Fifteen years ago, a young boy followed his father to work, unaware that he was to carry on his father’s legacy for the rest of his life. Karthik’s eyes fill with memories as he recalls his venture into his workplace — the graveyard. His voice is calm and his face relaxed, while he introduces himself as a cemetery helper in the Ayyanavaram graveyard. But beneath that stoic appearance hides a wealth of stories. “My father did this job for almost 25 years. This is our ancestral profession,” he says. However, this father of two daughters and a son does not wish to extend his occupation to his children, “I don’t want my son to do my job. Like every parent nowadays, I hope that he studies well and becomes successful in life,” he says. Speaking about a typical work scenario he says, “Every day we get six bodies on an average. From suicides to accidents, we have seen it all. It is painful to see the bodies of young people who commit suicide. We feel sorry because we know that they were the hope and life of their families. But we cannot change anything, so we just live with it.” When asked about his role in the process, Karthik says, “I take care of the bodies when they have to be cremated. From arranging the materials for the cremation to collecting the ash after it, I do it all.” Unfortunately, the government did not recognise the cemetery until 2007, and only since then has this vettiyan been getting his salary. “I get paid around `10,000 by the government for my work,” he mentions. Karthik lost his father a few years ago, and he reminisces about his presence in the graveyard, “My father’s body is lying buried in this graveyard itself where he worked all his life,” he mentions as he points to a corner of the vast area. However, the graveyard doesn’t instill any fear in him, “I don’t feel scared in this place. I am used to the work from childhood. In fact, I feel safe here,” he quips. The cemetery has several different provisions for the last rites of the dead. “There is an electric crematorium which now works on gas. Burning bodies on firewood is not allowed except on occasions when the gas crematorium is not working. Burial is another method available but it is done only for the bodies of infants,” says Prabhakar, another helper in the cemetery. Even as he speaks, a man comes in to confirm the grave of an infant’s body, which is to be buried in a few hours. But unlike Karthik, Prabhakar has been working in the graveyard for only a few years, but it is an ancestral job for him too. The men guard the place till 6pm until the gates are closed. “I come here at 6am and leave in the evening. Apart from the workers here, there is no special watchman for the place,” clarifies Karthik. As we wrap up and leave the cemetery, we witness another family bringing its dead for the last journey and these men are all set to take charge.
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