Toothless Tiger

Late Tuulikki Ukkola
(Photo from ALMA Media)

 Today I visited Dentopolis, the Dental Clinic run by the University Central Hospital, and had the last of my 7 teeth in the lower jaw removed by two 4th year students who were named, Jaakko and Aino. 

Jaakko is the name of our eldest son and Aino is my late sister-in-law, Annikki's younger sister, who travelled around with Annikki before we were married!. 

The students were  guided by their teacher, Juha. 

It was very painfuld although a large amount of anaesthetic for each tooth was used, but I did not complain. 

On two earlier visits, first to a dental surgeon, who took out 4 teeth,  and then to 4 students, all my other teeth had been removed. 

The first lot of teeth were a problem as I had infection in the gums, but the second, done by 3 students guided by their teacher was no problem. 

As I came from the clinic, Annikki, who had been waiting paitiently for me, asked me whether I was now finally the  "Toothless Tiger”.

This aroused my memory about the famous Finnish journalist from Oulu, the late Tuulikki Ukkola, 

Tuulikki Ukkola, was born on November 28, 1943, in Taivalkoski, Finland. She started her journalism career at the newspaper Kaleva in 1962. Ukkola served as a Member of Parliament for the Oulu constituency from 1991 to 1995 as a member of the Liberal People's Party and later became the leader of the party from 1993 to 1995. She was re-elected as an MP for Oulu for the National Coalition Party in 2007, serving until 2011. Tuulikki Ukkola passed away on May 28, 2019, in Oulu at the age of 75.

In her political career she tried to bring forward the criticisms she had been writing about, but she met a brick wall and achieved very little.

When she came back to the newspaper in 1995 I wrote to her whether she had become a Toothless Tiger.

She thought it was very funny and added Annikki and me to her Christams card list, a great honour! .

Christmas card from Tuulikki Ukkola!

But that comment helped her back to her powerful writing and it was, thereafter, more constructive.

I may be the Toothless Tiger no,  but my friend in Helsinki, Christian Thibault carries on the Annikki and my legacy of fighting for the minorities in Finland. 

Christan Thibault

Christian resigned his membership from the Swedish Party in Finland after the last elections when they compromised their principles and joined the present government  as he felt that it was a violation of his life-long principles.

We value people like  Christian who adhere to their principles rather that follow the power trail to achieve their ends. 

Tuulikki learnt it the hard way! 

Tuulikki learnt her lesson that just by joining a political party and serving in Parliament would not achieve her dreams of improving society. The pen was the mightier power.

The Saacred Trust

The same was true of my grandfather, the late K. C. Mammer Mappillai, who then gave us the Sacred Trust followed by his sons, the late Padma Bhushan K. M. Cherian and Padma Bhushan K. M. Mathew and now followed diligently by his grandson, my cousin Padma Shri Mammen Mathew (Rajen).

1989 Delhi Rajen and Jacob
An everlasting brotherly bond of 75+ years.

Have I become a Toothleess Tiger?

Anatomically yes, but 

hopefully not with my brain! 

Journalist extrordinaire - Sachi

The late K. S. Sachinanda Murthy (Sachi)

(Courtesy Malayala Manorama)

On 13th of October 2023, when the untimely passing is K. S. Sachindanda Murthy (known in media circles as Sachi) was announced, in my lifetime I have never seen the media react in such a manner. Almost every newspaper and magazine in India covered his life and contribution to journalism. 

My maternsl grandfather, K. C. Mammen Mappillai, laid down ”A Sacred Trust” for  all of us to follow.

The Sacred Trust

Sachi served Malayala Manorama for a full 40 years. He understood and followed ”The Sacred Trust”.

After joining Malayala Manorama in 1982, Sachi became the Chief of Bureau and when they started their unit in Delhi, he became the Resident Editor, Delhi. This is  largest unit outside Kerala. They have nearly 175 staffers in Delhi. (No drivers, no peons.)  They have the Hindi Vanitha  published from Delhi. 

Sachi headed all the verticals as his job. He ran it professionally and very very efficiently. Sachi ran a tight ship and gave fortnightly status reports on every facet to the Management. 

Many personal stories have been recited in the last few days as everyone knew Sachi and everybody loved Sachi. Even the highest praise that have been offered are not enough to express the tremendous impact of this humble individual on the Indian media.

Three journalists stand out in my list of the extrordinaire category - the late B.G. Verghese, A. G. Noorani (now 93) and the late  K. S. Sachinanda Murthy.

When my cousin, Rajen told Sachi that I held him on the same pedestal as A. G. Noorani, he was thrilled to bits.

I knew B. G. Verghese as he was the brother of my aunt. BG used to visit us regularly when we lived in Bombay. When I was studying in St. Stephen’s College in Delhi, I used to meet him and his wife, Jameela regularly. They were both Stephanians, Jameela, before Stephen’s became a male only college.

I used to read BG’s columns regularly. He had the art of telling the facts in a manner which was understandable by the common man, much like the cartoonist, R. K. Laxman, That was why Nehru appointed BG as his Press Secretary.

I did not know A. G. Noorani personally, but his two brothers, Mohamed and Mushtaq,  are close friends of mine. Mohamed looked after me when I was being trained at Farbenfabriken Bayer AG in Leverkusen (near Köln) in Germany in 1964. Mushtaq was managing a hotel in the centre of Bangalore and Annikki and I stayed with him when we visited the city. They are true gentlemen and AG stands in the same category. AG knows that the PEN is mightier than the Sword and politicians as Nehru and Vajpayee respected this incredible lawyer, journalist and author.

I read AG's white papers at the time of the Indo-Chinese conflict and after that I got hooked on his writing.

Sachi was different but equal to both of them. 

He joined The WEEK in  Bangalore at the end of 1982. From my very first meeting I knew that he was a man of absolute talent. He could develop a story when one could never see another side to it. He hardly made predictions but when he did, he was always right.

 

Rajen getting his Padma Shri award from  President Abdul Kalam. His father Padma Bhushan K. M. Mathew is in the picture which also has his wife. Prema, their son, Jayant, and Jayant's wife, Anu. In the lventre back is Sachi.

(Courtesy Malayala Manorama)

Sachi served as the secretary general of the Editors Guild of India and chairman of the Lok Sabha Press Advisory Committee. He also was a member of the Central Press Accreditation Committee and the Press Council of India.

I was later told by my cousin Rajen that the contacts that Sachi had in all circles in Delhi and around India were without any comparison. He knew everyone that needed to be known and not only that he knew them intimately. He was the source for many journalists wanting a hot story. But Sachi was never after a hot story as his concentration was on the best reporting..

I met him for the first time when he joined tThe WEEK in Bangalore. He already knew the names of my wife and all my children. And he addressed me as Sushilchayan, a form of respect amongst Malayalis, although he was a Kannadiga from Kolar.

He knew all the contributions my paternsl grandfather, Raja Mantra Pravina Dewan Bahadur Maliyakal Kuriyan (Mysore) Matthan made to Mysore society.

When we moved to Finland, The WEEK magazine used to arrive at our home. Both, our son Mika and I, would rush to see Sachi’s writing. Although Mika was just 12 years old, he too liked the way Sachi told his story.

Mika kept all the old issues of the magazine for many years mainly because he liked Sachi’s page.

When President Pranab Mukherjee came to Finland in 2014, Sachi was in the media team but unfortunately we could not meet. A few weeks later I was in Delhi sitting in the office of The WEEK when Sachi came in. He was so greatly moved that he had not seen me during his visit to Finland, especially when he heard that I had brought  a group of Indians from Oulu to meet the Indian President.

After I heard of his illness, there was not a day that I did not say a prayer for dear Sachi and his family. It was then, when Rajen told him of my appreciation of Sachi that he was so moved by that.

What were the greatest lessons that I learnt from Sachi were that it is important to be humble and give respect to everyone who deserves respect. He taught me that it is the contacts that one develops in the course of one’s life that  leads to one’s success.

I will certainly miss the writings of Sachi as there is no one who can replace him.

Sachi with Philip Mathew, the Chief Editor of The WEEK, and Prime Minister P. V Narasimha Rao

(Courtesy Malayala Manorama)

Sachi with President Ram Nath Kovind and Chacko  Mathew, the Administration Chief of the Malayala Manorama group. 

(Courtesy Malayala Manorama)

The Karnataka government decided to accord full state honours to the departed during his cremation.

Sachi was a recipient of the Durlabh Singh Media Award and the Karnataka Media Academy award award for lifetime contribution to journalism at the national level, among others.

Sachi is survived by wife Chandrika and sons Nithin and Rohan. 

His columns called “Desiyam” and “Power Point” in the Malayala Manorama daily and The Week respectively dealt with national politics and garnered a wide readership. The editorials written by Sachi in the Malayala Manorama daily shaped the worldview of a large Malayali audience.

May this great journalist rest in peace. And may the dear Lord give solace to his immediate family and every single member of our Malayala Manorama family who will all miss him dearly.