Beetel leaves are warmed, smeared with castor oil and placed on the stomach for small infants when they are suspected to have colic pain.   Juice from the beetel leaf mixed with warm water is given to small children to improve digestion as well as solve indigestion problems.  Adults eat beetel leaves and beetel nut after taking food to help quick digestion.

In view of the large extent of usage of beetel leaves, small shops were set up in those days to sell beetel leaves and nuts commonly called ‘vethalaipakku kadai’ ie. ‘beetel leaf, beetel nut shop’. One such shop which was opened in the year 1953 still remains in Kutcheri Road, Mylapore, Chennai called Perumal News Mart.

I met the 75 year old owner N E Rajagopal who has been running it from the day it was started. He narrated “I came to Chennai when I was 15 years old and for five years worked in different shops and got trained in business. Then my father, setup this shop for me. I started with beetel leaves and nuts and also supplying newspapers.

In 1953, I sold a set of 3 beetel leaves and 1 beetel nut for ‘¼ anna’ which is equivalent to 1 ½ paise.  Hindu paper costed 6 paise and one banana was 3 paise and we did business in ‘anna’ and ‘paise’ denomination. This whole shop was ready with an investment of Rs. 2000 only. Those were days when it was difficult to do business for Rs. 50 every day and today we do an average business of Rs. 2000 every day.”

                 

Muthuramalingam, his son runs the shop with him and is also responsible for doing all the purchases. He stated that they were doing good business, though their original fast moving beetel leaves has gone down drastically to only about 10%. Very few people still chew beetel leaf. 

Most of the items that are sold here are purchased in wholesale from other areas of the city and some items are supplied by the manufacturers to the shop itself. He said that he has been a witness to this quiet area developing and becoming a busy area with a lot of vehicular traffic.

Located at 146, Kutcheri Road this old place can be contacted at 91 44 42707335

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