Family of five, in pursuit of happiness on bike

BANGALORE: The man Manju, his wife Anitha, their three children Manoj, Vidya and Chaitra, an antediluvian loudspeaker, a modern-day amplifier, a neon green pot of water, capacious boxes of electronic equipment and loads of luggage — these co-exist agreeably on Manju’s second hand bike. Around this time every year, the family from Mysore hops on the bike and makes their way to Bangalore, halting in several places, playing music through a 2GB memory card and dancing to  Kannada, Tamil and Hindi tunes — that’s how these travelling performers earn their bread and butter. And when in Bangalore, they go around the city entertaining people with their little fun-filled acts. “My father was a theatre actor in Mysore. He was part of many small troupes, and one day, he started his own troupe — Sree Chamundeswari Nataka Vinayaka Sangha. When I was young, I too was part of that troupe,” recalls Manjunath. But the advent of the television age proved to be a big blow for theatre lovers and soon Sree Chamundeswari Nataka Vinayaka Sangha was shut down. People found their own little ways of making money and Manju decided to hit the road and entertain people with his dancing skills.“Those days, we used to walk from village to village with luggage on our heads and perform. Then we bought a tricycle. Recently we bought this bike,” he smiles. Manju and his family have travelled to Mangalore, Madikeri, Dharwad, Goa and even Mumbai on the bike. “After we finish performing, we eat something and then sleep on the road,” says Manjunath. “In Banglore, the response is good — we make good money — about `2,000 a day. We put up a box in which people put money. Sometimes, we charge a fixed amount for shows.” he adds. But life is not always easy for the family, he says. “Sometimes we find it difficult to make ends meet. I can’t send my children to school because we travel and I don’t want to leave them alone at home,” he explains. “They are good performers. After my wife and I finish dancing, they dance and people love it,” grins the fine father. Manju is a man who lives for the moment. Ask him whether he has plans to perform on a bigger stage and all he says is, “I am just thinking of making some money so that the family can survive.”