Page 114 - Musings 2021

wound. The aghast Menon also had to bear all the financial losses created by Keshavan’s
rampage.

Despite the mass destruction Keshavan delivered, the elephant-crazy town of Aarattupuzha
worshipped him like a god. Such was his beauty and presence, and the Naboodiri’s stable
soon turned into a sightseeing spot. Encouraged by the public’s mad love for his elephant,
Menon longed to use him as the deity’s escort. However, he needed to find an experienced
mahout to train Keshavan.

However, many trainers were quite afraid to take on the responsibility of preparing Keshavan
for such public gatherings. Keshavan had another major flaw that wasn’t widespread
knowledge. Mahouts believed in an old tale that an elephant with dark spots on its tongue
would kill its trainer. Although there were many exceptions to this belief, Keshavan’s temper
scared away many skilled trainers.

Menon was quite shocked by the lack of response to what he considered as an attractive

prospect. He was willing to throw money at this problem, but there were no takers. He

considered training it himself, but he was aware of his comfortable upbringing and general
lack of athletic ability and knew it would end in disaster. Thankfully another nutcase arrived
to solve his problem.
Rajiv wasn’t like the average elephant trainer. He was the son of a famous mahout
Shivashankaran who was revered amongst the elephant trainer community. Rajiv grew up
tagging along with his dad on trips and lived amongst elephants all his life. He didn’t have
any family or was better without one, for his attention towards elephants was undivided. Like
the captive tuskers, he too led a solitary life focusing only on his craft.
Rajiv was exceptionally well built and agile and could leap on top of elephants effortlessly.
He took pride in his dark skin since it was the color of elephants. His favorite snack, a short
stick of sugarcane, was always tied to his waist, and he was often seen chewing it. His long
hair was tied to a bun, and he wore an ivory pendant on his chain. He looked intimidating
from a distance, he looked intimidating, but he came off as a jolly fellow who was always
smiling from closer inspection.

When word got to Rajiv that a fantastic elephant needed a trainer, he immediately left for the
Menon’s residence. Unsurprisingly, Keshavan’s beauty struck Rajiv like a bolt of lightning,
and he didn’t care about all the superstitions surrounding the spotted tongue. He badly
wanted to ride this beast and bask in the aura it emitted.

Rajiv wasn’t particularly attracted to the money the Menon had. His only demands were to be
appointed as the permanent caretaker for Keshavan. The Menon wasn’t particularly happy
with Rajiv’s demands, for it didn’t cost him a penny to enjoy the beauty of the elephant.
However, there weren’t any other options, so Menon obliged. He also ordered separate
quarters for Rajiv since was unsure how his family members would react to letting a member
from a lower caste into their house.

Rajiv’s initial approaches toward Keshavan were met with hostility. Rajiv used his sugarcane
stick as a truce offering to warm up to the elephant and soon was able to earn the trust of the
beast to stay in its close quarters. He was extremely patient with the elephant and was often
seen chatting gibberish to it. Those two seemed to establish a communication link. Keshavan
also enjoyed long, elaborate washing and scrubbing of its tough skin with coconut husks

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