Tara Murali, 75, passed away in Chennai late on July 26. She had been ailing for some time. Tara was known for pursuing public causes and promoting civic rights, consumer protection, heritage conservation and environmentalism. She spoke out boldly against inhuman policies and corrupt methods, armed with facts and figures. Generous and helpful, she would always fight for justice, and the underprivileged didn’t have a more understanding friend than Tara, says Partab Ramchand in this personal tribute
She loved to talk – and listen. And you loved to talk and listen to her. For she was such an endearing personality full of good cheer and laughter, always seeing the positives in a situation. She appreciated the good things in life be it a Carnatic music concert, a good meaningful film or a winner from the racket of Roger Federer
But that didn’t mean Tara Murali wouldn’t raise her voice at anything unfair or at dishonest practices. In conversations with people or in her official capacity, being associated with heritage conservation, the environment, consumer activism and a trustee of the Citizen Consumer and Civic Action Group (CAG), she spoke out boldly against inhuman policies and corrupt methods armed with facts and figures. The underprivileged didn’t have a more understanding friend than Tara, who never hesitated to reach out to the legal route if the situation warranted.
Yes, Tara was all this and more. A member of the Broadcast Complaints Council and the INTACH (Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage) governing council, she was active in book groups. She was a keen follower of all sports but was particularly fond of table tennis, serving as the president of the Tamil Nadu Table Tennis Association. Public causes always interested her and she immersed herself deeply in issues such as town planning, the environment and consumer protection.
An architect by profession, Tara had an active practice over four decades with Bharath and Associates during which time, her colleague V. Balaji remembers, she paid meticulous attention to detail, always stressing on total transparency and adherence to rules and regulations. She served as joint secretary of the Indian Institute of Architecture’s Tamil Nadu Chapter. She had varied other interests which included music, dance and literature, and she was particularly pleased having translated Ma Po Sivagnanam’s Tamil book on Veerapandiya Kattabomman into English.
That was Tara’s public image – one who would always fight for justice, but also one who could not do a mean thing even if she tried, being generous and helpful by nature. For me, I will always carry fond personal memories of her as a good friend for nearly half a century. We first met at a table tennis tournament in the city (Madras then) in the mid 1970s. She had come as a TT enthusiast while I was covering the event for the Indian Express as a sports reporter. As I became the regular TT correspondent for the newspaper, we met more often and I came to know that her interest in the sport was more than just passing. She wanted to be more closely involved with it and in due time went into administration, becoming the TNTTA president in the 1990s. Before that, she was secretary of the Tamil Nadu Table Tennis Players Welfare Association and as an executive committee member I had a chance to interact with her more closely and found she always had the good of the game and players at heart.
About this time, Tara made a gesture that touched the lives of my family forever. My wife Gita and I in particular will always be indebted for her timely gesture in helping us get our first flat on Masilamani Road in Royapettah for which she was the architect. Aware that we had to leave our rented place on nearby Lloyds Road by a certain date, she went out of her way in aiding us in buying our first property. She was instrumental in arranging the HDFC loan and even gave us tips on how and where to place things and make best use of the limited space available.
Over the years, we stayed in touch. Tara and Murali attended my wedding and, after nearly 35 years, also made it a point to attend my son’s wedding. In between, my wife and I attended their son Krishna’s wedding. Our meetings were generally at social gatherings but we kept in touch through phone calls and, later, WhatsApp messages. But one ritual we followed religiously – to meet over breakfast at the Music Academy canteen during the music season and chat away the time.
During her final days when Tara was not in a position to receive visitors, the phone conversations saw to it that the ties were maintained. Finally, even that stopped though the WhatsApp messages continued to be exchanged almost till the very end. However, the memories will always remain, for Tara had the happy knack of not just touching people’s lives but also enriching them.
Note: Tara Murali is the wife of N. Murali, director of The Hindu Group of Publications, and president of The Music Academy.
(The writer is a veteran sports writer who spent his career working for The Indian Express and The Telegraph and Sportsworld. He knew Tara Murali for nearly 50 years. He lives in Chennai.)
from Webdoux