the life-story of a Padma recipient from Thrissur !!

Not a post on Cricket but on a Sportsperson !! – with the storyline described below, perhaps most Cine-fans would be able to identify the movie and the actors, nay not the hero and heroine alone but also the Chinna karuppu !! who ! ? !

 

Ganesh arrives from Madurai to continue his MBBS degree in Chennai. Srimathy, Ganesh's professor's daughter, wants to thank Ganesh for helping her escape from goons. When Ganesh and Srimathy meet, they are surprised as they already know each other, leading to Ganesh and Srimathy's past. 

Past: Srimathy's family gets into trouble with Eswari, Eswari, an arrogant moneylender,when  Ganesh helps. Eswari falls for Ganesh's bravery and proposes to him, but he rejects her. Eswari kidnaps Ganesh's parents and threatens him to accept her, but Ganesh thwarts her plans. Eswari angrily tries to kill Ganesh, but accidentally dies in a mishap. Eswari's brothers Periya Karuppu and Chinna Karuppu assume Ganesh and Srimathy to be responsible for their sister's death, and  resolve to kill them.  

Many of us are able to identify Cricketers.  A 23-year-old left-arm fast bowler from Punjab, Ashwani Kumar made his IPL debut for Mumbai Indians in the 2025 season after playing only four T20 matches on the domestic circuit. He struck with his first ball in the tournament, dismissing KKR's captain Ajinkya Rahane, before picking up the wickets of Manish Pandey, Rinku Singh and Andre Russell to become the first Indian to take a four-wicket haul on IPL debut.  Yesterday in the Crucial eliminator with GT chasing well, Hardik Pandya brought him in.  If only the Team management had gone with the choice of playing an extra-spinner, Ashwani would not be in the frame.  With  77 needed from 36 -  it was a massive show of faith – after that over, the equation read 68 off 30,  again he bowled the 17^th conceding just 9 leaving GT needing 45 off 18.

 

You may easily recognize Ashwani Kumar, can you identify this recipient of Padma Award from our Hon’ble President.  

He was born on  25 April 1969 in Thrissur City, Kerala. He began his life in a gravely poor environment and had to sell soda bottles in the Thrissur Municipal Corporation Stadium to help his family. His passion for football somehow caught the eye of the then DGP of Kerala, M.K. Joseph who got him selected for the Kerala Police football club at 17 years of age.  He was able to impress the national football fraternity very soon with his impeccable skills and highly aggressive style of playing. He continued to play for Kerala Police until 1991. He then joined Mohun Bagan, before coming back to Kerala Police in 1992 and then switching back to Mohun Bagan. In 1994, he joined JCT Mills Phagwara and stayed with them for 3 more years.  

The story of - Inivalappil Mani Vijayan (IM Vijayan)  also called  Kalo Harin (Blackbuck),  a former professional football player who also captained the India national football team. He played as a striker, where he formed a successful attacking partnership with Bhaichung Bhutia for the India national football team in the late nineties and early 2000s.  He represented India 72 times scoring 29 goals.  Since retiring from international football, Vijayan has set up a football academy to train young players in his home town.  

 

I.M. Vijayan made his debut in international football in the year 1992 and played in a number of tournaments such as Nehru Cup, Pre-Olympics, FIFA World Qualifiers, SAFF Championship and SAF Games. Vijayan was part of the victorious Indian team in the 1999 South Asian Football Federation Cup and scored one of the fastest international goals in history of sport during the tournament, hitting the net against Bhutan after only 12 seconds.  He also finished top scorer in the Afro-Asian Games event held in India in 2003 with four goals.  

 

Vijayan was crowned Indian Player of the Year in 1993, 1997 and 1999, the first player to win the award multiple times.  He was also awarded the Arjuna Award in 2003 and  Padma Shri in 2025. 

After retiring from football, Vijayan started his acting career. His debut was through playing the lead role in the film Shantham, directed by Jayaraj. He has acted in some Tamil movies too !! 

The story description in 2^nd para is “Thimiru” Vishal, Reema Sen, Sriya Reddy starrer released in 2006, directed by Tarun Gopi.  The film was dubbed in Telugu as Pogaru and was later remade in Kannada as Minchu  - and the Chinna karuppu in that movie was IM Vijayan

 
Regards – S Sampathkumar
31.5.2025

  

face to face ..... ...... ........... with Lion

 

Every morning, every day !  - living beings meet one another.  How pleasant are your interactions ? – do you greet them with a smile always !?

 

காட்டு சிங்கத்தை விளம்பரத்தில பார்த்து இருப்பீங்க !  சினிமால பார்த்து இருப்பீங்க ! நேருக்கு நேர், முகத்தோடு, முகம் சந்தித்து இருக்கீங்களா !!

 

சீறி பாக்கும்  ஆளு முன்னே - சிரிச்சு பாரு மாறிடுவான்

கொழந்த போல மனசு இருந்தா, கொள்ளை இன்பம் பார்த்திடலாம்

 

வீர விநாயகா வெற்றி விநாயகா;  சக்தி விநாயகா பேரழகா

தீரா சந்தோஷமும் தித்திக்கும் வாழ்க்கையும், எத்திக்கும் தோன்றிட வேணுமையா

 

Make life simple and pleasant   ~ hate takes us nowhere !

31.5.2025

It's your sky ! Understanding a Plane !!

English is a foreign language – not easy to  understand !  - in College days, there were jokes about some who were not articulate in English asking students to bring his bi-cycle with a command -  ‘go and brought the cycle understanding the tree’.

Today afternoon had the opportunity of standing under [நிற்றல்]  an aeroplane !  .. so what is that we understand about an airplane – this one read ‘It’s your Sky!’

The flying air craft is a marvel to look at always and there are still many who have not travelled in any aircraft !!

An   aeroplane, is a fixed-wing aircraft that is propelled forward by thrust, typically from jet engines or propellers, and is supported by the dynamic reaction of air against its wings. The basic principle of flight involves four forces: lift, weight, thrust, and drag, which must be in balance for sustained flight. Airplanes generate lift by deflecting air downwards.  The curved upper surface of the wing forces air to move faster over the top, reducing pressure. The slower-moving air below creates higher pressure, contributing to the lift force. For an airplane to maintain level flight, the lift force must be equal to the weight, and the thrust must be equal to the drag.

SNV Aviation Private Limited (d/b/a Akasa Air),is an Indian low-cost airline headquartered in Mumbai, founded by Vinay Dube and Aditya Ghosh with investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala holding a 46% stake. The airline began commercial operation with its first flight service from Mumbai to Ahmedabad on 7 August 2022, after receiving its first Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft. 

Akasa Air, India’s newest airline   launched its first multimedia campaign dubbed ‘It’s Your Sky’. The campaign brings alive the airline’s tagline and builds on Akasa’s brand promise of offering a warm, efficient, dependable, and affordable travel experience to all travellers.   ‘It’s Your Sky’ is a multi-touchpoint campaign that tries to reach  audiences through print, out of home (OOH), digital, social media including Akasa Air’s social media handles, and written on the underbelly of the aircraft too. The creative concept of ‘It’s Your Sky’, is based on the insight that air travel in India has so far been highly transactional as well as an intimidating experience for a large section of Indians.

அகப்பொருள் இலக்கணத்தில் அறத்தொடு நிற்றல் என்பது முதன்மையானதொரு மரபு. நிற்றல் என்ற  பெயர்ச்சொல்:  நிற்கை, standing  என பொருள் தரும், Understanding  என்பது உணர்தல். 

நம் அனைவருக்கும் நன்கு தெரிந்த திருக்குறள் :  கற்ற வேண்டியவற்றைப் பழுதறக் கற்க வேண்டும். அதன்படியே நடக்கவும் வேண்டும்” எனும் கருத்துடைய  

‘கற்க கசடறக் கற்பவை கற்றபின்

நிற்க அதற்குத் தக.’ 

ஒருவன் கற்கப்படு நூல்களைப் பழுதறக் கற்க; அங்ஙனங் கற்றால் அக் கல்விக்குத் தக அவை சொல்லுகின்ற நெறிக்கண்ணே நிற்க.  அதாவது, ஒருவன் கற்கப்படு நூல்களைப் பழுதறக் கற்க, கற்றபின் அதற்குத் தக நிற்க - அங்ஙனம் கற்றால், அக்கல்விக்குத் தக அவை சொல்லுகின்ற நெறிக்கண்ணே நிற்க. 'கற்பவை' என்றதனான், அறம் பொருள் இன்பம் வீடு என்னும் உறுதிப்பொருள் உணர்த்துவன அன்றிப் பிற பொருள் உணர்த்துவன,  பொதுக்கல்விக்கேற்ப அறநெறியிலொழுகுதலும் சிறப்புக்கல்விக்கேற்பச் செவ்வையாய்த் தொழில் செய்தலும் ஆம். இவ்விருவகை நடத்தையிலும் நிலைத்து நிற்க வேண்டுமென்றற்கு 'நிற்க' என்றார்.  

நமக்கோ நடுத்தெருவில் ஒன்றும் செய்யாமல் நிற்றல் பிடிக்கும் !  கற்கத் தக்கனவற்றைக் கற்போமாக! கற்றபடியே நிற்போமாக!  

ஆசாமி சிரிப்பு சிந்தனையாளன் இன்று வானத்தை சும்மா பார்த்து நின்றபோது உணர்ந்த அரும்பொருள் !! 

 
With regards – S  Sampathkumar
28.5.2025 

  

moments from IPL - legends seen in 2018

 

the 70^th and last league match of IPL 2025 is underway !  - will RCB win ??

here is a pic I had posted on 2018 – and see some legends in the frame !!

Smile - siri, siri siri siri - Siri !!

 

Smile  -  how often do you smile ! – do you always greet people with a smile ! – can  you smile at strangers as also at people, who are not liked by you ??  (pic taken in May 2019)

 

Primarily a Smile, is a   facial expression in which the eyes brighten and the corners of the mouth curve slightly upward and which expresses especially amusement, pleasure, approval, or sometimes scorn.   Among humans, a smile expresses delight, sociability, happiness, joy, or amusement. 

A Duchenne smile involves contraction of both the zygomatic major muscle (which raises the corners of the mouth) and the orbicularis oculi muscle (which raises the cheeks and forms crow's feet around the eyes).

Village road .. ... ... குடகு மலை காற்றில் வரும் பாட்டு கேக்குதா

How often do you visit villages ? – or when did you visit a village last ! – and how long was your stay there, few minutes, hours, days  ??   A long silent, slow journey on a Thar road with Coconut trees on either side, travel on a bullock-cart must be on the wishlist of most travel lovers !!

1989ல் வெளிவந்து இன்றைக்கும் பட்டி தொட்டி எல்லாம் முழங்கும் பாடல் - 'மாங்குயிலே பூங்குயிலே'   *கரகாட்டக்காரன்*   ராமராஜனுக்கு பெரிய திருப்பமாக அமைந்த  படம், - கங்கைஅமரன் தயாரித்து இயக்கிய படம்.

கிராமங்கள் புகைப்படத்தில், சினிமாவிலும் பார்க்க மிக மிக ரம்மியமாக அழகாக இருக்கும்.  நேரில் நிஜத்தில் சில நாட்கள் அங்கே வாழ்வது வித்தியாசமாக இருக்கலாம்.   தமிழ் சினிமா  -   கதாநாயகிகளை விட கதாநாயகர்களையே அதிகம் முன்னிறுத்தி உள்ளது.  எம்ஜிஆர் சிவாஜி, பிறகு ரஜினிகாந்த், கமல், விஜயகாந்த் என படங்கள் வந்த காலத்தில் ராமராஜனை முத்தையாவாக முன்னிறுத்தி கங்கை அமரன் பெரும் வெற்றி கண்ட படம் ' கரகாட்டக்காரன்'.  கவுண்டமணி, செந்தில் இணைந்து நடித்த நகைச்சுவை பிரமாதம்.   இளையராஜாவின் கிராமிய இசையில் கரகாட்டக் கலைக்கு புத்துயிரும் மதிப்பும் பெற்றுத்தந்த திரைப்படம்.   

இசைஞானி இளையராஜாவின் இசையில் "மாங்குயிலே பூங்குயிலே" அனைத்து தரப்பினரயும் கவர்ந்து பெரும் வெற்றி பெற்ற பாடல் - தவிர மற்றைய பாடல்களும் மிக சிறப்பாக இருக்கும்.   மனோ சித்ரா குரலில் ஒரு சிறப்பான பாடல்:  

குடகு மலை காற்றில் வரும்  பாட்டு கேக்குதா என் பைங்கிளி

ஏதோ நினைவு தான் உன்ன சுத்தி பறக்குது

என்னோட மனசுதான் கண்டபடி தவிக்குது  .. …

 

மானே மயிலே, மரகத குயிலே, தேனே நான் பாடும் தெம்மாங்கே

பூவே பொழுதே, பொங்கி வரும் அமுதே, காதில் கேட்டாயோ

என் வாக்கே, உன்னை எண்ணி நான் தான், ஒரு ஊர்கோலம் போனேன்

தன்னந்தனியாக நிற்கும் - தேர் போல ஆனேன்

 

இத்திரைப்படம் மதுரை திரையரங்கில் ஒரு வருடத்திற்கும் மேல் (425 நாட்கள்) ஓடி சாதனை படைத்தது.   "தில்லானா மோகனாம்பாள்" கதையை  நினைவு படுத்த வல்ல கதையை கொண்ட  இத்திரைப்படம் கிராமிய வாசனையும், நகைச்சுவை ரசமும் பெற்று கரகாட்டத்தை முன்னிறுத்தி கிராமக் காவியமாக படைக்கப்பட்டிருந்தது. பழம்பெரும் நடிகையான தேவிகாவின் புதல்வி கனகாவிற்கு இது முதல் தமிழ்த்திரைப்படம்  நகைச்சுவை இணை நாயகர்களான கவுண்டமணி-செந்திலின் நகைச்சுவைப் பயணம் இத்திரைப்படத்தினின்று புத்துயிரும் ஓட்டமும் பெற்றது.    

A  picture post though content is more about Karagattakaran cinema
 
Regards – S Sampathkumar
27.5.2025

 

 

  

iconic building - Agurchand Mansions on Mount Road, Madras

 

Imagine a wide big attractive building on city’s most important arterial road – that it is closer to a junction; vehicles would stop allowing passengers in all and sundry vehicles to see and wonder its colourful presence  is a bonus ..

 

The iconic “Agurchand Mansions”  ~  not a single vehicle of any description on this side of the Mount Road, Chennai – taken at 12:53 noon today (26.5.2025) 

Xenon gas ~ scaling Mt. Everest ! - Bachendri Pal

 

It  is a chemical element; with  symbol Xe and atomic number 54. Xenon gas is a noble, colorless, odorless, and unreactive gas. It's a trace component of Earth's atmosphere, present in small amounts (less than 1 ppm). Xenon is also known as a "stranger gas" because the Greek word "xenos" means "stranger".

 

History was scripted on this day 41 years ago, when Bachendri Pal became the first Indian woman to summit Mount Everest. She scaled the world’s highest peak at 8,848 metres as part of India’s fourth expedition to Everest. Is it really a Sport  ?   – certainly one of a physical pursuit demanding an affinity for suffering, where it is cerebral in its requirement of good judgment, most importantly in extreme situations when the mind is most clouded and consequences of bad decision-making tend to multiply.  Considering the level of  risks of what the participants call the objective level, it  involves assessing dangers one may encounter – weather, avalanches, poor rock, and many more unthought of ! – really very tough challenges experienced and willfully pursued  by mankind.  .. .. it is conquering Mount Everest called ‘mountaineering’ !

 

The world’s highest mountain peak Mount Everest is called Chomolungma in Tibetan and Sagarmāthā  in Nepali.  Mount Everest, located on the top of the world, attracts people.  Sagarmāthā is Earth's highest mountain. Its peak is 8,848 metres (29,029 ft)  ~ although more than 4,000 people have scaled the summit since Sir Edmund Hilary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay first conquered the mountain in 1953, hundreds have also perished.  Statistics reveal that scaling Everest is much easier than it used to be. In 1990 just 18 per cent of summit attempts were successful, but in 2012 that figure was 56 per cent. 

The first recorded efforts to reach Everest's summit were made by British mountaineers. As Nepal did not allow foreigners to enter the country at the time, the British made several attempts on the North Ridge route from the Tibetan side. After the first reconnaissance expedition by the British in 1921 reached 7,000 m (22,966 ft) on the North Col, the 1922 expedition on its first summit attempt marked the first time a human had climbed above 8,000 m (26,247 ft) and it also pushed the North Ridge route up to 8,321 m (27,300 ft). On the 1924 expedition George Mallory and Andrew Irvine made a final summit attempt on 8 June but never returned, sparking debate as to whether they were the first to reach the top. Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary made the first documented ascent of Everest in 1953, using the Southeast Ridge route. Norgay had reached 8,595 m (28,199 ft) the previous year as a member of the 1952 Swiss expedition.

 

Bachendri Pal was born on 24 May 1954 in Nakuri village, in the Uttarkashi district, as  one of five children to Hansa Devi, and Shri Kishan Singh Pal, – a border tradesman who supplied groceries from India to Tibet. Just a few days less than year before,  was the day of original ascension of Mount Everest by Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary. She completed her M.A. and B.Ed,  started mountaineering at the age of 12 when, along with her friends, she scaled a 13,123 ft (3,999.9 m) high peak during a school picnic.  She became the first female to climb Mount Gangotri 23,419 ft (7,138.1 m) and Mount Rudragaria 19,091 ft (5,818.9 m) in 1982. In that time, she became an instructor at the National Adventure Foundation (NAF), which had set up an adventure school for training women to learn mountaineering.

 

Pal encountered stiff opposition from her family and relatives when she chose a career as a professional mountaineer rather than a schoolteacher. However, she soon found success in her chosen field when, after summiting a number of smaller peaks, she was selected to join India's first mixed-gender team to attempt an expedition to Mount Everest in 1984.  In 1984,  India scheduled its fourth expedition to Mount Everest, christened "Everest '84". Bachendri Pal was selected as one of the members of the group of six Indian women and eleven men to attempt the ascent of Mount Everest.  The team was flown to Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, in March 1984, and from there the team moved onwards. Recalling her first glimpse of Mount Everest, Bachendri reminisced, "We, the hill people, have always worshipped the mountains... my overpowering emotion at this awe-inspiring spectacle was, therefore, devotional."  The team commenced its ascent in May 1984. Her team almost met disaster when an avalanche buried their camp, and more than half the group abandoned the attempt because of injury or fatigue. Bachendri Pal and the remainder of the team pressed on to reach the summit.    

On 22 May 1984, Ang Dorje (the Sherpa sirdar) and some other climbers joined the team to ascend to the summit of Mount Everest; Bachendri was the only woman in this group. They reached the South Col and spent the night there at Camp IV at the altitude of 26,000 ft (7,924.8 m). At 6:20 a.m. on 23 May 1984, they continued the ascent, climbing "vertical sheets of frozen ice"; cold winds were blowing at the speed of about 100 kilometres per hour (62 mph) and temperatures touching −30 to −40 °C (−22 to −40 °F). On 23 May 1984, the team reached the summit of Mount Everest at 1:07 p.m. and Bachendri Pal created history.  She achieved this feat on the day before her 30th birthday, and six days before the 31st anniversary of the first ascension of Mount Everest.

 

With a great accomplishment, she has been conferred many awards and accolades that include :  Gold Medal for Excellence in Mountaineering by the Indian Mountaineering Foundation (1984);  Padma Shri in 1984;  Arjuna Award 1986;  National Adventure Award by the Government of India (1994);  entry in Guiness book of World records;   •          Honorary Doctorate from the Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University  .. ..  &  Padma Bhushan 2019.  

Everest is named after the colonial-era British surveyor George Everest, who never actually saw it.   

Kritika Sharma, a 19-year-old woman and college student from Himachal Pradesh  has captured nationwide attention, as  she successfully scaled Mount Everest on May 18, 2025. Kritika belongs to a remote village of Gattadhar, within the Sangrah subdivision of Sirmaur district. With her historic climb, she took the Indian tricolour, NCC flag and college insignia to this 8,848m summit, symbolizing her respect for her country, her commitment to her career of choice and the spirit of Indian youth, all at once.  

Chhonzin Angmo, a tribal woman from a remote village in Himachal Pradesh's Kinnaur district, suffers from total blindness but she has never let her visual impairment stand in the way of her dreams.  This week, she scripted history by becoming the first visually-impaired woman from India and the fifth such person in the world to scale Mt Everest, planting the Tricolour on Earth's highest mountain. 

.. .. if you remember the first para still  !  ~  Four British climbers have become the first to summit Mount Everest using Xenon gas to accelerate their acclimatisation, shaving weeks off the traditional expedition timeline.  The historic ascent, organised by Austria-based Furtenbach Adventures, marks a new chapter in high-altitude mountaineering. Typically, climbers spend several weeks or even months on Everest, gradually adjusting to the mountain’s thin air before attempting the 8,848-metre summit. Rapid ascents without proper acclimatisation are considered extremely dangerous due to the risk of altitude sickness and hypoxia. However, the British team, after inhaling Xenon gas in Germany and sleeping in high-altitude simulation tents at home, managed to reach the summit in less than five days after leaving London. They also used supplemental oxygen during their climb, as is standard practice.

 
Interesting !
 
Regards – S. Sampathkumar
26.5.2025
 

White Pigeon !!

For a City apartment dweller, the exotic bird that we get to see  daily,  next to Crow is perhaps Pigeon.

 

Pigeon plumage color varies widely, but most wild pigeons are bluish-gray with two black bars on their wings and a black-tipped tail. They often have iridescent green and purple feathers on their necks.   Then there are these attractive White Ones. White pigeons, often called white doves, are generally recognized as a symbol of peace and are commonly used in ceremonial releases, such as those at weddings. They are a popular choice for releases due to their clean white color and association with purity. 

White dove releases have a long history, dating back over 5,000 years to ancient Egypt. They have been used in various cultures and ceremonies, symbolizing love, peace, freedom, and new beginnings. In weddings, doves represented love and devotion, while in funerals, they symbolized the spirit's departure.  Doves were first released during the 1920 Antwerp Olympics, symbolizing peace, and this tradition has been replicated in some form at subsequent Olympic opening ceremonies. 

Well, life ends after release and not many would care to think – what happens next !!  When white doves are released, they either return to their home lofts or face a difficult survival situation in the wild. If they are trained homing pigeons, they will fly back to their owners' lofts or facilities. However, if they are not trained and released into the wild, they often struggle to survive due to lack of survival skills, making them vulnerable to predators, accidents, and starvation.

 
Interesting !
 
Regards – S Sampathkumar
26.5.2025 

Hindu High School ~ Red Building !!

 Be proud of your School (let your school be proud of you !!) - the famous Red Building of 'Hindu High School' Triplicane.

 

To bring more nostalgia -  list of Headmasters (not an updated one though) as this pic was taken in Jan 2012. 

those torrid Covid times ! wearing mask !!

 

After months of lull, Covid-19 seems to be making a slow return across urban centres in India, prompting states and UTs like Delhi, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh to put hospitals on alert.  Delhi, Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka have all reported fresh cases this month. In fact, the national capital has reported coronavirus cases (23) for the first time in three years, PTI reported. 

World perhaps still has memories of those torrid times – of 2020 & 2021 !!

 

Here is a disciplined man - pictured on OMR this man riding a motorized cycle and wearing a mask [ .. .. .. and it was taken on 08.07.2015! - at a time whenb Covid menace was not known !! 

Movies of 1943 ! ~ வதனமே சந்திர பிம்பமோ?

 

A movie advertisement in leading Tamil weekly Kalki in 1943 !!  - not a Tamil movie – unlikely that it would have been dubbed or had any scroll in Tamil for the Hindi dialogues .. .. “Poonji” – (which translates to "Wealth" or "Capital")

Great fan of Tamil Cinema – have the habit of quoting Cinema songs ! especially to your lover –  try singing this  !! 

வதனமே சந்திர பிம்பமோ? மலர்ந்த சரோஜமோ?

மாறன் அம்போ? நீள் விழியோ? மதுர கானமோ?  

ஐயுற வேண்டா !!  -  தமிழ் பாடலே !!  -   முகர் என்ற வினைவேர் மூக்கினால் ஒன்றினை முகர்ந்து பார்ப்பதைக் குறிக்கிறது. முகத்தை நீட்டுமாறு, அசைக்குமாறு செய்வதற்கு முகரும் வினையே காரணமாகிறது.  முகத்திற்குத் தமிழில் வழங்கப்படும் பிற சொற்கள் -  மூஞ்சி, முகரை என்பன.  மூய் என்றால், எல்லாம் முடியும் இடம். நெருங்கிச் சூழ்ந்த நிலைக்கும் மூய்தல் என்று பெயர். புலன்களின் நெருங்கிச் சூழ்ந்த இடம் என்ற பொருளில் மூய் என்ற வினையோடு 'தி' என்ற விகுதி சேர்ந்தது. மூய்தி என்ற சொல்லே மூஞ்சி ஆனது (தெலுங்கில் ముఖం).  முகத்திற்கு மற்றோரு பெயர் "வதனம்"

கவிதைக்கு பொய் அழகு !  - கவிதை என்பது ஒப்பிடல்.  பண்டை நாள் முதலே, அழகு முகத்தோடு, முக்கியமாக காதலியின் அழகு முகத்துக்கு - சந்திரனே உவமை.   இந்த பிரபல பாடல் பாபநாசம் சிவன் இயற்றியது.  1943ல் வெளிவந்த சிவகவி என்ற படத்தில் எம்.கே. தியாகராஜ பாகவதர் மத்யமாவதி, ராகத்தில், ஜி. ராமநாதன் இசைக்கு பாடி நடித்தது.  TR  ராஜகுமாரி கதாநாயகி  

Thanjavur Radhakrishnan Rajayee (1922 –1999), was famously known  by her screen name T. R. Rajakumari, actress, Carnatic singer and dancer. She  perhaps was the first dream girl from soap bubble industry.   She debuted in Kumara Kulothungan, which was produced in 1938–39 but was released in 1941 after Kacha Devayani.

The song that is spoken about in 3^rd para is from Sivakavi, released in 1943, directed, initially, by P. K. Raja Sandow and later, S. M. Sriramulu Naidu. It starred M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar, S. Jayalakshmi, Serukalathur Sama, Thirupurambal, T. R. Rajakumari, N. S. Krishnan and T. A. Mathuram. The film's screenplay was written by Thirumuruga Kirupanandha Variyar. The film was shot at Central Studios and released by Pakshiraja Films in Coimbatore. The film was released on 10 April 1943.  The soundtrack of the film consisted of 29 songs were composed by Papanasam Sivan who also penned the lyrics for all songs while G. Ramanthan took care of orchestration.  Vadaname Chandra bimbamu was a great hit … .. remembered still.  

Moving away Poonji, upon searches understand to be a movie released in 1943. It  was directed by Ravindra Dave and Vishnu R. Pancholi and  starred M. Esmail, Durga Mota, Ragini in lead roles. The film storyline revolved around three sisters trying to prevent their father from remarrying.

The film was a debut for  directors Ravindra Dave and Vishnu R. Pancholi; produced by Dalsukh M. Pancholi. Dalsukh M. Pancholi (1906–1959)  is remembered for making the first Punjabi film. Considered to be a film pioneer, Pancholi's Empire Talkie Distributors based in Lahore were the biggest importer of American films in northern and western India.  Poonji was a big commercial hit.   

As the Nation was vivisected,   the film industry of the newly formed nation of West and East Pakistan   had to rebuild itself from scratch. Unlike India, which had different centres of filmmaking like Bombay, Poona, Calcutta and Madras, Pakistan had just one – Lahore. However, due to communal riots in the city, its two major studios, both owned by Hindus – Roop K. Shorey and Dalsukh Pancholi – were razed to the ground. Shorey and Pancholi were forced to leave Lahore and make India their new home. Other Hindu artists working largely in Lahore like Pran, Om Prakash and Kuldip Kaur also migrated to India. But while the film folk who moved to India were Hindus, not all Muslims from the Bombay film industry left for the new nation of Pakistan.

Even tinseldom teaches lot of history, we refuse to learn !! 

Regards – S Sampathkumar
24.5.2025
 

World Turtle Day !!!

 The beautiful  pond Kairavini (Triplicane temple pond)  is home to some big fish, ducks, water birds, sparrows and more .. .. and  .. .. and I found something else on a moat – zoomed my camera and took some photos – interesting ! – who let them in ?  not native and for sure would have bred here !!   someone have intentionally brought and let them inside !  

Startled to see more than a couple of ‘Tortoise’ !! or are they Turtles !! ~  who put them in ??

 

Turtles are among Earth's oldest creatures, predating dinosaurs. Over 350 species exist, many endangered due to pollution, poaching, and climate change.  By some estimates, they have  been around for about 200 million years, even before the dinosaurs!  Today is ‘World Turtle Day’.  This year's theme is Dancing Turtles Rock!   Aquatic turtles live 20-50 years, while land turtles can live 50-150 years or more.  Jonathan, born around 1832, lives on Saint Helena Island and is the world's oldest known living land animal. They're vital to the ecosystem. Avoid plastic, don't buy or sell them, and keep beaches clean. 

World Turtle Day is an annual observance held every May 23rd. It began in 2000 and is sponsored by American Tortoise Rescue.  The day was created as a yearly observance to help people celebrate and protect turtles and tortoises and their disappearing habitats, as well as to encourage human action to help them survive and thrive.  Turtle or Tortoise !

All tortoises are turtles— i.e., they belong to the order Testudines or Chelonia, reptiles having bodies encased in a bony shell—but not all turtles are tortoises   Tortoises  are exclusively land creatures. They live in a variety of habitats, from deserts to wet tropical forests.  Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Cryptodira (hidden necked turtles), which differ in the way the head retracts. There are 360 living and recently extinct species of turtles, including land-dwelling tortoises and freshwater terrapins.  Turtles live in Sea, river and Ponds and occasionally come out of water too! 

Coming out of water is not all that easy as experienced by Olive turtles - Under cover of darkness,  they swim harsh conditions, prepare the sea shore sand and lay eggs - baby olive ridley turtles hatch from sun-warmed eggs on remote beaches.  They try to return to the sea and not all of them make it back !   some lose their way, some get killed by predators ! – it is not a life of charming existence !   

There are many stories involving tortoise, the most popular being  its winning a race against a hare.  Then there  is  this  interesting story of ‘tortoise flying’ and ‘speaking madly’ in Panchatantra.   Once upon a time, there was a tortoise by the name of Kambugriva and two geese by the name of Sankata and Vikata.  When the local pond dried up totally, the geese offered to  shifting the tortoise by air, with firm advice that it should keep its mouth shut throughout.  The geese took each side of a lengthy sticky, to which tortoise was to hang by holding on its mouth…… midway, curious to answer, the tortoise spoke, opening its mouth, letting off the stick in the process, fell down and died……..  

Moral : listen to friendly advice and never speak when not required.   

ஆமை புகுந்த இடம் உருப்படாது என்பார்கள் .. .. ஆனால் நீர்நிலைகள் ஆமைகளின் இருப்பிடம். ஆமை பார்ப்பதற்கு அப்படி ஒன்றும் அழகில்லை. . அது நம்மை ஏறிட்டுப் பார்க்கையில்  அதன் கனத்த முதுகும், ஓட்டுக்கு வெளியே தெரியும் அதன் முகமும், நான்கு பாதங்களும்  சற்று வித்தியாசமாகவே இருந்தது.  திருவல்லிக்கேணி  கைரவிணி திருக்குளத்தில் இந்த ஆமை இளைப்பாறி நம்மை நேருக்கு நேர் சந்தித்தபோது எடுத்த படம்.  

Google image search reveals the one pictured to be a terrapin – a variety known as ‘red-eared slider’  (Trachemys scripta elegans), a subspecies of the pond slider, a semiaquatic turtle belonging to the family Emydidae. It is the most popular pet turtle in the United States, is also popular as a pet across the rest of the world, and is the most invasive turtle.  It is the most commonly traded turtle in the world. 

Red-eared sliders  (pls do not ask where the ears are !) do not hibernate, but actually brumate; while they become less active, they do occasionally rise to the surface for food or air. Brumation can occur to varying degrees. In the wild, red-eared sliders brumate over the winter at the bottoms of ponds or shallow lakes. During this time, the turtles enter a state of sopor, during which they do not eat or defecate, they remain nearly motionless, and the frequency of their breathing falls.  

Interesting !

 
Regards – S Sampathkumar
23.5.2025
PS: the last one was pictured in a zoo, rest in Triplicane koil kulam.