Page 11 - Ganesh Arunasalam

Appa was the most unselfish man I knew. And I’d like to share one little story.
The presidential elections in 2015 were underway in Sri Lanka. Appa was voting in Jaffna and I was voting in Colombo. He was going to connect me to a character he thought might be good for a film I was working on. But he didn't want me to travel up north alone.
It was a tense time. There were rumours of a possible military coup.
Before his trip, he had very badly scalded his foot with boiling hot water. He didn't tell anyone — certainly not Amma — but just bandaged it up and took the train to Colombo to accompany me back to Jaffna.
People expected violence. Tamils feared a backlash, perhaps another '77 or an '83.
So to defend himself on the train, Appa in his own way — another quality was his peculiar ingenuity —came up with a solution. He mixed chilli powder with water and filled a household spray bottle — as protection from potential assaults. He had essentially weaponised chilli.
It turned out there was no coup. But Appa was ready.
Appa was a survivor. The history of his various illnesses that have afflicted him over the
decades is evidence of that. And yet he managed to spring back at every turn. When his face became bloated or his fingers became disfigured due to the various medicines he had to take, he didn’t become self- conscious or depressed.
He wore them like a badge of honour. Appa lived without an ego.
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