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ROAD LESS TRAVELLED

The power of flowers

Lotuses and lilies, everywhere, writes SUBHA J RAO

PHOTOS: K. ANANTHAN

FLORAL ECSTASY The peepul tree at Thamaraikarai

This is a surprise RLT, courtesy the friendly forest guard manning the Varattupallam checkpost. The minute he mentions Thamaraikarai, I am hooked, visualising a riverbank dancing flush with lotus, a peepal tree and the customary twittering of birds. Turns out I am not way off the mark, after all.

Driving up the narrow ghat road that leads to Bargur, the eyes take in the dense greenery on either side of the road, as also the huge rocks that have rolled down the hillside after the monsoon. With a prayer on the lips, photographer Ananthan and I proceed, egged on by the thought of seeing hundreds of lotuses in bloom.

Lush landscape

The car snakes up the road and after 45 minutes, a village comes into sight. A tea stall sells murukku; the women are rushing to work at the fields and the scent of rosemary hangs heavily in the air.

This is the village of Thamaraikarai, named so after the high-altitude pond that has been seen white lotuses and red lilies blooming for a long time. Take the road forking right from the village. Fields bursting with ready-to-harvest cholam and the gleaming foliage of maravallikizhangu sway past as you hit the rocky stretch that leads to the pond.

Then, rows of delicate rosemary shrubs zoom into view. A recent initiative of an NGO, the tribals, who hitherto cultivated only paddy and other millets, now grow this aromatic spice for its essential oil. The pond is walking distance from here.

Lilly in bloom

I ask the villagers how the area got its name. In 10 minutes, I hear four different versions. The one most repeated is the legend of Bandeshwara Swamy and Veerabhadra Swamy, two deities the tribal revere. It is said the two planted the lotuses and lilies when they visited the hamlet during one of their trips to Earth.

Take a turn and a breathtaking sight awaits you. Hundreds of pink-red lilies bob in the water lending it a red hue, their petals wide open as if prostrating to the Sun. They bloom in clusters and fade by afternoon. Ready-to-open buds wait for the next morning for their moment of glory.

A rudimentary path lined with fragrant lantana camara bushes winds its way through most of the pond. A portion is inaccessible, though. Walk around, sit on the rocks that dot the banks, see the birds visit every flower cluster and drink in the sight of the canopied hills that frame the pond.

The best time to visit the place is February-March, because that is when the white lotus blooms and the lake resembles a closely-knit red-white carpet.

The residents of Thamaraikarai are a friendly lot. The minute they spot an outsider near their venerated pond, they walk through their farms to initiate a conversation.

A farmer's wife gifts us a refreshing bouquet of a sevanthi, a red rose and some aromatic leaves.

How to get there

Thamaraikarai is 24 km from Andhiyur in Erode district and 13 km from the check post.

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