Rakshita Adyanthaya/ENS

Bangalore, Aug 18: Twenty-one-year-old Praveen has long been acquainted with death: his father, Trivikrama Mahadeva, used to bury bodies that were not claimed from the various hospitals in the city: Victoria Hospital, NIMHANS and KIMS.

“It was only when I was about ten that I really understood what death was, but by then I had seen my father at work, he used to take me along. So it did not really affect me,” says Praveen. He too voluntarily buried the unclaimed bodies.

His father, Mahadeva, has been widely recognised for his work: he was awarded the Karnataka Rajyotsava award in 1999 and the Kempegowda award in the year 2005.

Like father, like son: stepping into his father’s shoes, the young Praveen says he has performed the last rites of about 13,000 unclaimed bodies so far.

Mahadeva has retired from this work after having dealt with the last rites of about 77,882 unclaimed bodies. Praveen says, “If the dead bodies are not claimed at any hospital, the police officers contact me.

They give me Rs 450 for each body. As my father cannot fund my studies any more, the money comes in handy, the work is like a boon.”

Praveen has just completed his Bachelor’s Degree in Arts from the Government First Grade College, Vijayanagar. He secured first class marks in all the six subjects, and is among the highest scorers in his college.

Asked about his future plans, he says, “I want to continue my studies and wish to do a Masters in Social Work.”

Though Praveen’s father Mahadeva hailed from a poor family, he appreciated the value of education and ensured that all his children were well educated: he has two daughters and two sons.

However, Praveen is the only one of his children to have followed in his father’s footsteps when it came to burying unclaimed bodies. A contented Mahadeva says, “Kannada actor Kashinath is doing a film based on my life, called ‘Samskaravantha’.