THAMBI KADAMBAVANAM

He was a jolly good fellow





I had seen a few English plays performed in Madras in which Thambi Kadambavanam played key roles. He had made quite a reputation for himself as a major theatre personality at that time. A number of English plays used to be put up those days, and hard ly any without Thambi Kadambavanam.

I used to put up a couple of plays every year. I believe he had seen some of these. But somehow we never got to meet each other while we were in Madras. And then I moved to Madurai. I did put up a few plays in Madras even after that. But Madurai was our main performing area. Meanwhile Thambi (he insisted on being called that) acted in many more plays and also in an English language film made by V.V.Giri’s son and featuring Jayalalitha as the heroine. Thambi played her father. The film was not particularly good, but it had the value of novelty.

Thambi in Madurai


One day after a performance of a play, Thambi appeared backstage and congratulated me and the actors, and engaged us in pleasant conversation. I had recognized him the moment I saw him. The bulbous nose, the heavy jowls and the unwieldy body stood out like trade marks. “How is it you are in Madurai?” I asked him. “That’s a long story” he said. “I’ll tell you about it another day”. And then he asked for my address and directions to reach my house.

The next evening he called at my house, and from then on he was a frequent visitor. And gradually I came to know more about him.

He was fanatically keen on using a heavy British accent on stage, but was not particular about any other stage aspect. He pronounced some words with excessive exaggeration, and scoffed at those who didn’t follow this style.

The lonely entertainer


Thambi had come to Madurai to be in an old people’s home where his sister was also a resident. As I talked with him, I realized that though he was a witty character who made others laugh, he was a lonesome and sad individual craving for love and affection and not getting any.

My daughter was a student of Lady Doak College at that time, and she used to bring a lot of friends to the house. Thambi had them screaming with laughter. These girls kept coming frequently in order to be entertained by Thambi, and he never disappointed them.

Thambi once asked me to draw his portrait. I told him that since I was essentially a cartoonist, the portrait would be more like a caricature. “The funnier the better” said Thambi, and sat uncharacteristically motionless until I finished the drawing.

One day Thambi excitedly told me that he was going to Madras to stay with some relatives. They kept him for ten days and then asked him to leave. He came back to Madurai , feeling sad and unwanted. Though he tried to joke and laugh, the underlying sadness was apparent.

One day I was summoned to the old age home and was told that Thambi was seriously ill. He was rushed to a hospital and admitted. About six days later he was discharged. I took him back to the home for the aged, where he passed away a couple of days later. His sister sat alone near his body.

There were just a handful of people at the funeral.