Less than four years after he got married to the woman he loved in a government-run old-age home at Ramavarmapuram in Kerala’s Thrissur, 71-year-old Kochaniyan Menon breathed his last on Monday, August 14, bidding adieu to his beloved wife PV Lakshmi Ammal (70). He reportedly passed away due to age-related ailments. The duo got married on December 28, 2019, after they met each other at the old-age home in a happy coincidence, rekindled a former friendship, and eventually fell in love.
Before Lakshmi Ammal’s first husband Krishna Iyer passed away 21 years ago, Kochaniyan used to work as his assistant in his catering business in Thrissur. The couple had known each other for nearly three decades. “My husband had asked Kochaniyan to take care of me after he passed. After he died, I lived alone in my house for some years. Kochaniyan used to come home if I required some help. Later, I sold my house and shifted to a relative's house, where I lived for many years. Kochaniyan used to check on me often,” Lakshmi Ammal had told TNM two years ago.
This was until Kochaniyan suddenly disappeared one day, and it seemed he would not return. Having lost touch with him, Lakshmi Ammal moved into the old-age home around six years ago. She would later learn that Kochaniyan, who was living with his children until then, had gone to an old-age home in Wayanad. But as fate would have it, another two years later, Kochaniyan too was transferred into the same care home in Ramavarmapuram. It did not take more than two months for the couple to be sure that they wanted to spend their twilight years together, hand in hand.
Lakshmi Ammal had then told TNM that it was a blessing. “We are not sure how long we can stay together as we are old. But we will be happy and I feel somebody is always there next to me,” she had said. They went on to spend the next four years together just as she hoped, as a happy couple.
Tragically, Kochaniyan's health began to deteriorate in recent months, eventually leading to his passing. His body was placed at the old-age home for public homage before his cremation was held later in the day, marking the end of a heartwarming journey that highlighted the enduring power of love in the twilight years.
Read their full story here: How a Kerala couple in their 60s fell in love in an old age home and is getting married