ஆப்பசைத்த குரங்கு

பட்டினத்தாருடனான அறிமுகம் 'பட்டினத்தார்' என்ற திரைப்படம் மூலம்ஏற்பட்டது. எங்கள் ஊர் (சிவகாசி) கொட்டகையில் பெஞ்சில் இருந்து பார்த்தபடம். பெரிய பாதிப்பு எதுவும் நினைவில்லை.

பின்னொரு நாள் எதோ ஒரு சுஜாதா கட்டுரையில் மேற்கோளை கண்டு பட்டினத்தார், சிவ வாக்கிய சித்தர் எல்லாம் தேடி படித்ததுண்டு. பல பாடல்கள் நினைவில்லை எனினும் சில தருணங்களில் நினைவில் வருவதுண்டு.

அவற்றில் ஒன்று இந்த ஆப்பசைத்த குரங்கு பாடல். அந்த படிமம் மனதில் பதிந்துவிட்டது மட்டும் காரணம் அல்ல. 'அர்த்தமுள்ள இந்து மதம்' இரண்டாம் பாகத்தில்கண்ணதாசன் மேற்கோள் காட்டுகிறார்.

"நாப்பிளக்கப் பொய்பேசி நவநிதியம் தேடி
நலமொன்றும் இல்லாத நாரியரைக் கூடிப்
பூப்பிளக்க வருகின்ற புற்றீசல் போலப்
பொலபொலனக் கலகலெனப் புதல்வர்களைப் பெறுவீர்
காப்பதற்கும் வழியறியீர் கைவிடவும் மாட்டீர்
கவர்பிளந்த மரத்துளையில் கால் நுழைத்துக் கொண்டு
ஆப்பதனை அசைத்திட்ட குரங்கதனைப் போல
அகப்பட்டீர் கடந்துழல அகப்பட்டீர் நீரே!"


கே.டானியலின் 'பஞ்சமர்' என்ற நாவலை படிக்க ஆரம்பித்தேன். முன்னுரையின்மூன்றாவது வரியில் ஆசிரியர் சொல்லுகிறார் "தனிமனித சுதந்திரத்தைஅழித்தொழித்து, எல்லாம் எல்லோருக்குமான சுதந்திரத்தை பெறுதல்' என்றமுனைப்புடன் எழுதி வருவதாக. புத்தகத்தை மூடி வைத்து விட்டு 'கட்டாயம்படிக்கவேண்டுமா?' என்று யோசித்து கொண்டிருக்கிறேன்.

Count of Monte Cristo

I was watching the last hollywood version of 'The count of Monte Cristo'. I am not a purist and I do think taking some liberties when you storyboard a massive novel is acceptable. But this is absolute murder. Dumas will turn over in his grave if he ever heard of this.
And to call it a travesty is an understatement. It was nothing more than a sentimental tearjerker and I almost thought in the midway Dantes is gonna runaway with Countess Mondego and cause a scandal. I didn't watch it till the end for fear that I might lose all my love for the novel and puke as well.
I like - rather love - the book 'The Count of Monte Cristo' because though it runs for over a 1000 pages, it works in many levels as a novel. It is a tragic love story, a story of redemption and a revenge most gruesome in every way and a fantastic action thriller. I have about 3-4 copies of this book and have read the Oxford world classics version 7-8 times.
The revenge in the book is very subtle and the Count works under various guises for a lot of time to achieve what he wanted and then starts wondering whether it is what he wanted. It puts the conflict in the justification of the revenge and the consequences of the same. For me each of the guises, Abbe Faria, Lord Wilmore, The Count are manifestations of the same person at odds with himself and trying to express his case.
One of my early memories is reading this book in Tamil when it was published in the Paico classics series. After that, I read multiple versions of it in different abridged versions and complete ones and settled on the Oxford version about 10 years back. This is just one bad movie trying to destroy my love for the book and I wont stand for it.
The one movie version which I love is in French and I believe is dubbed in English. But anyway, I got the DVD in French as it feels more authentic. It is a 6 hour version with Gerard Depardieu as Edmond Dantes and the beautiful Ornella Muti as Mercedes. It is an amazingly done version and it captivates you till the end. If you have to watch it on DVD, watch this one.
We buy our meat from a nearby butcher shop which is manned by a person we call 'bhai'. He sells his chicken and meat at very good markups but given my wife's hate for the processed meat, we buy it fresh at least 2-3 times in a week from him. But this is not about him. This is about me.

When I started eating meat, I cannot remember. It must be pretty early. But most of our family occasions, marriages, festivals are all invariably linked to eating meat.

I remember the cook ups for my great grand father's
'திதி' in Sivakasi under a big tree in huge utensils. The goats are around and some how after some time, they disappear and start showing up in the utensils. And you get to eat while play around the trees. When we meet in my grand ma's house, all I remember of my auntie's is them cleaning chicken or cutting fish and eating the same after the male members of the family had their lunch.

When I go to my maternal grand ma's house in Sivakasi, I remember the trips to the fish market with my grandpa and buying goat blood for breakfast (its not as morbid as it sounds, its actually tasty). And of course, having it for breakfast along with Idlis and 'கொத்து கறி'.

And the pigeon kolambu my periamma used to make. It was never enough as the meat from the pigeons is so less.

I also remember all marriages that happened in the family and the day after when we get to have the 'கறி சாப்பாடு'. It is a custom that happened for my marriage as well. Since you cannot eat meat on the marriage day, eat it the day after. It was fun.

I also remember the difference in lunch boxes in school when most of the kids carry curd rice and puliyotharai's, my mom packed chicken and eggs. Its strange but true. Also the fact that I was taught to eat everything and not waste anything. My father still makes sure the left over bones are
really void of any meat. Intestines, brain, blood, liver, pancreas and the head of the goat. I can confidently say, the only things I've not eaten in a goat are the horns, eyes and hooves.

And the beef curry I tasted in Trivandrum and beef eating that started in US of A. I ate pork, beef and of course any meat that I could lay my hands on and even now, it is difficult to eat anything which does not smell like meat. Sibi is not so bad and he likes Chicken and eats Fish often and
Vanathy has started liking chicken only now.

Yesterday, after dropping Vanathy in school, I went with my wife to the butcher shop. I was standing outside as my wife was buying goat brain. I was looking at the butcher's skill in removing the skin from the head of the goat and slowly crack open the skull to take the brain out. Then I noticed,
the goat's eyes and teeth. That's when I realized how impersonal it seems to me. Here was a goat well and alive the day before and was having its brain extracted I am standing in line to get at it and I don't even feel any amount of compassion for it. And half kilo of Chicken that came along with it.

I was wondering when I became insensitive to the plight of all the hundreds of chickens and goats and fishes that were killed to feed me. But I also tried to shoo it away as it was making me uncomfortable. I am not even sure what was happening. Then lunch time came and the brain was indeed delicious. It was uncomfortable, but really juicy and good.

Putting things in perspective, I may never, ever become a vegan in my life. I think the process of buying it in the butcher shop is what is putting all these thoughts to me. May be if it was processed chicken, its more like a vegetable and I won't even think about it. .

On the other hand, I was watching this Japanese movie called 'In the realm of senses' and I was thinking of the goat as I watched the climax. Not much difference and the climax was more morbid than the brain extraction (yeah yeah, I know the usual film-festival defense, but it is still morbid)..

கீழடி அருங்காட்சியகம்.

உலகம் முழுவதும் இருக்கும் பல அருங்காட்சியகங்களுக்கு சென்றிருக்கிறேன். நியூ யார்க், கத்தார், துபாய், வாஷிங்டன், லாஸ் ஏஞ்சல்ஸ் போன்ற நகரங்களின...