He hawks popcorn on suburban trains from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day, to try and eke out between Rs. 200 to Rs. 300 to support his wife’s dream of becoming a teacher and also, towards caring for their one-year-old toddler.

Babu Ezhil Gunalan (30) is blind, also to the challenges that life throws at him. He hopes that soon, his wife B. Karpavalli (30), who is also blind and studies at Presidency College, will complete her graduation in English literature and pursue a B. Ed immediately so that she can become a teacher. A student of Tamil literature from Tiruchi’s National College, Gunalan says his B.A. degree has not helped him find a job. “That’s why I wanted her to pursue English literature,” he says. “That’s why this train life for me.”

The blind couple, who got here from their home town Tiruchi three years ago after their parents opposed their inter-caste love, have made Chennai their home against all the odds. The last couple of months have been relatively easier as they have rented out a home at Thiruninravur at a monthly rent of Rs. 2,500. Their newborn desperately needed shelter from rains. But life has not always been under a roof. They have spent a good deal of their life together in the city as pavement dwellers.

The couple, who met at the voluntary organisation Vizhi Ilanthore Mahalir Maruvaazhvu Maiyam (Home for rehabilitation of blind women) in Tiruchi, arrived in Chennai with just Rs. 3,000 in cash and a few friends to turn to.

City life, Gunalan says, is fraught with as many challenges as it provides hope. While Karpavalli pursues her study with the hope that she would one day be an English teacher at a school, Gunalan toils hard. He has turned to usurious money lenders (kandhu vadi) to make ends meet. He has borrowed Rs.10,000 and has to repay at an monthly interest of Rs. 10 per 100 every month. The sheer math of it makes the loan mind-boggling.

“But what option do I have,” he asks. “No bank would give me a loan as I don’t have a regular income to show or some property in my name. Loans at high rates of interest are bothering us. A friend, who is also blind, recently committed suicide because he was unable to repay debts.”

There are some spells during their stay when they find themselves at the mercy of friends or some sheer providence – at times considerate officials have allowed them to stay overnight at railway stations.

The big dream is to one day own a house. “I have to find a home of my own. Homelessness is quite painful,” he says.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai> Society / by Aloysius Xavier Lopez / October 28th, 2014