Hic hic Kerala

There was a tradition in ancient Kerala. Whenever the landlord needed some cheap labor urgently, he called in the local tribal chief. In return of money the chief supplied him with his subjects- men and women. The landlord supplied them ganja and liquor lavishly. The men and women, high in spirits, worked tirelessly without a break.
The Syrian Christians had a tradition of consuming local version of liquor, Toddy, on happy occasions. The inflow of NRI money from Gulf and USA saw the Toddy giving way to more aesthetic and costly drinks.

The Kerala men had this great tradition of letting loose their humiliation, subordination and dissatisfaction on the bottle. This saw many families and people fragmenting. Thus many imminent personalities came forward with plea to banish alcohol. For a long time alcohol has been a secret pleasure, but an evil incarnation. Today the liquor has become more of a status symbol. Kids young enough to be at school would rather down a peg rather than milk shake. The wives don’t mind their better halves take a sip, which proves their masculinity. And the women downing a drink has become more a part of status symbol.

Sharing a drink is best way to socialize and make a few friends. It’s also good enough to make enemies out of friends. I recently made a few, whom I thought belonged to the opposite camp. But then the very next day a friend from my camp had a drunken brawl and yesterday’s mutual friendliness was forgotten.