“AC maari irikkum . There will be jill effect,” says S Jagadeeswaran as he unhooks the vetiver curtain hanging on the tree. Want to increase the coolness quotient? He advises me to sprinkle water or coconut oil on it so that cooler breeze wafts into the room. “This is the real Malabar Vetiver. You give me your address. I will come to your house and fix it for you.”
If you want to survive this summer, make friends with Jagadeeswaran’s family. You can spot them on TTK road, under the shelter of trees, making bamboo and vetiver curtains. These heat shields can fit any window size.
Observe carefully, and you will notice that making these curtains is a tricky affair that demands close attention. Their apparatus involves two huge bamboo poles that are positioned along the X and Y axis. “We get this from Kumbakonam and Thanjavur through chinna lorries. One of the poles has been with us for the past 10 years,” says Jagadeeswaran.
The bamboo strips, with threads attached to them, hang from the horizontal pole. The artisan then loops the thread around the pole to hold the strips tight against each other. “If you do not concentrate, it can go wrong. The thread can go haywire, disturbing the pattern,” says Vijaya, Jagadeeswaran’s mother.
The threads are connected to heavy stones for grip. “We pick them off the ground. These are mostly marble stones, used for making tiles. These are flat and give better grip. They are available near construction sites. A bamboo curtain, if maintained well, will last for five to six years,” she says. Jagadeeswaran’s family has been in this job for more than three decades. They hail from Andhra Pradesh. “We grew up here. Our home is Madras. Our grandfather used to make it (the curtains) for the British as well,” says Jagadeeswaran. He has designed special bamboo curtains for city hotels and coffee shops in ITC Grand Chola Hotel and Express Avenue. Jagadeeswaran started learning the craft at the age of 15. “This is our family job. My mother has been doing this for 30 years. And, my grandfather did this for 50 years. This is my kulathozhil . I will never give this up for any IT or corporate job.”
E Ganesan, who runs a salon in KK Nagar, is their new customer this year. He says the summer is harsher this year because of the Vardah effect. “Half the trees have fallen in our area. There is too much sun. I want a curtain to hang in my balcony to block the sunlight and heat. These are very effective and also look good.”
Vijaya prays for the summers to be harsh. “Otherwise, how will we get good business? Usually, by May, as the temperature soars, so does our business.” So what about the rainy season? Sometimes, people will bring weathered and ruined curtains to mend. Otherwise, there isn’t much work. “We will wait to hit a lottery,” Vijaya laughs.
Price
Vetiver curtains (₹200 per square metre)
Bamboo curtains (₹90 per square metre)
Where: TTK Road, near Indian Terrain outlet
When: Everyday, from 10 am to 7 pm. 9841565239, 9003183916
