Two Generations

Two Generations…

Year 1984:

Ravi joined engineering in a well-known engineering college in Coimbatore. His parents motivated him and pushed him to do well in his studies during his high school and as an obedient son, took his father’s words as gospel and got amazing marks in his 12^th std exams and easily got into engineering. Seeing his uncle making it a big career in a large MNC into manufacturing machines, he opted for “Mechanical Engineering”.

Chennai was slowly turning modern in the mid-80’s, where all road lighting was getting changed from tube-lights to sodium vapour lamps. The orange light from the long masts lit a vast area and was bright.

Ravi and his friends went to a Rajnikanth movie at Alankar Theatre on Anna Salai and then went to Woodlands Drive-in hotel for evening snacks. Standing in the queue with friends at Alankar theatre and getting the tickets through the pigeon hole was an experience by itself. This was Ravi’s treat to his friends from school. He had to convince his father to get the necessary money for the treat.

Coimbatore was new to Ravi and hostel life was a new experience. New friends and new surroundings made him ‘fish out of water’ but slowly adjusted to the new life. Speaking to parents was a luxury as there was only one phone in the hostel block for only receiving calls and one had to wait for receiving the calls. Making STD calls was from the STD/ISD booth, painted in yellow, outside the college and was expensive. His pocket money dwindled when he made calls to home. Writing letters was the source of communication with his parents.

Hostel life brought its own charm of care-free life and Ravi started enjoying it. Night shows, coming back by the last ‘night bus’ to the hostel, going for a walk on Cross-Cut road – just for window shopping, eating at small hotels, riding in town buses and enjoying evening tea at the tea shop opposite the college campus. All was part of college life. All the town buses and the tea shops played film songs on their stereo system, most of the songs composed by Ilayaraja. Ravi and his generation were big fans of the music of Ilayaraja.

Asking money from his dad was mostly done through his mother on a call. Ravi always justified that he is not wasting any money and is asking only what was definitely necessary. His father sent the money through a Money Order or sent Demand draft by post.

Ravi used to get back to Chennai for all study holidays as he felt he can concentrate better at home rather being in the hostel. He wrote to his father to come to Madras Central Railway station on 20^th October morning in coach ‘S-4’, so that it will help in carrying the big suitcases full of books for study. When Ravi wrote the letter he was thinking that 20^th October was a Saturday and had written the same in his letter.

His father came to the station of 20^th October early morning, but did not find Ravi in the train. He waited and checked in all the compartments, but not to be seen. Worried, his father sent a telegram to Ravi, to find out what happened to him. Ravi was in his class when the office attender, came and gave the telegram in the evening. Ravi, seeing the telegram, realised his mistake of putting the wrong date in the letter. He thought of Saturday, 21^st October, but wrote it as 20^th October. Immediately he called his father and told him about the mess up and expressed sorry to his father. He had to hear a mouthful of angry words for messing up the dates.

If the above story had happened in 2018…. (34 years later)… 

Ravi got admission into a reputed engineering college in Coimbatore. His parents advised him to do well in his 12^th std exams, but Ravi retorted that he knows better and what to do. He got good but not great grades, but insisted to his parents on joining that reputed college in Coimbatore, as many of his friends were joining it. His father, who had the capacity, paid the necessary donation and secured the seat for his son.

Ravi was motivated to join “Computer Science” branch by seeing many of his peer group joining the same. His father had different thoughts and advised his son, but to no avail.

For giving a treat to his school friends, he informed his parents that he is going out and will get back home only in the night. He travelled with his friends in their car and went past Raheja Towers on Anna Salai (where erstwhile Alankar Theatre was located) and reached PVR Cinemas multiplex.

Many ‘iconic’ theatres in Chennai have made way for huge commercial complexes or Malls. Do you call it progress or development? No answers…

On their way, the FM Radio in the car was playing old Ilayaraja songs of the 1980’s and this generation had no clue of the impact of Ilayaraja’s music on Tamils of the earlier generation. The friends were enjoying the melody in the song till they reached the Multiplex. After the movie, the friends went for food at a fancy thematic restaurant and enjoyed their meal. Payment made by Debit card ensured no requirement of cash from home.   

For most of the generation of Tamilians, who had grown along with Ilayaraja music and songs during the 1980’s, their film music ‘clock’ had stopped in the early 1990’s and even in 2018, would prefer and like to listen to the film songs of the bygone era of 1980’s…

Chennai was well lit in the night with LED lights in all the roads, and with many malls, multiplexes, big restaurants and specialty parlours – of chat, pizzas and ice creams, the main commercial areas and roads looked colourful and with a booming night life to add spice.

Ravi went to Coimbatore in his friend’s car with his entire luggage at the time of joining and had booked an air-conditioned room in the hostel. Eating outside of the mess became a norm, standard excuse being the food at the mess is not great. And movies at the multiplex, food at numerous restaurants and malls, riding in cabs only was the new norm of life for Ravi at Coimbatore.

He had his debit card which was an ‘unending bank’ to him, with no shortage of funds. Debit card or credit cards, stimulate spending as you never know the sum total of the amount spent, for a day or for a month. Children having debit card is virtually a ‘blank cheque’ to them, because replenishment is done by the parents….!!!

Mobile is the only source of communication for everyone in today’s era. Lost is the art of writing letters, waiting for phone calls, no STD/ISD booths and emotionally talking to all in the family.

Ravi had his mobile when he was in high school, thanks to peer pressure, his father had to accept his continuous pestering for it. His parents spoke to him every night to check on his well-being and video call proved to be a big boon to parents.

After planning to go to Chennai for his study holidays, Ravi told his father, “Dad, I am coming on 20^th October to Chennai for study holidays and will be coming with my friend in his car. I will stay at my friend’s place for doing joint study and will come home after probably 10 days. Will let you know.”

“Ravi, do not waste time with your friends by watching videos on YouTube or Netflix…” advised his father. “You need not tell me. I am grown up and understand things”, retorted Ravi.

 

His father has accepted that with today’s generation, you only listen and give advice only if warranted, which is anyway unlikely…!!!

-  Venkatesh