Nanthagopan, the father of Nandu was known to the villagers as honest, simple and very patient. Nandu's mom is just the opposite. She was always on fire and bad tempered. It is not that she had no love for her family. Instead, she has more than anybody could possibly have, but she bore the entire responsibility of the family which was a bit too much on her shoulders. She got married when she was 16 and bore a child immediately. The first baby was a female. A girl child in a family was a big responsibility. So Nandagopan tried next. It was a female child as well. He tried again and subsequently Athamma had seven children before she was 40 years old. She lost two children in between and one was a male child unfortunately. Smallpox, malaria, TB and other diseases were child killers in those days.

However, Nandagopan was adamant to have a male child. Nandu was born and Athamma attained menopause soon after him. So, he was the last and only male child in the family. There is a proverb in Tamil stating that a person with five female children is fast a popper! Dowry drowned middle class families. Nandagopan's salary was not that high. He constantly worked hard to get some extra perks. Illiteracy was still high, and he was paid a rupee if he filled a form in English for somebody. He burnt midnight oil to meet his needs. Electricity was introduced only then, and the voltage was invariably low. The veranda was not big enough for the crowd. He got his meal at last, and the children were asleep by then. This earning was after his regular work which demanded him to walk miles together on rough roads, mostly on the agricultural fields. His feet were...