THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Year 1934. A teenager named Rairu and his friends were on the verge of expulsion from school for leading a protest against the sacking of a teacher. Local leaders came to their rescue, worked out a compromise formula and got the boys back to school. Prominent among them was Mundayil Koran, father of Pinarayi Vijayan.
Rairu Nair is 94 now. Friends want ‘Rairuettan’ to hit a century. But he had just one wish left - to see Pinarayi in the Chief Minister’s chair. He has been waiting for that day for long.
It was at the residence of P Sathi Devi, sister of P Jayarajanb, at Vadakara that ‘Express’ ran into Rairuettan. Rather he blasted into our meeting with Jayarajan. What a blast from the past that turned out to be. He walked in tall asking: “Enthella… Mone…(What’s up son), recasting Jayarajan to just another boy! This comrade will fit into none of your set moulds.
C Rairu Nair is a folk hero as he once barged into Jawaharlal Nehru’s ancestral home and later with K P R Gopalan to take control of ‘Deshabhimani’ daily during the party split.
In the few moments we spent with him, we were on an express trip down memory lane. His first agitation was against his own father Therlayil Rairu Nair. Though good in studies, he took eight years to reach Grade IV! That is when he realised that his father was behind his extended stay in each class to ensure that the school run by him has enough strength to sustain the government grant.
The teenager did not take that easily. Boarding train after train, without ticket of course, he landed in Allahabad and tried to barge into ‘Ananda Bhavan’ to meet Panditji and got into a tiff with the watchman. None other than Indira Gandhi intervened and explained that Nehru was out of town. Rairu did some plain speaking: “It’s been days since I have had a proper meal….” He left after a sumptuous meal of Poori and Bhaji.
Next stop - Wardha. The rest can’t be separated from Indian history. During his one year at Maganwadi and Sevagram Ashrams, Rairu got close with Subhash Chandra Bose, who was a regular visitor. Once Bose gave him Rs 30 to buy fresh clothes and refused to accept the balance after the purchase.
He still has colourful memories of his interactions with Nehru, who used to roam around Wardha in an open jeep. His role as a volunteer in the 52nd session of the Indian National Congress at Jabalpur is still fresh in his memories. He still believes that the tragic partition would not have happened had some Congress leaders and Mohammed Ali Jinnah shown some mutual respect and understanding.
Unforgettable are his moments up close with personalities like Sardar Patel, Rajendra Prasad, Abul Kalam Azad, Sarojini Naidu, ‘Frontier Gandhi’ Ghan Abdul Gafar Khan. But when asked to choose one man who influenced him there was no hesitation to name Gandhiji whose blessings still ring in his ears: “Never create enmity with anybody. Be perfect, my boy.”
Life went on, Rairu Nair returned to Kerala. Time for encounters with revolutionaries like AKG, P Krishna Pillai, C H Kanaran, EMS, N E Balaram, Mohammed Abdul Rehman, K P Keshava Menon, the list is endless. Next stop - Malaysia as an insurance professional. He returned after five years as an entrepreneur and opened ‘Calicut Medical Hall’, reminding us of the character ‘Nettooran’ played by Mohanlal in ‘Lal Salaam.’
As he stood up to leave he threw a direct question at Jayarajan: “All is well? I have just one wish in life. I want to see Vijayan as CM. What all did he go through for 10-12 years.” The toughie’s voice breaks in a rare show of his age. (He has kept a sandal garland ready for Pinarayi - whispers an aide). Jayarajan smiles and maintains a politically correct silence. Pat comes the parting shot: “New kurtha and all… good, suits you.”