Click to play videoMysore: If the common man's song is louder than that of the palace in Mysore, it's because of one man - R K Narayan.
The man who lived at 15, Vivekananda Road and made the sights and sounds of Mysore his own.
For R K Narayan, something as simple as a filter coffee and the frangipani tree outside his house could become characters in stories, each of them as uncomplicated as the man himself.
Says internationally-acclaimed photographer T S Satyan, "He was a very natural person. He found beauty in the simple things, like the aroma of coffee. It was his favourite drink and curd rice his favourite food. He was basically a simple person."
When Narayan wrote 'the train had just arrived at Malgudi station' he was writing about a small station in Mysore - a picturesque station that still boasts of just one tea stall and serves as an adda (hang out joint) for locals.
Mysore has retained some of its quaintness, but the winds of change scream out.
Says R K Narayan's brother R K Laxman, "Mysore has deteriorated. It's full of garbage and potholes and meaningless buildings now."
The serene Sayyoji Rao Road of Narayan's novels is bustling with traffic. However, Narasimha Pharmacy is now Connect Tech. The City Power Press does little without computers and it's owner Cheluva Iyengar alias Mr Sampath of Narayan's stories, is long gone.
However, another landmark of Narayan's life lives on - Kukrahalli - where Narayan came on long walks on a daily basis.
Kukrahalli is where he met with new people everyday - ordinary people whom he made extraordinary through his stories.
And Kukrahalli meant more to Narayan than just exercise or stories. A few years before his death, he was part of a campaign to get it cleaned up.
Another thing that lives on is Narayan's first home in Mysore - 963, Laxmipuram, where many swamis (sages) continue the tradition of India's biggest passion - cricket. 963 Laxmipuram is where Narayan started his career in writing.
Narayan may not be with us any longer but he lives on through his Malgudi.
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