Farewell to a Friend - S Muthiah (1930-2019)

We are not destined to meet some people and, in my case, S Muthiah was one of them. I have always held him in great esteem, high regard and in our various communications found him never to be distant or aloof, considering the stature he had in Chennai, a city he would have loved to and I still continue to call, Madras.

I had not spent a long time in Madras, but the few years I lived there, remain etched deeply in my mind. As a footloose, greenhorn electrical engineer working with Easun’s at Parry’s corner, I spent a lot of my spare time wandering through that sprawling metropolis during the early 80’s. Tamil, both its music and films, have always held a fascination, so also the vestiges of the British Raj. My parents and uncle had studied there and throughout my growing years, I had heard so much about the city and its character. Of course, the Hindu Newspaper was as omnipresent as filter coffee in Madras, and it was among those pages that I came across S Muthiah for the very first time, years ago. I continued to read his prolific output over time, and after the arrival of search engines, any research on a landmark or person who lived in Madras, usually started or ended with an article penned by Muthiah. Before long I had perused, referred or leafed through almost all his books for some reason or the other and was soon in communication with him on subjects of mutual interest. I posted one or two articles or essays on ‘Madras Musings’ and often Muthiah remarked about their length, gently suggesting a trim here and there. Our last communication dated March 11^th was about Higginbothams, when I wrote to him seeking a small clarification, and as usual, the reply was definite and prompt. Interestingly, even with a wide disparity in our ages, our approach to the history of a land, almost always coincided.

He mentioned me now and then in his articles, once as ‘US-based ‘Maddy’ who tracks South Indian history and keeps me posted from time to time with his findings’. Another time, he wrote in the Hindu thus - Herbert Claus Friedmann was brought to mind the other day only by an item sent to me by Ullattil Manmadhan (Maddy to friends and the blogging fraternity), an electrical engineer settled in Raleigh, North Carolina, US. Maddy does historical research as a hobby and posts a wealth of little recalled Indian historical information on his blog site, often briefing me for this column before he puts up a long and detailed story on the site. Like you would imagine, those small mentions ‘made my day’ as they put it in this part of the world. Once he thoughtfully sent along a copy of a printed anniversary compilation of Madras musings, the post man as you would imagine, surprising me pleasantly, with that parcel from India.

A fascinating man, and I don’t think I need to mention his life’s work and achievements here, for all of you who know him, know it already! That was Muthiah, the ‘Chronicler of Madras’ a sobriquet he fully deserved. His columns ‘Madras Miscellany’, ‘When the postman knocks’ and of course ‘Madras Musings’ will continue with others stepping in, but the tone and the timbre of the prose will change, with the times. People like me will nevertheless miss that gentle and persuasive bent seen in his honest writing, reminiscent of a previous era, laced with a little bit of humor and always the right amount of correct fact.

Lest he frown at me from up above for a longer than necessary obituary, let me stop.

Muthiah – goodbye sir! and may your soul eternally rest in peace…

Pic courtesy – Madras Musings