My Chitappa (Chachaji, Uncle) went missing from his home on April 6th. We realised that he was missing late that day as he mentioned going to Ammanoor, our ancestral place near Arakkonam… The frantic search started from the evening of the 6th.
My cousin, Aravind was and continues to be besides himself… My uncle has just taken some cash and a change of clothes with him. He hasn’t taken the mobile phone. After posting all over social media and reaching out through Whatsapp groups, someone mentioned seeing him in Tirupati. Aravind and my other Chitappa rushed there only to miss the CCTV footage by a couple of hours :(.
They rushed back to Chennai, disappointed that they couldn’t locate him.
My uncle has always been a daredevil. That he is 80 years old hasn’t changed a thing. Yes, he walks with some difficulty and cannot sit down on the floor easily, but he is as stubborn as ever. The only thing that worries all of us sick is the fact that he also is forgetful and has some early signs of memory loss.
Social media’s power is enormous and our innate humanity is intact… I am a nobody on X (formerly Twitter), but I post about Chitappa and look at the number of people who retweeted and gave suggestions etc. I am reposting it as part of this blog, hoping some more people would see it and also help with the search.
Chitappa is Missing !!
When we heard it first, we couldn’t believe it. This was a mentally strong person with a short temper, but not someone who would just go away. Disbelief was the first reaction. Then the bouts of anxiety racked us. Aravind and I just broke down while speaking over the phone, especially when we realised the Tirupati tip was a deadend. Chitappa was not to be found in Tirupati…. But because someone known to Aravind had seen him, a glimmer of hope came up.
Aravind returned to Chennai late night on the 8th.. and yesterday the glimmer of hope became a little brighter. We managed to trace Chitappa’s route to the suburban train terminal at Chennai and he seems to have boarded a train to Tiruvallur.
As I write the blog, my cousin is in Tiruvallur trying to trace Chitappa’s route from there ….
While the rest of the family is praying for his safe return… Aravind continues his relentless search for his father. I don’t know what karmic payback this is, but my heart goes out to my cousin. He has faced so many challenges and certainly doesn’t deserve this gut wrenching worry about Chitappa.
Do keep Aravind and Chitappa in your prayers…. hoping to share the good news that he is found and is safely back home soon. Will probably hop over to have his amazing coffee once that happens.
Do read my post on Chitappa from 2012 – Pink Angavastram
p.s – I have personally outsourced the task to Hanuman. He has to bring Chitappa back safely.
Sincere prayers for the safe return of your uncle. 🙏🙏 If his most recent location is Tiruvallur, would it make sense to enquire around the Perumal temples there ? Sri Boovaraha Swami being an important one.
Thanks Deepa. Yes, they are checking the temples and choultries.