This house has hosted the who’s who of philosophers, writers, politicians, bureaucrats and intellectuals in its heyday. Philosopher and second president of India S. Radhakrishnan, English writer Aldous Huxley, Lebanese Civil War hero Kamal Jumblatt, writer Raja Rao, diplomat Rajeshwar Dayal…were all frequent visitors to stately ‘Parvathy Vilas’ on Ambujavilasam Road once upon a time.
In that era Ambujavilasam Road was known as Thiruvananthapuram’s ‘Harley Street’. And just like Harley Street (in London), which has been for centuries been known for its large number of private specialists in medicine and surgery, the road, in the 1950s to 70s (at least), was called so because it was the home of several of the city’s top practitioners from different streams of medicine. At the beginning of the road was the home and clinic of Ayurveda physicians Aranmula Narayana Pillai and Kumarakam Parameswaran Pillai of the Sri Dhanwantari Matam, while homeopathic doctor Raghavan Nair lived a little further down from them. Then came ‘Parvathy Vilas’, the home of Dr. A. Achuthan Pillai, first Director and Dean of Medicine at Government Medical College, Trivandrum, and finally that of Kalady Parameswaran Pillai, Ayurveda physician and former Principal of the Government Ayurveda College.
Of the lot, Parvathy Vilas is, perhaps, the best preserved throwback to that era. From its porte-cochère and polished wooden ceiling to its mosaic flooring, wooden furniture, vast nadumuttam (inner courtyard) complete with a thulasi thara , and even Dr. Achuthan Pillai’s consultation room, the mansion has been maintained in mint condition by his son-in-law, Dr. K. Ramakrishnan Nair, and his family. The kindly Dr. Ramakrishnan himself is a renowned plastic surgeon and former professor and head Department of Plastic Surgery, Medical College. After Dr. Achuthan Pillai retired from service in 1961 he ran a flourishing medical practice from his home. At present Dr. Ramakrishnan uses that very room, situated just to the left of the small verandah, for his consultations.
“Parvathy Vilas is over 100 years old. We discovered the fact only three years or so ago when we had to replace a few tiles on the roof. The mangoes falling off the gigantic tree in front of the house kept breaking the tiles. The mango tree’s branches once extended over much of the house. Incidentally, the mango tree and the koovalam tree by the gate, are said to be as old as the house itself. Much to our delight we found that the broken tiles were from one Thomas Stephen and Co. and dated sometime in the early 1900s,” says Dr. Ramakrishnan. He has been living in the house since 1971, following his marriage to the late Jyothi, Dr. Achuthan Pillai’s only child. He now lives with his son, Achuthan Nair, a dentist, his daughter-in-law, Rekha, also a dentist, and 12-year-old grandson, Deepak.
But the house’s history doesn’t begin with them. “The house was actually built by one Chettiar, a prosperous local businessman. My wife’s maternal grandfather, Sri Atmananda Krishna Menon, Advaitha philosopher and guru, brought the house from him sometime in the early 1950s. At the time the property was almost one and a half acres. Now, after division, it’s 59 cents. Guru Atmananda retired as District Superintendent of Police and moved to the city to devote himself in philosophy and spiritualism. He spent his last years here until he passed away in the house on May 14, 1959,” explains Dr. Ramakrishnan.
The house was named after Guru Atmananda’s wife, Parukutty Amma. They had three children – Padmanabha Menon, who ran Guru Atmananda’s ashram in Aranmula, K.M.K. Menon, producer of Malayalam film Thyagaseema , and daughter Sarojini Amma.
In fact, the spacious top floor of Parvathy Vilas is a shrine to Guru Atmananda and everything is as it was when he was alive. His easy chair; four poster bed; methiyadis; table fan; radio; his library, including books of slokas that he authored such as Radhamadhavam (later recorded by M.S. Subbalakshmi), Atmanandam , Athmaramam and Athmadarshanam , his set of leather suitcases… have all been lovingly preserved. “We light lamps daily and many of his followers still visit, especially on his birth and death anniversaries,” says Dr. Ramakrishnan, as he takes us to a hall downstairs where Guru Atmananda used to give his sermons. “He had disciples from far and wide and used to give sermons in pitch perfect English. Dr. Radhakrishnan, Huxley, Jumblatt and Raja Rao, author of novels such as Kanthapura , The Serpent and the Rope and The Cat and Shakespeare: A Tale of India , among others, were his disciples. For a while Raja Rao used to live in the small house directly opposite,” he adds.
A huge portrait of Guru Atmananda – in police uniform – hangs above the main door of the house and there are several others of him on one side of the living room. The other side is occupied by graceful old photos and oil paintings of family members, while the inner verandah leading to the courtyard is lined with black and white photos of Dr. Achuthan Pillai during his Medical College days. Among these frames is a prized photograph, dated 1930, of second year students of the Madras Medical College, including Dr. Achuthan Pillai, Dr. R. Kesavan Nair, who is Kerala’s first civil surgeon (and Dr. Ramakrishnan’s father), and Col. Goda Varma Raja, among others.
“We are determined to preserve the legacy of the family,” says Dr. Ramakrishnan.
(A fortnightly column on houses in and around the city that are more than 50 years old)
