THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Gone are the days when retirement was seen as the end of the productive period in a person’s life. Senior citizens are pursuing their passions like never before — from charity to teaching martial arts, creating urban forests and cultivating orchids, they are taking up rewarding activities that enrich their own lives and that of the community, too. TNIE reporters Shainu Mohan, Steni Simon and Cynthia Chandran speak to a few senior citizens, who are enjoying their retired lives, with renewed energy
Chasing boredom away with craft
Even at the age of 82, Thankama P’s hands swiftly move the bamboo shafts and bind them neatly. The former government nurse enjoys making bamboo crafts after her retirement. She creates a wide range of traditional bamboo products, including cutlery, trays, boxes, bins, baskets, table runners, winnowing rice trays, mats etc. Soon after her retirement, she met with an accident — she fell and ended up with a back injury.
Her refusal to sit idle forced Thankama to pursue her old hobby of making crafts using bamboo, taught by her mother during her childhood. “I couldn’t handle the boredom that came with sitting still. That is why I started experimenting with bamboo crafts — following the footsteps of my mother, who used to sell bamboo baskets and utensils in the market,” she says.
Though Thankama also has difficulties in hearing due to old age, she is very keen to explain her craft. According to her, it is a week-long process. “Bamboo shafts and bamboo pieces are added with a preservative for drying them. My sister used to be president of Janashree Ayalkoottam, a small-scale industry in Kanjirampara where we live. So, I started making bamboo crafts through the unit. We sell these crafts, which have very high demand even abroad, at cheap rates here,” she says.
“There is also another handicraft society in Gowreesapattom for making and selling bamboo products. The availability of bamboo is decreasing and I am at present working for Onam festival sales which is expected to begin after two months,” she adds.
A new world of cartoons
A Satheesh Kumar, a resident of Manacaud in Thiruvananthapuram, has become a full-time illustrator post-retirement. He knows how to convey strong messages through his cartoon strips — be it the pandemic, the Ukraine war, or local politics.
Retired as the chief manager of State Bank of India’s Liability Central Processing Center (LCPC) in Kochi in May 2019, Satheesh already has more than 2,000 cartoon strips to his credit. What started as a hobby has now turned into a full-time passion for Satheesh.
“I inherited the creative lineage from my father, Sreevarahom Achuthan Nair, a theatre artist who won various state awards several times for acting and direction. I started drawing in my childhood, scenes and people from plays I used to watch with my father,” says the 63-year-old artist.
After his studies, Satheesh got his job as a banker at the State Bank of Travancore in Thiruvalla. However, he continued creating paintings. When his friend saw his drawings, he told him to pursue cartoons. Thus, came his cartoon strips, where colleagues and daily life at the bank became a constant theme.
He also drew cartoons for many publications. He was even honoured at the All-India Cartoon Contest conducted by the Hindustan Times in 1995 and was presented with the Millennium Award of SBT. His interesting and funny cartoon strips allowed him to draw for reputed English newspapers in 2002.
Though Satheesh has retired from his banking profession, he is continuing his passion as a cartoonist and conveys socially relevant issues.
Making the ‘write’ choice
Usually, many people get confined to their homes after retirement. But for the 86-year-old retired English professor, Dr K Raveendran “age is just a number”. The Attingal native recently released his book ‘A new approach to the grammar of English’. He says he saw the dearth of a proper book on English grammar for college students and teachers in the market and wanted to rectify that.
Raveendran has been preparing grammar notes as early as 1964. That was the time he joined SN College in Varkala as a lecturer. He vividly remembers how former chief minister R Sankar had prescribed an English grammar book ‘Living English Structure: A Practice Book for Foreign Students’ by William Stannard Allen. But the teacher in him was always aware of the lack of a local academic author.
“I had not originally planned to write the book. After retirement in March 1991, I decided to pursue my PhD at the Institute of English and Foreign Languages in Hyderabad. I went on to work as a professor and also as principal in various colleges within the state and outside until I was 80”, recalls Raveendran.
Once he quit his teaching stint, he decided to make use of his notes and write a book with simple illustrative examples.
Former English professor and prominent children’s writer A Khyrunnisa, who released Raveendran’s book, said it was a “commendable” feat. Raveendran is in no mood to relax now and has started working on his next book on phonetics. He terms it an “interesting topic, but not everyone’s cup of tea”.
Riding into sunrise
At 66, Vasundharamma P hailing from the capital city is living her dream life — she practices law, completed a PhD in history and took up cycling. Having completed her service in the National Cadet Corps (NCC) after 32 years of service, Vasundharamma didn’t hesitate to pursue her many dreams and passions.
“Retirement is not the end of life. Being in NCC, I was very active throughout my career and have given my very best as a Girl Cadet Instructor. I pursued law while I was in the service, enrolled soon after retirement and started practising. It was my husband’s wish and he passed away in 2007. I keep searching for new adventures and that keeps me going. For me life became more adventurous after retirement,” says Vasundharamma, who joined NCC at the age of 22.
She never thought of sitting idle after retirement. “There is so much to explore and I always liked to take up challenges. There is so much life and adventure after retirement, which most people fail to see. I also completed my PhD in History after retirement,” says Vasundharamma.
“Staying fit when older is very important. I love adventure and a friend of mine made me interested in cycling and I managed to learn to balance the cycle within a day. It’s never too late to pick up a new hobby and age shouldn’t be a barrier,” says Vasundharamma, who goes on group rides with other cycle enthusiasts.
Back to roots
Scientist and academician N P Suresh Babu, 64, was always fascinated by the rich Kerala culture and the tales of his native village, Neyyoor in Kanyakumari. Currently settled at Perunthanni in Thiruvananthapuram, the former zoology professor has finally published his dream project, ‘Neyyoor — A Golden Mark of Kanyakumari’, written by natives of the village, now residing in different parts of the world.
The book throws light on the rich cultural past of Neyyoor and the contributions of the natives.
Suresh, who retired from the VTM NSS College, says even when he moved to the capital city as part of his job, his “mind was always in Neyyoor”, which used to be an integral part of the erstwhile princely state of Travancore.
Suresh — who earlier worked with the Kerala State Council for Science, Technology and Environment, and later with the State Institute of Encyclopedic Publications — says Neyyoor’s historical, geographical and cultural bond with Kerala is unshakable. Even after becoming a part of Tamil Nadu, there are many Malayali pockets in the Kanyakumari district, he adds with pride.
“Neyyoor is basically a small village which has seen many eminent personalities, who have earned reputation in different walks of life,” says Suresh. “This locality as well as its natives owe much to the village deity, Oormman Devi, for their cultural and material prosperity.”
The 370-page compilation of memoirs has been written by 24 prominent natives of Neyyoor, including Suresh, former Tamil Nadu additional chief secretary V Madhavan Nair, former National Book Trust assistant director Santha Pillai, former Dubai Municipality public health officer Chandrasekharan
Nair, former Padmanabhapuram Palace superintendent Prof B R Ajith.