Last Monday evening, I am at the Mavelikara railway station, waiting for the train to Chennai. The train is late by an hour - train drivers had declared a surprise strike on Saturday, which
resulted in trains getting stranded at various stations all over Tamilnadu and Kerala. Even after
two days of them getting back to work, the after-effects of the strike showed in the form of late running of trains.
Since I had an hour to kill, I come out of the station to get some fresh air. I am standing near
the bike / car parking area, when I am drawn into the conversation between the parking
attendant and an auto-driver. They are discussing the travails of the pilgrims visiting the
holy shrine of Lord Ayyappa at Sabarimala (in Kerala) and how inspite of the temple being
one of the richest in India (in terms of offerings received from pilgrims), the facilities are not enough to handle the lakhs of people that come to the temple every year.
The conversation turns to the corrupt politicians that we have the misfortune of being ruled
by. One of them feels strongly that the only way for the country to improve is by imposing military rule for some time in the country. He should talk to a few Pakistanis before he wishes for dictatorship. As we shoot the breeze, the power goes off and the whole area is plunged into darkness. Which gives the guys another reason to bash the politicians for the frequent power cuts.
And then we hear repeated chants of "Aanamayakki-ye saranam". In the moonlight we can
make out 2 young men in enebriated condition (by their unsure walking) walk towards us on
the road in front of the railway station. For those that don't know Malayalam, Aana is Mallu-
speak for Elephant and Mayakki means tranquiliser. So, aanamayakki is something that can
tranquilise even an elephant.
It is slang for a local alcoholic brew with toddy (coconut tree sap) as base. Toddy is legally
sold in Kerala and is a very good alternative to alcohol and is considered healthy too (if taken
in moderation). Many years ago, we used to go to the nearby toddy shop to have some great
food (in Kerala, you will get the best food in toddy shops and at real affordable prices too)
washed down with a few glasses of sweet toddy.
But today I would not dare to drink toddy unless I can confirm that it is straight from the tree,
and not adulterated with god-knows-what to make it more potent. This adulterated potion
gives an instant and stronger 'kick' and thus got the name of Aanamayakki. Local legend goes
that after having a few glasses of the stuff, it would be a miracle if you made it home. Something
on the lines of "one tequila, two tequila, three tequila, floor". :-)
And all over south India, 'saranam' is used only alongside the name of Lord Ayyappa, as in
"Swamiye saranam Ayyappa", which means, "My refuge is Lord Ayyappa". So, basically it is
blasphemy to associate / parody the holy chant with something that has wrong connotations.
The auto-driver is stung by what these guys are chanting. But it is also not a wise idea to join
issue with 2 young men who happen to be drunk. So, he murmurs, "Such blasphemy. I am
sure they will live to regret this." in what seemed to me like a lowered voice. I am sure the
guys did not hear exactly what he said, but they could understand that it was directed at them.
One of them shouts, "Who the f*** is there, *&^$&#$ ?". Auto-guy does not reply, even though
I can see that he is stung by the obscenity uttered by the guy and in normal circumstances, it would have resulted in a serious fight. He knows it is not a wise idea to take on two drunk guys. Also, if they could not be tranquilised by the famed aanamayakki, they should surely be having enough fight left in them.
The guys move on into the darkness and you could still hear, "Aanamayakki-ye saranam"......
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