Author:
Publication: Thuglak
Date: June 12, 2003
When the joint family system
is becoming extinct, a family consisting of 127 members live at one place
jointly. It is a phenomenon.
In a palatial building in Vadaveeranaickenpatti,
situated onthe Theni-Periakulam Road, near Madurai in Tamilnadu, this extraordinary
family is living. There are totally 24 Rooms, two kitchens and one
Pooja room in this building. There is a television set where
only Doordarshan programmes can be watched.
Among the 127 inhabitants between
the ages of 1 to 72, there are 20 couples and 21 boys Almost all
in the family including women are engaged in agriculture in the 300 acres
of land jointly owned by them. Common cooking is done by two women amongst
them in turn by rotation every month. One kitchen is used for the
commoncooking while the other can be used by anybody to prepare coffee,
tea, hot water, etc as and when they require. Cooked food is taken
to their rooms for eating. Children, mostly going to schools, help elders
in their household chores.during their leisure hours.
Work has been delegated to all.
Sri Jayapandi, one of the family members says that if anybody fails to
perform his role, routine work will suffer.
Sri Ramaraj has been chosen to manage
all the families and maintain the accounts. Paddy, Ragi, Jowar, Corn
and Cardamom are grown in the fields. For their income, they sell
away Jowar, Ragi and cardomom, keeping the other pdoducts for their own
use.
Accounts are maintained properly
and are scrutinised and approved by all once in aa year. Any problem
in the families, suggestions in farming are all discussed and settled.
Although the total tally of the
family is 127, only about 100 live in this house.as all are not made
to till the land. For example, one Thangaraj is working as Sub-Judge
in Mettur. Kannupandi is a Lecturer in Marine Biology in Annamalai
University. Though they work outside this place, they come
to join the family during holidays.
This system has been going on for
the past four generations. They give their girls in marriage
outside this house and they do not marry within themselves.. Weddings
are performed jointkly by all families. In 1998, at a time, six mrriages
were celebrated.
Any expense for education, marriage,
medical treatement etc. is done from the common kitty. If anyone
wants moneyurgently, he can take from the common kitty. Everyone
has the liberty to votefor any party he or she likes.
In spite ofall this, itis possible
that there may be minor skirmishes. but these will be solved by give-and-take
process. Kannupandi says that since everyone feels that the unity
maintained for the past four generations should not be broken by anyone,
they have plenty of tolerance.
Though, normally, brothers will
be united, there will be little fracas amongst their spouses, this tendency
is absent here. It is a great thing to be appreciated that
these 127 members of a family live a harmonious life.
