, Divi went to Amma asked for school fees. "Amma, tomorrow is the last day for school fees if you are not giving, then the Head Master will send me back to home. Please ma, tomorrow I want the school fees". 

Amma said “Ok thangam (dear), I will give you the fees”. Divi went to sleep. She was worried about the school fee and overthink about it. That night, she got a dream about the school and her little cat Sony, who sleeps next to her every day.

In the Dream, Sony went to Amma and asked "Amma, Amma I want to go to school too, can you please pay my fees as well". Amma pushed Sony away and said "I have not paid the fees to my child, how will I pay for you cat? Don’t trouble me and get lost from here, I have more work to do." Sony got very upset by hearing that from Amma and written a letter to her. In that letter, “It’s alright, you are not sending me to the school, at least after my death bury me in front of the school gate" and Sony hanged in front of the house. In the middle of the night Divi started shouting “No Sony, No, don’t do that” and we woke her up and asked “What happen to you?” She told about her dream and we burst in laughter. 

Did not last long our happiness:

One fine morning, I and Pri got up early and got ready to the school. We have to catch the early morning 6'o clock bus. It was 5:45 am and we realized our school bag were missing. We were searching the whole house for the bag and we could not found it anywhere. 

Divi was still in sleep she doesn’t know what is going on around her.

Amma and Appa started suspecting us. Thinking that I and Pri hidden the bags to bunk the school.

Divi got up slowly and asked us what’s going on and after hearing our story, she quietly saying that, "I hidden it last night, in my dream, there was thief in our house and who taken away many stuff. I managed to hide Akka’s bag from him" She got up from her bed and gave our stuffs back. We were very disappointed went to school sadly.

Drunken Mama:

Once in our farm there were many cows. Ramasamy mama and Senthil were working for us on that day. Amma send Mama to grassing the cows and Senthil to some other work. Every evening by 6 – 6:30 pm the cows will come back home. But that day, the cows didn’t come home. Amma was shouting “Ramasamy, Ramasamy where are you, bring the cows home”. No one is responding to her. Then Amma, Pri & Divi started searching for cows. The Cows were scattered everywhere and started eating in the fields. They three eventually rounded the cows and got them back home. Amma then sent Senthil to search for Ramasmay mama.

Amma was sitting in the corridor (thennai) and Divi & Pri was standing, holding a pillar in the front garden. Senthil got Mama back to home from somewhere and told Amma that “Ramasamy Anna is fully drunk and lying under a tree”. Mama was fully drunk and was not able to stand properly. Amma asked Mama “Ramasamy what are doing. You are not at all responsible, you are drunk and left the cows on their own and they spoiled the fields. Not fair Ramasamy. I’m upset with you”. Mama could not stand properly and don’t know where Amma sitting and looked at Divi and decided that’s Amma and said “Akka Akka, I swear Akka I didn’t drink at all Akka. Please Akka believe me and you have to believe me Akka.” He was keep saying this many times looking at Divi and walking forwards and backward. Divi & Pri broken in laughter and started commenting Mama with Tamil movie RED punch dialogues “AATHUUUU........” Amma was in anger got angrier by seeing these girls reaction. Amma left the place saying “I can’t control my girls or the people work for me. I am living with all crazy people” and went inside the house.

Dravid and Ganguly born in our Farm:

Divi and Pri loves cricket, they even bunk school and watch cricket. Divi’s favourite cricketer is Dravid and Pri’s is Ganguly. Once two cows gave birth at similar period and both the baby calves are male. Divi named one calf as Dravid and Pri named another as Ganguly. Divi and Pri loves these two calves so much. When the calves are little they are so adorable and always follow them and licks them a lot. They both look after these calves very well too.

One rainy day there was no one came to work in the farm. So Amma sent Divi & Pri to grassing the cows and asked me to help her in the farm.

Divi and Pri were fully drenched in rain and were shivering in cold. In the evening when they bring the cows back home they have to tie each cow in their places in the barn.

Before the cows go to their own place, there will be place for milking. Dravid’s & Gungly’s mom where in the milking place and these two calves were sent to their mom for milking.

After the calves finished their milking. Pri taken Ganguly inside the barn and Divi was trying to take Dravid inside but Dravid was not willing coming inside. Divi was dragging him “Dravid Vaa da (come)” and he was refusing to come inside. Divi decide to take him inside.

In the rain she took Dravid and felt very warm. She told Pri that, “Pri, Dravid is very warm and it’s nice for this cold and rain”. After left Dravid inside the barn, she figured out, the warmth from Dravid came from his pee. Both sisters told this story to me and we all laughed a lot.

Marutha saved Amma

One nice day, Amma and Marutha who works for us went to the river bank for washing the clothes.

We don’t have washing machine those days and Amma washes clothes when Appa turns on water for crops. There is placed called pumpset, where we have a water tank, the water from our well will first come to that water tank and goes to the field by a small channel. Anyways, that day there is no electric power in the farm so Appa was not able to water the crops and Amma got the whole house clothes to wash so she took Marutha for help and took the dirty clothes to the river bank.

River was calm and quiet not much people around and the water was flowing gently.

Amma and Marutha was busy in washing clothes, they are nearly done in washing only the last few bits left to finish off.  Marutha was keep hearing a noise from long distance and noise is getting louder and louder. He asked Amma, “Amma can you hear any noise. She was really busy with washing she didn’t care about him she was rushing to finish off the washing”

Marutha stood up a big stone and was looking in the far distance what is going on. He finally figured out that, the sound is from the flood water in the river. There is a dam near our village called Valayar dam. Looks like It got opened up and the water is flooded in the river. There were so much of water coming in the river, which could can wash away anything. Marutha started shouting at Amma. “Amma Amma quick quick there is water coming very fast let us leave this place immediately. Amma realised the danger and try to pack all the clothes”. Just about water reach them, Marutha pulled Amma away from the river and they both saved from flood wash away. Thanks to Marutha our wonderful servant and who is no more now. Let his soul, rest in peace.

Aatha is a big problem for sleep

Aatha was nearly 80 years old. I, Pri and Divi sleep in the same room as Aatha. Aatha sometimes doesn’t get sleep and she can’t see or hear very well because of her old age. I and Pri where studying in a school near the town. There were not enough transport services in our village, there was only one bus which comes 4 times a day. The bus timings were early in the morning 6 am, 8:45 am, 1 pm and 6:15pm. So every day to go to school we have to catch the 6 a.m. bus. Aatha gets up in the middle of the night and thinks its early morning and wakes us up saying that “its morning wake up kids, the rooster is crowing already” and she takes us to the bath room which was bit of a distance from the house and takes us bathing. In those days the built bath rooms near the water tank, because the water normally comes from the well and fills the tank only when the farmers water the crops. After our bath we come home and Amma will say that “There is still time until morning so go to bed kids”. Pri loves sleeping late and she does NOT like Aatha bothering her sleep!!!

Pri was thinking a lot and find out a solution to stop Aatha for not awaking her in the middle of night. She told an idea to Aatha, “Aatha, DON `T wake me up in the middle of the night, and I will take bath before going to bed”! Aatha understood her problem so she wouldn’t wake her up in the middle of the night. Poor me, I have to get up whenever Aatha says!

Pri still does not  like to get up early in the morning, she was keep thinking of how to sleep more, She told Amma, “ PLEASE Amma don’t wake me up early in the morning I will comb my hair and dress up in the night and go to sleep”. Amma laughed at her and did NOT let her do that!