There was this Tamil movie i saw on DD when i was 12 or 13. Thengai Srinivasan is the hero. He is disease ridden and lying on his death bed with a side table full of medications. Lord Krishna, played by none other than N T Rama Rao is sitting on bed making thengai realise that he is suffering because of all the sins he committed in his life. This is the conversation that goes on....
Krishna: Do you realise why you are suffering like this?
thengai : Why?
Krishna: Because of all the bad things you did in your life...
thengai: I don't believe that.
Krishna: You are taking all these medications...
thengai: So...
Krishna: What is this one here called?
thengai: Erythromycin.
Krishna: Erythro what?
thengai: mycin.
Krishna: This one?
thengai: Zythromycin.
Krishna: Zythro what?
thengai: mycin.
Krishna: And this one?
thengai: Someothermycin.
Krishna: Someother what?
thengai: MYCIN.
And thengai suddenly realises what Krishna is trying to say.
This scene has played in my mind every time i was prescribed antibiotics over the years.
Last week, i was down with pneumonia and the doctor ordered a fresh round of antibiotics - and you know what, this time the mycins were much bigger than i ever remember.
