What was a promise made in another era has now become a cross-country trek. A man from Kerala has gone to some lengths to make good on a small loan – and with a healthy measure of thanks to boot. He arrived in Telangana on July 9 with Rs 25,000 to settle a tab from 35 years back.
Why this story matters now
You could say it is a lesson in accountability when so many would let a small due go. It also puts a fine point on how the friendships of those who have worked in the Gulf can stand up to time, distance and being out of touch.
The message is plain: integrity is what it is. An Rs 1,000 loan in the 1990s was enough to guide a man’s decisions for a long while.
From a shared room in Abqaiq to separate lives
Back in the 1990s, Muhammad Ismail of Palakkad was working in Abqaiq, in Saudi Arabia. He and his roommate, Edla Lachanna, had a rapport like any two men in the same quarters – they put in the hours, cooked and chatted in the evenings.
Ismail put down 120 Saudi Riyals to Lachanna for something, which was about Rs 1,000 at the time. Lachanna made his way back to India not long after. Without the benefit of a mobile or social media, they went quiet, but Ismail did not let the matter go.
The forgotten loan that was never forgotten
Decades may have come and gone, but the sense of owing was still there. All he had to go on was that his friend hails from Dharmapuri, in present-day Telangana.
The search across states
Once he made up his mind to do something about it, Ismail put in some online legwork. That put him on a trail to Hyderabad and then to the Jagtial district in Telangana.
Some talking with people in the area was needed before he found Lachanna’s family. The two had to meet over a WhatsApp video since Lachanna was still in the Kingdom. They put faces to names in no time.
Repayment, with interest and emotion
On the 9th of July, Ismail was in Dharmapuri to give the family Rs 25,000. He wanted to be fair for the time that had passed. After a meal together, the matter was put to rest.
Lachanna will tell you he had put the loan out of his head and was hard-pressed to figure out where the 25,000 came from, or if there was interest tacked on. Still, he has nothing but respect for his friend’s straight-talking and for the good times in Abqaiq.
Here are the key details at a glance:
– Loan amount: 120 Saudi Riyals
– Value then: Rs 1,000
– Repaid now: Rs 25,000
– Search trail: Hyderabad to Dharmapuri
– Reunion: WhatsApp video call
– Date of visit: July 9
Why it resonates beyond one friendship
There is more to it than the numbers. A little money can be a lot of character. For those with a few loose ends to tie up, Ismail’s example is as good as any: make right of it, no matter how trivial it appears.
Then again, it is a look at the unspoken connections in the ranks of India’s Gulf workers. These are the kinds of ties you form in a room and hold to, well after the work and the travel are done. A repayment in Telangana, in that way, says a lot.
