Vigyani-Part1

Episode 1:


Early morning in a village in the cauvery delta. One of the residents, Anjalai gets up hurriedly as she was late for pouring water in the front yard and draw her favourite kolam. Even as she opens her door and enters the front yard with a bucket of water, a broom and a small box with kolam powder, she notices people in groups standing and talking. Also, she sees quite a few people walking on the road leading from village and going to the railway station few miles away. Overcome by curiosity, she catches hold of a boy and asks what is going on. The boy replies, ' Below the banyan tree on the way from station to the village a samiyar(saint) is found sleeping. I am also going there'. Anjalai drops the routine of putting kolam and joins the boy. Even as they reach the banyan tree they find large number of people have surrounded it. Managing to have a peep, Anjalai sees a man with beard and long hair in pant and shirt sitting in the middle.


One of the lady says, 'Sammi ethuvum pesa maatenkuthu. Ellarum vilundu kumbittalum saami sirichukittu iruke ozhiya, oru viboothi kunkumam koduthuchina, namma kashtam poi vidivu varum. hoom, ennatha solla?'. ( ' the saint is not talking anything. Even if all people fall at his feet he keeps smiling only and not distribute the sacred ash or kumkum which will bring an end to our sufferings. Hoom, what can I say?')


Some elderly people from the village manage to reach the front and stand close to the man who the people call as samiyar. One elederly gentleman with his hands close to the mouth in an obedient posture asks the man, 'Saami engirundu varuthu. Saamiku tamil theriyuma?' ( 'where from the saint has come and do you know Tamil?'). The man who is addressed as saami has a big laugh and says, 'Ayya, naan oru saamiyar illai. En dhadi meesaiyai vaichu appadi ninaikatheenga. Naan oru vigyani, Mumbai le irundu varen' ( 'Sir, I am not a saint. Please don't think I am a saint from my beard and moustach. I am a scientist coming from Mumbai'). When he told like this, the silence among the people who had assembled breaks and people start talking among themselves. The common question asked by everyone is ' Vigyani na yaaru?' (' Who is a scientist?').


To be continued