His satisfaction rests in the final journey of VIPs

The driver Santhakumar, who runs ‘Homage’ funeral services in Kilpauk, is one of the most sought after drivers for the final procession of VIPs, especially politicians.

Santhakumar, who is in the business for 40 years now, owns 26 ambulances and 62 drivers, including him. Though there is a band of drivers available, he takes the responsibility when it comes to the final procession of important leaders.

“Driving the final procession of the VIPs gives me a job satisfaction. I make sure that nothing goes wrong from my side as it is the most important journey of a person’s life,” Santhakumar told DT Next.

Speaking the most challenging experience, Santhakumar said that during the final procession of Jayalalithaa, the procedures ended around 1 am and he immediately left to drive the final procession of Thuglak founder Cho Ramaswamy around 4 am. “Though I had no time to rest, I completed the work with perfection and it was the most unforgettable event in my life,” said Santhakumar.

Speaking about the freezer boxes, Santhakumar said that the bodies can be kept in the freezer boxes for 12 days without embalming, provided that a proper supply of voltage is provided. Also, the freezer box varies for each personality.

For instance, the freezer box of Kalaignar had the design of ‘Rising Sun’ and was completely gold plated. However, for Jayalalithaa, the box was semi-gold plated and the length was 6.5 feet when compared to 7 feet for Kalaignar.

He further said that he had introduced new technology in the state to place the caskets inside the burial pits. Usually ropes are used to lower the caskets into the pits but he imported ‘Casket Lowering Device’ from China for the purpose. “There will no shake and people need not worry about any damage to the caskets as the device will place the caskets perfectly into the pit,” said Santhakumar.