The shelves are nearly empty. P Thiagarajan is at the far end of the library, trying to keep himself distracted amid a fast-depleting pile of books. Clearly, it is not working. He gets emotional with every passing title, and understandably so. The 1000 sq ft space filled with books sums up his life’s purpose. “ Most of the Tamil titles are gone,” says the 63-year-old. As Thiagu Book Centre, one of the oldest libraries in the city, downs its shutters due to low patronage, its founder Thiagarajan is giving away his books for massive discounts.
“A lot has changed over the years,” says Thiagarajan, recalling a time children would queue up in front of his library when he closed it for a lunch break. “They would ask me, ‘Why can’t you come sooner, uncle?’,” he laughs, adding how he eventually ended up cutting his lunch breaks short. Thiagu Book Centre was started in 1980 in a rented space near the Head Post Office.
Thiagarajan’s father Perumal Samy set it up for him, soon after the former finished college. “Father ran a petty shop selling newspapers, magazines, and candy on Stanes Mill Road in the 1960s,” recalls Thiagarajan, adding, “He later set up Excellent Book Centre, a library on VH Road and I gave him a hand on and off.” This laid the foundation for his understanding of a library’s functioning.
