Same bike, same clothes, same house; Ayyappan and Suresh have done almost everything together for 34 years

KATTAKADA: Thirty-four years ago, Ayyappan and Suresh met at the Kattakada tempo stand. Both were 12-year-old cleaners, working for a meagre wage. What began as a childhood friendship eventually grew into a business partnership that helped them build Ashwathi Travels, now with more than a dozen vehicles.

They started by saving whatever little they could from their daily wages and investing their savings. From then on, there has hardly been a day when the two have lived separate lives.

Wherever they go, they travel together, usually on a Bullet. They dress alike too, even wearing the same model of footwear. Their togetherness extended to their marriages as well. Both got married on October 21, 2009, and later settled in a house they built together.

Ayyappan (46), of Kamala Vilasam, and Suresh Kumar (46), of Puthen Veedu, fought their way out of poverty to build the life they have today.

Their journey began with a single tempo. They drove it themselves, earned from it and gradually expanded their business. One vehicle became two, then three, and eventually a fleet of more than a dozen.

Wives are inseparable too

Marriage did not change their decision to remain together. The two friends built a house named Ashwathi at Kombadikkal in Kattakada, where they live with their wives.

Their wives, too, share a close bond. Ayyappan's wife, Sini, and Suresh's wife, Sharanya, rarely go anywhere without each other and, like their husbands, often dress alike.

Their children have grown up sharing the same friendship. Ayyappan's son, Ambadi A.S. Nair (15), and Suresh's daughter, Ashwathi S. Nair (15), study at Dvmnnm HSS, Maranalloor. They are in the same class and the same division.

For Ayyappan and Suresh, the dream is that their children will grow up with the same companionship that has remained at the heart of their own lives.