By Ladislaus Louis D’Souza
Mumbai: June 30 marked the first death anniversary of Anthony Parakal, who had written more than 4,000 “Letters To The Editors” (LTTE) to several publications in India.
As in the case of his funeral, the anniversary too passed off quietly because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Parakal and I were parishioners of Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Orlem (Malad West), but we were formally introduced to each other by Daughters of St Paul Sister M Lissy, involved in the media apostolate, at my home.
Simple and unassuming, Parakal, a devout Catholic, came across as a delightful conversationalist, subsequent Sunday encounters often bordering on his health condition (deteriorating eyesight…etc), vis-à-vis his desire to live at least until the age of 95 years. He was wont to say: “My mother died at age ninety! Shouldn’t I surpass her age!?!”
In his 89-year lifespan, Parakal did achieve rare “mini-celebrity” status among media-persons of the pre-internet and SMS era in his ardent bid to change the world through his LTTE. Written over a period of six decades, his letters covered a wide range of topics and problems confronting the common man, to the extent that he could well be compared to the late cartoonist of great renown, R.K. Laxman, whose sketches were inimitably self-expressive.
From the steady growth of Parakal’s fame streamed a rising flow of people from all walks of life across the city into his home with their grievances. They would discuss with him issues like the need of more public transport facilities for the purpose of reaching the workplace on time, better allocation of BEST bus routes vis-à-vis burgeoning populations in certain localities and so on.
His December 15, 2003, letter in the Times of India concerning the irregularity in the height of railway station platforms was acknowledged by Shailendra Kumar, the then chief public relations officer of Western Railway, Churchgate, on January 28, 2004 confirming that “apropos of the complaint of Mr Anthony Parakal, the Western Railway will be raising the heights of several platforms between Churchgate and Virar. Contract formalities for Malad station are under completion.”
This, Parakal noted in one of his files, was his last social commitment that he ensured fulfilling. Incidentally, Parakal’s association with the Indian Railways stems from the time he, as its employee, was first posted at Jhansi, from where, weather conditions not suiting him, he sought a transfer.
Posted to Bombay [now Mumbai] in 1953, he was appalled at what he saw: poor amenities, proliferating slums, water supply problems, diseases like leprosy and what have you—a stark contrast to God’s own country, Kerala, his native state.
Parakal’s letters, the first of which appeared in the TOI in 1955, were taken note of not merely by newspaper readers but by the high and the mighty too. And so it is that his files contain personal acknowledgements from people of renown such as former Prime Ministers Morarji Desai, Gulzari Lal Nanda and Rajiv Gandhi, to name a few.
In 1993, the Limca Book of Records as well as the Indian edition of the Guinness Book of World Records featured Parakal’s Letter Writing feat. In 1999, the All India Press Writers Association honored him with the Knight of Conscience award.
Parakal and others of his ilk like Dr Leo Rebello, Abubaker Thwahir and K.R. Prithviraj whose names often graced the LTTE sections of newspapers, were also members of the All India (Press) Letter-Writers’ Association [AILWA]. At the 12th annual AILWA meet, Rebello reportedly lamented, “We are torch-bearers but editors call us epistomaniacs”! However, the chief guest of the event, Justice (Retd) Bakhtawar Lentin addressed the letter-writers as “the conscience keepers of the nation,” a nomenclature over which Parakal is said to have unabashedly exulted!
Incidentally, with his last LTTE published in the TIME magazine on December 12, 2005, Parakal is said to have hung his boots ostensibly to “pick arguments” with his wife. And, now, the piece de resistance!
Why did this man slog it out writing letters to the editor (on his manual typewriter, no less!) even as he simultaneously, ensured that his two daughters and son were educated well and then well-settled in life? The answer stands out crystal clear in his note bringing to a formal close his mission: “Due to failing memory and deteriorating health…I have given up my over 50 years’ practice of writing ‘letters to the editor.’
At the end, I feel very happy that I have done enough, that too within my limited economic resources….What motivated me to write on social causes is my belief that one should not live merely for oneself but also for others, without which we cannot live in a peaceful society.” Such nobility! Indeed, they don’t make Letter Writers like Parakal anymore.
And now, for the ‘how’ of the pursuits of Parakal who, from the very start, vividly demonstrated his acumen. Not for him the passing fancy of seeing his name in print at the bottom of a letter. Not for him the cheap thrill of being a member of a professional media organization with a mere “workable knowledge of English” (whatever that means!). Rather, he chose to ensure that he articulated his view on a chosen topic or issue in correct English.
To improve his proficiency in the language, he consciously made it a practice to visit the People’s Library at Victoria Terminus [now CST – Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus] and read extensively. For the same purpose, until the last, he would “read the papers every morning and scan the news on TV. My regular habit of watching an English movie everyday, which I started primarily to improve my English, still continues. I also pray because to me life is all about discipline. Mostly I catch up on old times with my wife,” he once chuckled.
In time, Parakal’s motives came to be well appreciated and his efforts amply rewarded. On May 8, 2005, he was conferred the first ever Secular Citizen Lifetime Achievement Award that comprised of a cash prize of 50,000 rupees, a shawl, a trophy and a citation. The Examiner, the official organ of the Catholic Archdiocese of Bombay, conferred on him the prestigious Golden Pen Award.
Rest in peace dear comrade! And as you do so, do consider penning us occasionally some wisdom from above via an ‘LTTE’!
Very informative, inspiring and nice article. I remember having read the letters written by late Anthony Parakal. Sad to know that he is gone. RIP.
Let there be more A. Parakals. RIP.