Tharakkal, my love!

This is my Dad’s home. This is also where I got married and boy, was that a wonderful day or what! Parinayam, one of my favourite films was shot here. So was Sallapam and Sindoorarekha. I was in Tharakkal on my summer vacation when Parinayam was being shot. It was fun to watch the sleepy hamlet come to life as so many people came visiting. To catch a sight of Thilakan or Vineet or Mohini, to hang around the sets hoping to get a role as an extra or simply to partake of the food served on the sets. There was a strange excitement all over and people used to hang around all day watching the shooting, myself included.

It is strange to describe… It was difficult to disassociate myself from the film as I watched the familiar scenes, nooks and corners unfold on screen. I remember that balcony where Madhavan stands and gazes at Unnimaya stepping out of the ambala kulam and making her way to the tiny temple above. I forget what the temple is called. Not meleambalam, certainly… That was where we lit all the lamps on the eve of my wedding. Chuttuvilakku, as it is called. The temple looked wonderful and Pinch had a great time that night.

That tiny room where Unnimaya is locked in and from where she implores to Madhavan to rescue her and the paavam that he is, he gently disengages his hands from hers. I recall Vineet resting in an easy chair after the day’s shooting. The yellow sodium lamps, the buzzing mosquitoes and his serious expression made such an impression on me that it is slightly embarassing to recount at this point. Not embarassing actually, just amusing. Guess I developed a small crush on him.

Tharakkal never seemed so charming before… and paradoxically, it seemed so much more lovely once everyone had left. I was older, the times were different and now I cherished the calm and comfort of marriage and love as compared to the feverishness and excitement of my crush on Vineet. Yet I am sure the next time I visit Tharakkal, the old mood will assert itself. I will start looking for that nameless romance promised by yellow sodium lamps, the sound of crickets, leaves crackling underfoot and the sound of water lapping at the stone foundations of the 100-year old house. When we were kids, power cuts were frequent at Tharakkal and we used to spend countless evenings in partial darkness, the only light provided by the raandal(lantern) and the occasional firefly. I was a teenager at that time and fancied myself to be in search of that elusive something or someone, I don’t know what. The darkness provided ample room for my imagination to run wild. Trysts in the darkness, unfulfilled passions, old Mills and Boon novels… certain film songs took on a new meaning and I waited for that excitement to dawn. Funnily enough, my real-life romance was anything but all this…:-)))

I can hardly wait to go back to Tharakkal…