MAYA RANGANATHAN
The Hirebetu house was once the centre of a way of life. Even as lifestyles change, so does the house.
Hirebetu house is changing yet again. Parts of the three-century-old mansion are being renovated. This time though, it is trying to balance modernity with old world charm.
The house nestles in the characteristic greenery of the South Canara region, about 12 km from Udupi. The mud walls on the outside continue to hold out against the fierce rains that lash the region for more than three months at a stretch every year. The teak wooden rafts still hold aloft the tiles on the roof. The massive front door, hebbagilu, opens slowly to reveal the angana (courtyard).
A different look
But a month from now, the inside of the house will be hard to recognise. And it will have nothing to do with the colour TV set, the sofa in front or the dish above. At a cost of Rs. eight lakhs, the present occupant, Shivaprasad Hegde, 38, who is looking after the property for his sisters, is strengthening the walls with a façade of tiles, replacing the cement floor with granite slabs and equipping the rooms upstairs with modern facilities.
It has been a difficult decision for Hegde, who attempted to retain the character of the house till about a year ago. Then he replaced one of the ornate pillars that hold up the chavadi at a whopping Rs. 52,000, of which more than half went for labour. This time around when he embarked on the renovation, he did try to consult experts on old architecture on how best it can be done. But thanks to the indifference of the experts and astronomical costs involved (a complete renovation of the house is estimated at Rs. two crore), Hegde has settled for concrete, granite and glass.
It is not clear exactly how old the house is. In his matrilineal family, Hegde’s mother Nirupama, now 81 years old, inherited the house from her father to whom the house was passed on by his sister who had no children. Says Hegde, “Gururaj, a historian from Mahatma Gandhi Memorial College in Udupi, says the house cannot be less than 360 years old. There were a few palm leaf manuscripts that certified to the antiquity of the house. But they are no longer with us.”
Grand ornaments
Over the years, parts of the house have been handed over to heritage conservationists. Some lanterns and antique pieces are now housed in the “Heritage Village” in Manipal. However, the house still has a few items of heritage value. In the padasala is a massive wooden box, the kallambi, which was used to store grains in the days of yore. Hegde explains that in the olden days the kallambi had to be placed first and the house built around it later. Almost hidden on the wall of the verandah is a mural depicting a forest scene. It is the grandeur of Hirebetu house that prompted film director G.V. Iyer to shoot his television serial “Krishna Avatar” in 1984.
The structure of the house is typical of the manor houses of the region. It comprises the ample hebbagilu, the angana, the majestic chavadi and the private padasala with its small rooms beyond which lie the big kitchens, now being modernised. Up a steep flight of stairs from the chavadi is the huge hall out of which two rooms branch off. The wooden windows are giving ways to iron grills and glass panes and the rooms will soon have false ceilings and wooden wardrobes.
“In 1906 the plastering was redone. Twenty years ago when my sister was married the house was painted.” Hegde says that it takes four workers to clean just the living quarters, which incidentally is only the lower portion now. “I pay Rs. 80 a day per worker. The maintenance of the house comes to about Rs. 30,000 per month. Of course, this includes the traditional ceremonies that are part of the life in Hirebetu house.”
On the cusp of change
While life has changed around them, their role in the village remains much the same over the years. The Hegdes, who once owned the village lands are now owners of 60 acres of land, of which 20 acres are dedicated to paddy, arecanut, coconut and sugarcane cultivation. Unlike his father and forefathers, Shivaprasad Hegde is no longer the panchayat chief who stands on the “truth stone” at the entrance to the house and doles out judgments, but, like them, he still hosts the annual kambala (buffalo race) and thambila, the elaborate pujas to Dhumavati whose shrine forms a part of the house, before and after the monsoons and the bhooth kolas, unique to the region. “On those days, about 200 persons from the village feast in this courtyard,” says Hegde.
The drive down the washed out tar roads and winding mud path laced with tulsi plants still show a slice of life as it was centuries ago. But for how much longer? Hegde hedges persistent queries on what would happen to the house in future with a smile, a shrug and a faint “I’m not sure.”