“I was working as a car mechanic for a leading showroom. Owing to a great passion for poetry, I used to write a lot of poems and my dream was to get into the cinema field one day. But due to an unfortunate turn of events, I had to serve time in prison. It was an excruciating period of my life. I lost a great deal in this process. But coming out, I had a second chance at life and I decided to make the best use of it. A couple of people supported me in helping me set my cobbler venture and it’s been a good journey from there. I live in Choolaimedu but I travel here to Koyembedu to set up my stall. I start my day by offering flowers to this Ganesh statue here. I had renounced my ego and every other vice that doesn’t serve me anymore. My children are married and settled in different parts of the city. Sometimes people offer me food which I have right here or I leave the stall behind to cross the road and have food from one of the hotels. Life gave me some of the harshest lessons possible during my early years but I’m a better person for it now. Every single person in this world should make the best possible use of education and strive to work for the upliftment of themselves as well as the society. And I can’t stress this enough, everyone should read the Thirukural and take important lessons from it. I continue to take solace from this now and then and yet, there’s a long way to go forward.”