PUDUKKOTTAI: Friday evening wasn’t pleasant for Gunasekaran (50), who sat dejected at the construction site of his house, after waiting all day for guests to arrive. His second consecutive moi virundhu, a traditional form of crowd-funding through feasts scheduled for the day, turned a damp squib. The last time he held such a feast was October 13. But, even that didn’t get him the cash gifts that were due.
A traditionally-evolved practice, moi virundhu is a feast hosted by a person or group of people who are in dire need of money. Moi refers to the cash a person gives as a gift on a birthday, wedding, or other event. Guests at such feasts offer cash gifts, which are noted down by the hosts and repaid when the guests organise a similar feast.
Says Tamilarasan, a moi virundhu organiser in Vadakadu, “It originated in Peravurani, Thanjavur, to help people farm. Farmers would repay their guests from their profits. From Peravurani, the practice came to Alangudi and Vadakadu. I started getting people together and organising feasts as people couldn’t individually afford to spend on one.”
Gunasekaran also got into this practice about 20 years ago and has organised four feasts. “It can be done only once in four or five years. In 2011 and 2016, I received good cash gifts and have paid back everything. Now, I need money to build a house. I am disappointed as people are not giving the moi they owe me,” he explains.
On Friday, there was actually no feast, or even tea. It was more like ‘please come and give the cash you owe.’ Moi, says Tamilarasan, is also a matter of honour for many. “If don’t pay back, people will ensure everyone hears about it. It is essentially an interest-free loan,” he says. Often held in the Tamil months of Aadi or Avani (June to August), such feasts usually witness gifts of anywhere between Rs 250 and lakhs of rupees.
So, why has such the traditional form of crowd-funding lost its appeal? Locals cite a wide variety of reasons, from natural calamities like Gaja cyclone to the pandemic-induced lockdowns. “Covid rendered a cruel blow to the business. Earlier, such feasts would help people raise funds to send children abroad or get them married or build a house. Now, people can’t repay the gifts,” says Tamilarasan. Gunasekaran says he is planning to stop this practice now. “I just want to recover my money. Once it’s done, I will no longer continue this.”