Occupation: Sells varieties of amaranth Hello madam, what would you like today? I have different varieties of fresh cheeras [amaranthus]. I don’t know what they are called in English. There is chuvanna cheera, vela cheera, arai keerai, ponnavarai keerai and agathi keerai. I have some mint leaves, coriander and curry leaves also. I suggest you try the arai keerai. Cook it with some dal; it is very tasty. All the cheeras cost Rs. 20 a bunch. I am sorry I can’t pack it neatly for you. The boy who assists with the packing is on leave today. All these cheeras are from Vellayani and Nedumangad. My boss, who runs a shop in Marappalam, buys them and I sell them at this roadside stall at Marappalam. I am here from 4 p.m. until the vegetables are sold out. On some days I wind up by 10 p.m. Most of my customers are those travelling back home from work. I have observed that many of my customers are from other States. Malayalis seem to prefer fish over vegetables. It could be because it is much easier to clean and cook when compared to cheera. I am 68 years old. I studied till class four. I might have continued studying but dropped out as there was no one to push or encourage me. I sometimes wonder how my life would have turned out if I did. I started working when I was really young; I don’t recall at what age. I was in Bangalore working in a restaurant. Every month I would send my uncle a sum of money to save up and buy a plot of land. Although I did manage to buy a plot of land, it is registered in my uncle’s name. As he has lots of influential people under his wing, I did not fight for it as I knew it was a lost battle. I would have been a happy man if he had given me just two cents of that plot. I then worked as a security guard at a rubber estate in Nedumangad for 22 years. I lived there in a rented house. The money I earned as a security guard helped me marry off my two daughters. My neighbours pitched in too. I now stay in a half-cent plot of land in Marappalam. It is my wife’s. There is no house on the land, just a run-down shed. I stay there with my wife and mother-in-law. At my age, when most lead a retired life, I have to work to make ends meet. I just had a heart operation and can’t lift heavy things, that is why I opted for this job. I don’t mind the sun or the rain as I am used to it, having dealt with both as a security guard. I don’t mind standing for hours at a stretch either. As my house is near this makeshift stall, I walk to and fro to the stall. Some of my biggest regrets are that I could only educate my daughters till class 12 although they wanted to study further. I also wish I had the money to buy a small piece of land with a house on it. But then such is life; it is not a bed of roses. (A weekly column on men and women who make Thiruvananthapuram what it is)

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