Two rusted iron gates swing inward on to a rough sloping track, opening out to what would once have been an imposing view of a stately country residence set in a tree-lined estate.
A. Arumugham, the watchman, is hanging up his laundry, casting a wary eye on the phone-fixated children seated on a fallen log near the parapet wall, while cuckoos and crows hold a singing contest.
This is what is known locally as ‘MGR Bangala’, though many residents cannot seem to direct visitors to the spot when asked.
Built on the banks of the Kudamurutti on the road that leads on to Vayalur in Tiruchi, the estate was bought by former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and founder of All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), M.G. Ramachandran (1917-1987), in 1984 reportedly for ₹4 lakh.
But Mr. Ramachandran’s prolonged illness in 1984 made it impossible for the leader to spend his retirement years on the verdant estate. Thirty-four years later, the property has become a sad shadow of its former edifice, frequented by stray cattle, litterbugs and liquor drinkers partying on the sly.
Mr. Arumugham, who will soon be starting his 33rd year as the watchman of the derelict estate, is among the few people holding on to the memory of a bygone era. “I was 37 years old when I joined duty in 1989; I will be 69 in a few weeks. Safeguarding MGR Bungalow has been my only job all these years,” he told The Hindu .
The spry watchman walks easily through the grounds, crowded with thorn trees and a dense undergrowth of grass and weeds. Here and there, frond-less coconut palms rear up, sentinels of an invisible corridor.
“We used to harvest at least 2,000 coconuts regularly in the 1990s,” said Mr. Arumugham. “But it all stopped when a drought struck these parts for five to six years. Now, the coconut palms have dried out,” he rued.
The watchman and his family were allowed to use the ground floor when their own living quarters became decrepit. “Luckily the flooring is coated with red oxide, so these rooms are quite cool in the summer,” said Mr. Arumugham.
While snakes and rats are known to root around on the ground floor, monkeys have ripped out many of the clay tiles on the roofs, leaving them open to the elements. “I have locked up the hall doors because the walls are beginning to crumble and are a safety hazard,” he said.
The first floor is in bad shape, with some rooms completely overgrown with wild plants. “This was meant to be a grand balcony for MGR Ayya to greet the public. These shelves would have held files,” said Mr. Arumugham, as he cleared some fallen leaves from the hall.
A number of outbuildings, including a guest wing, a mini bio-gas plant for the kitchen and a suite of toilet facilities, can be seen from the vantage point of the external staircase.
“This is a beautiful estate, but it needs urgent refurbishment, and a fence to keep encroachers out. This would be the best way to honour MGR Ayya ’s memory,” said Mr. Arumugham.
