The 800-kilometre road journey began not with a map, but with a memory. For 74-year-old C.P. Abdullah, a businessman at Velimukku, near Calicut University, a debt of ₹93 had weighed far heavier on his conscience than on his purse.
Last week, nearly five decades after owing it to a grocery merchant in Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh, Mr. Abdullah set out on a long road trip. The decision baffled his friends and colleagues. Why would a 74-year-old businessman travel all the way to Andhra Pradesh to repay just ₹93? But for Mr. Abdullah, the answer was clear. “This debt has haunted me for years,” he said. “ I tried many times, through different people, to find the man I owed; but I never succeeded.”
After carrying the debt’s weight for decades, he finally set out on a drive to Kurnool along with a few youngsters. His purpose was simple yet personal—to find Ibrahim Mia, the man whom he had owed ₹93 for a tin of ghee (approximately 16.5 kg) since 1978.
Small-time restaurateur
Back then, Mr. Abdullah was a small-time restaurateur running Abhilash Restaurant in Kurnool and Ibrahim Mia dealt in the popular Tungabhadra ghee. In five decades, the debt had become a matter of honour and peace of mind for Mr. Abdullah.
