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Why is PU's coffee house owner reluctant to continue, special interview

CHANDIGARH:In four days, Panjab University’s South India Coffee House’s owner Joy Kuruvilla will be gone, travelling far away to Kerala’s Kottayam district.

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Amarjot Kaur

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 25

In four days, Panjab University’s South India Coffee House’s owner Joy Kuruvilla will be gone, travelling far away to Kerala’s Kottayam district. But before leaving, he told a PU official about his financial ordeal.

On Monday, the university issued a press release claiming that the varsity’s top officials were in talks with Joy, looking to revive the legacy of the iconic coffee house and hoping that he agrees to continue running the eatery.

To the PU’s top official, Joy voiced three concerns. “I requested him, I can’t name who, to excuse Rs 30,000 shop rent, its electricity charges and to increase the food rates. I want to enter into a 10-year agreement with the varsity, if my demands are met,” he told The Tribune. 

Ironically, South India Coffee House hides the ‘South’ behind a pamphlet stuck on its menu board — the only place that bears its name. Yes, turns out, all this while, we were wrong. “After all, what difference it makes? We’re all part of India. What’s in a name,” quips Joy.

In retrospect, he spills the beans of nostalgia and sunset conversations over coffee, giving candid insights into the decades gone by and how trends shaped up at the PU. We get up, close and personal with Joy, who has been running the eatery since 1983.

“There were three contractors here before I took over. I’ve been associated with the café since it started in 1972. The first contractor ran the shop till 1978, the second one till 1980 and the third one till 1983. Till 1978, sugar, ‘dal’, rice and oil were supplied to this shop from hostel no. 6 at subsidised rates. The rent was Rs 500 and the coffee was worth 35 paisa. You could get a dosa for 90 paisa back then,” he recollects.

Now 76-year-old, then 21,  Joy was one of the first few Malayali migrants to have settled in Chandigarh in 1969. “After 1978, we stopped receiving subsidised raw materials from the hostel. Ours was the only shop here. There was one on the ground floor too. In the 80s, more such shops started mushrooming. That, however, didn’t affect the footfall. We’d witness over a 100 people at the cafeteria,” he shares.

“I don’t keep well these days. I have an excruciating backache and it often makes my legs numb. I wrote that to PU authorities, citing my reason for winding up the business. However, profitability was a major concern.”

Telling us about how the coffee house changed overtime, Joy shares, “Only the curtains, chairs and flooring are the new addition to the cafeteria. Earlier, there were no curtains here. Also, the flooring was changed when Dr Sobti took over as the VC. He got the tiles laid here. Earlier, it had a cemented floor with chips in it,” he says. “The tables are still the same. Sobti sir replaced the old plastic chairs with the iron and wooden ones. It still has that old-world charm, but there aren’t many people here,” he adds.

A pall of gloom descends on Joy’s features and his voice softens as he talks about the recent situation of the cafeteria. 

He shares, “Some four or five years ago, we would still witness a decent footfall, which was already on a decline because of the increasing number of eateries on the ground floor. People, especially those seeking admission to the varsity frequented this place during this time. But now, even the admissions are online. We don’t see students coming with their families here anymore.”

Of all his years spent in Chandigarh, Joy says, he’d miss PU the most. “When I got here, and even now, Kerala Samaj made it really comfortable for those coming from the South to stay here. We celebrate Onam here too; this time, it was celebrated at the Jat Bhawan. Also, there’s a Ayappa Mandir here at Sector 47. Also, we have many friends at the church here. These 50 years have been a breeze, but most of all, I love being here at PU,” he says.

So much for the age-old aphorism, old is gold.

 

How UT chess assn came into existence

Chandigarh, June 25

It is believed that the French Revolution started from a coffee house, little did we know that Chandigarh chess revolution would also start from the coffee house, says Anirudh Trehan, founder of the Chandigarh Chess Association, as he recalls how the association started at the South India Coffee House in 1987. “I was a student at the Economics Department of the PU and our favourite spot was sports room at the Stu-C. We would play chess from 2 pm to 5 pm and after that assemble for coffee at the coffee house,” he says.

He adds, “Actually, the Chandigarh Chess Association had been formed two times before, but it was in a defunct state. Our chess friend Milind Parle, who was the secretary of the old association, introduced me to the grand old man of Chandigarh chess, JS Chaudhry. My friend Abhinandan Vohra and I would frequently visit Chaudhry to persuade him to start again. Finally, he relented on one condition that we should register the body. Our first meeting was held at the South India Coffee House. The team was formed with Chaudhry as honorary secretary and Abhinandan and I joined in as joint secretaries.” 
 
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