MADURAI: When Sri Lankan couple Chidambaram and Bhuvaneswari boarded a ferry to Tamil Nadu, holding their eight-month-old daughter tightly in arms, in a bid to escape the turmoil swallowing up the island nation in the 1990s, one thing was certain in their minds that they would return, one day. However, three decades down the line, their daughter found a haven amidst the ‘temporary’ shelter, and has been persevering to make it her own sweet home.
C Jegatheeswari Sasidaran, a Sri Lankan refugee residing in Anaiyur Refugee Camp, is ever-ready to make lemonade when life gives her lemons. While numerous Sri Lankan Tamils, who arrived in Tamil Nadu seeking asylum, are yet to figure out their calling in a new country, this woman in her thirties is trying to make the journey less painful, at least for a few of them. Applying her ideals, she traces sponsors to ensure higher studies of the children of her refugee camp.
“My humble journey began after the Covid-19 outbreak, as I started to search for sponsors to support the education of the camp children. For the past seven years, I have also been making efforts to offer Silambam training for the kids free of cost,” says Jegatheeswari, who strives to improve the educational status of the refugees’ children, despite hardships.
Being a dedicated Bharatanatyam dancer, this 34-year-old also runs a dance school ‘Sivapuvanam Natiyalaya’ in Madurai (since 2010), organises dance programmes, and works as a dance teacher at the Dolphin Group of Schools in Madurai and Deepawarsana Isai Kalanjiyam in Thanjavur. Like many other refugees in Tamil Nadu camps, Jegatheeswari’s parents left their home in Pesalai, Mannar district of Sri Lanka, due to the civil war in the 1990s and arrived in Rameswaram without passports. To make a living here, they switched to construction works.
Jegatheeswari, passionate about dance and aspiring to be an actor, faced admission challenges for her Diploma in Dance at the Government Music College in Madurai due to a lack of a community certificate. However, with the help of faculty member Thanjai Bhavanimani, she was eventually enrolled and excelled in her studies. She later worked as a part-time lecturer in several institutions and joined the folk troupe of renowned Tamil singer Dr Vijayalakshmi Navaneetha Krishnan, performing for nearly 16 years at various events, including the Delhi Tamil Sangam. As a refugee, she struggled to obtain a passport, which limited her opportunities for international performances.
“During my second year, my father lost his job in the Gulf, pushing our family into a crisis. My sister was already studying for a BSc in computer science with support from Jegatheeswari Akka and the ‘Nansei’ NGO, which later helped cover my final year fee (`1,10,000). Now, I’m a civil engineer,” shares Sabri gratefully.
Tamilarasan, a resident of Anaiyur camp, adds, “I wanted to study agriculture, but my family couldn’t provide guidance or support. Jegatheeswari Akka helped me pursue my dream, and I’m now in my final year of BSc agriculture.
“Currently, over 15 children from the Anaiyur camp have completed higher studies and secured jobs, while two widows received sewing machines for their livelihoods. When former bureaucrat Sagayam IAS helped secure a life-saving bone marrow transplant for a child here, it brought me joy.” Expressing her gratitude for the state where she was provided a safe haven and dignity of life, Jegatheeswari says, “My family moved out of Sri Lanka for survival. When we reached Rameswaram, actor Vijayakanth was the first person to meet us. He offered veg and non-veg food to all of us refugees. Growing up, my art brought me close to like-minded people and various NGOs that support children’s education. Now, my only dream is to get Indian citizenship, at least for my son. We have lived here as refugees, but we dream to die as citizens of this country, where we received everything, including safety.”
(Edited by Arya AJ)