Archive · 30 Aug 2026
A Childhood Among India’s Early Sugar Mills and Factories
Margaret Barman remembers her childhood in India, where her father worked for a large company.
His work meant the family moved between several factories and towns in South India.
They lived near sugar mills, a pottery factory and a distillery.
In Pugalur, water was scarce, so the family reused it very carefully.
In Thiruvalla, Margaret lived in a house beside a river and enjoyed presents from local farmers.
Once, she expected to receive a small boat but was given a goat instead.
She also remembers funny family accidents, including her mother falling into a river and being offered a ball gown to wear.
School made Margaret homesick and ill, so she returned home for a time.
Her favorite memories came from Cuddalore, including beach celebrations and seeing turtles lay eggs.
Margaret Barman recalls growing up across South India while her father worked for Parry and Co.
Her family lived near factories in Nellikuppam, Mettupalayam, Ranipet, Pugalur, Thiruvalla and Cuddalore.
In arid Pugalur, household water arrived in barrels by bullock cart and was carefully reused.
In Thiruvalla, she enjoyed life beside the Pamba river and received gifts from local cane farmers.
Her childhood included homesickness at boarding school, beach picnics, fireworks and Olive Ridley turtle sightings.
- Who
- Margaret Barman, her parents, and employees and local communities connected with Parry and Co.
- What
- A memoir of Margaret Barman’s childhood spent accompanying her father to industrial postings and factories in South India.
- When
- 主要ly from her early childhood through the late 1940s and her later school years; she recalls travelling to India in February 1945 and returning from Britain in early 1948.
- Where
- Several locations in South India, including Nellikuppam, Mettupalayam, Ranipet, Pugalur, Thiruvalla, Ootacamund and Cuddalore.
- Why
- Her father’s work for Parry and Co. required the family to move among factories, shipping operations and industrial projects.
- Memoirist
- Margaret Barman, who lives in the United Kingdom
- Father’s employer
- Parry and Co., later known as EID Parry and subsequently bought by the Murugappa Group
- Father’s role
- Robert C. Aitken oversaw industrial operations, including a sugar factory at Pugalur and later distillery work at Thiruvalla
- Travel to India
- Margaret recalls first seeing India and her father at 14 months old and travelling by sea with her mother in February 1945
- Water supply at Pugalur
- Household water arrived in barrels carried by bullock cart and was boiled, filtered and reused
- Favorite postings
- Margaret identifies Cuddalore as her favorite posting, followed by nearby Nellikuppam
- Wildlife memory
- Olive Ridley turtles came ashore in large numbers along the coast near Cuddalore during the February breeding season