An excited friend of mine once exclaimed, "We shared a Rampa's joke right in Rampa's hotel!": least did he know from where they originated and how they were fashioned into the gags which are currently in circulation.
Rampanna walking tall as patron of a local ritual
Although Ramappanna (his original name) died in 1987, his jokes still make rounds with the same vigour. The popular Rampa jokes have almost become a part of the district's folklore before the entry of Santa Banta, the Sardar duo and Supandi.
Although only a handful have attempted into explore into the life of Ramappanna- it's worth a lifetime.
Jokes apart, Kankanady Jeppinamogaru Ramappa was, on the contrary, much more than a mere joke. In oblivion is Ramappa who was a restaurateur, a philanthropist, a political mentor and, above all, an empathizing human being. An unread Billava, Ramappa scaled such heights thereby turning himself into a self-made man.
With the late chief minister Gundu Rao
It was this rags-to-riches journey of Ramappa that bred envy among his adversaries. Taking advantage of this situation, Ravi, the editor of the Kannada journal, Divyavani, made it his creed to publish a Rampa joke in each issue. He published the jokes and the society laughed, but Ramappa went about with his usual philanthropic concern, unruffled and unperturbed.
"He did not give a damn to these jokes. A firm believer in the power of the daivas, believed that the Gods would judge the acts of the wrong-doers," said Vishwanath, his nephew.
The fact that Ramappa lacked education added fuel to the fire and the jokes transcended all limits of decency. But this drawback never put him on the backseat. The Kankanady restaurant outshone others proving that management skills were only gained by experience and not schooling.
Born in 1925 to poor couple Somappa Poojary and Dugge Poojarti, Ramappa knew what poverty was and so also hunger. At his restaurant, he would feed his customers as much as they asked for without charging extra. But the sight of food being wasted would anger him and he used to charge a fine of 50 paise!
Although poor financial condition denied him the privilege of entering a school, Ramappa rightly recognized the importance of education and was instrumental in founding the ShriGokarnanatha College with a donation of Rs.1, 11,111.
"He never denied help to those who expressed to him their desire to pursue studies, but he would double check on the authenticity of each request and antecedens of every person who asked for help," adds Vishwanath.
Two views from Nemotsavas he promoted
Dire poverty, coupled with a merciless brother-in-law, drove him to toil in the fields. Ramappa, who left home at the age of 14, joined his brother's restaurant at Kankanady.
He shifted to a hotel in Kadri where he won the heart of the owner with his hard work. The latter eventually gifted the hotel to him. Ramappa put his heart and soul in the business and bought a piece of land at Kankanady and built his own Kankanady Restaurant. Today the hotel is a landmark in Mangalore. Later he also founded the Rajkamal Hotel at Hampankatta.
His house at Jeppinamogaru was a huge bungalow, said to be the first electrified house with telephone and a car in the entire region.
"He loved children and would annually offer sweets to school children on occasions like children's day and Independence Day. But his favourite food was 'Neeru Dosa' (pan cake). He was passionate about cock-fights and would persuade me to cook the slain bird the same night," recollected his wife Kamala.
Rampanna proudly posing with his restaurant staff
Though riches came his way, he never forgot nor forwent hard work. Being a proprietor of two restaurants never prevented him from working in his fields or personally going to the market for purchases. He had no reservations whatsoever about personlly serving food to his customers or clear tables of used plates, despite being the proprietor. He would still toil from dawn till late night and return home only after midnight.
The traditional buffalo-race (kambala) received deserving patronage from Ramappa. The family still rears a pair of buffaloes in his memory.
"He was stubborn when it came to work and taught us to hold any line of work in respect," said Vishwanath who has worked with his uncle since childhood.
It was Ramappa who is credited with the success of Janardhan Poojary who went on to represent Mangalore for four consecutive terms and also later became the union deputy finance minister.
"Uncle would offer all assistance - including finance - in the campaigning and would travel far and wide for campaigning, apart from offering his vehicles for the same. His close friend Jayakar always accompanied him on these drives. Bangarappa, Gundu Rao, Veerappa Moily and many other Congress leaders were closely associated with him and would join for luncheons at our house," Vishwanath recalls.
The five-member friends' group comprised Ramappa, Seetaram of the J V Sons, J P Sanil of the National Furniture, Jayakar, proprietor of a canteen at Kankanady and the late Sanjeeva Maistry, a contractor were together through thick and thin. He never offered himself to plunge into active politics but only offered backup.
Simple though he was, he had a craze for hi-tech gadgets, cars and furniture. He was one among the few citizens of Mangalore to have bought a Contessa, then a topper on the list of fast cars. The numeral 9 was his lucky number and thus he ensured that all the vehicles he had carried the number 9 on their number plates.
While most think that Ramappa died without any issue, his daughter India died of epilepsy when she was five. Consistently, Ramappa conducted the annual Nemotsav (a day-long ritual) at his house, a practice which the family has retained over the last 46 years.
Ramappa's death drew in almost all the top leaders of the state Congress party. He contributed a lot to the society with good intention but received only snickers.
While they laughed ruefully at his jokes only his family and a few of his associates knew what Ramappa was - a great soul who lived a graceful, serviceable life.
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