Behind a photograph: A son carrying his family through illness and poverty

Thodupuzha: A house that could collapse at any moment. A life shaped by illness, cancer, paralysis and failing kidneys. A stove that is lit only when the pension arrives. Amid all this uncertainty, one son stands as the only support for three women.

The journey to uncover the story behind a photograph published by Mathrubhumi—of a grandson carefully taking his grandmother to hospital on a scooter—leads to a deeply moving tableau of life, one marked by survival forged through mutual love.

His mother, a cancer patient, Pushpa (64), his grandmother Gouri (84), who suffers from kidney disease, and Gouri’s sister Sarojini (80), partially paralysed after a stroke, depend entirely on Abhijith (33) of Alpara, Manakkad, near Thodupuzha.

Abhijith had been supporting the family through a temporary job with the Water Authority. It was during this period that Pushpa was diagnosed with high-grade B-cell lymphoma. Soon after, Sarojini suffered a stroke, while Gouri’s condition worsened due to a kidney infection and complications from varicose veins.

With the responsibility of caring for all three women, Abhijith was forced to give up work. Every month, he spends nearly ten days in Thiruvananthapuram for his mother’s treatment at the Regional Cancer Centre (RCC). During that time, someone else must be arranged to care for the two elderly women at home. On alternate days, he takes Gouri, seated at the front of his scooter to the Thodupuzha District Hospital, 10 kilometres away, for wound dressing, a journey made because they cannot afford autorickshaw fare. He also manages all household chores on his own.

The house, more than a hundred years old, has a leaking roof covered with plastic sheets. Parts of the walls and ceiling have begun to crumble. Fearing the structure may give way, the four sleep together in one corner of the house. With the monsoon approaching, anxiety continues to grow. Yet Abhijith remains by their side with a warm smile, the sole source of courage for these women.