Nallathambi is a 60-year-old daily wage worker, who collects and sells bottles for a living.
Athanurpatti, a nondescript village in Tamil Nadu’s Salem district, has merely two statues within its limits. The first statue is of former Chief Minister MG Ramachandran, a leader who had gained immense respect from the village’s residents while he was in power in the state. And the second statue is that of A Nallathambi, made from black stone. If you are quickly checking the internet to figure out who this gentleman is or what his achievements are, don’t bother, because you will find nothing.
Sporting an intimidating moustache and a serene smile, the five-foot-tall statue of Nallathambi was built to celebrate the perseverance and hard work of a living man. What’s more, Nallathambi himself built the statue, at a cost of Rs 1 lakh, to ‘leave a mark in the world’ that he occupies a small space in.
The daily wage worker, who now collects and sells bottles for a living, is 60 years old. The residents of Athanurpatti village describe him as a recluse. He doesn’t own a cell phone, and even denied to have his interview taken.
But his friend and neighbour David Manickam explains that the statue has inspired everyone in the village.
“Nallathambi used to work in the forests where he collected firewood and sold it for decades. He had made a good life for himself with the money he earned. However, due to some family disputes, he left his wife and parents and came to live by himself in Athanurpatti in 1998,” says Manickam.
“Since then, he has never said no to any work. As he grew older, he could not work in the forests. So he started working for a recycling unit. Even if a job only pays Rs 10, he will still do it and never say no,” he explains.
Manickam says Nallathambi keeps to himself and barely talks to anyone in the village. But the 60-year-old was great at saving money and eventually bought a plot of land in the village, which is worth Rs 8 lakh today.
“It was all his own hard work. He led a simple life, saved money and has never asked anyone for help or a loan, not even once,” says Manickam.
According to Manickam, Nammathambi started building his own statue in the land that he owned, about three years ago. “When we asked him why, he said he got where he is through his own strength and that deserved to be memorialised,” recounts Manickam.
According to Nallathambi’s friend, there is a lesson to be learnt from the five-foot-tall statue.
“Several of us here have realised that we spent our life earning money for our families and focussing on others. We never stopped to appreciate ourselves for all the hard work. Today, our children have left the houses, and we are all we have,” says Manickam. “Nallamthambi’s statue inspires us to focus on ourselves. Not just great leaders, but the common man can have a statue to celebrate our lives.”
Source: The News Minute