MANGALURU/CHIKKAMAGALURU: An outpouring of grief marked the last journey and rites of Café Coffee Day founder-owner VG Siddhartha on Wednesday, as thousands lined the route of the ambulance conveying his body from Mangaluru to his hometown in Chikkamagaluru district.

Many more — including public figures, corporate bosses, villagers whose lives were touched by the entrepreneur and his enterprise, coffee planters, and CCD employees —gathered at his ancestral residence, Chethanahally Estate, in Chikkamagaluru, where he was cremated in the evening. Almost everyone had a memorable story to share about Siddharatha.

Chief minister BS Yediyurappa led a long line of politicians who paid their respects to Siddhartha, 59, and offered condolences to his devastated family. Siddhartha, the son-in-law of former Union minister SM Krishna, is survived by his wife Malavika and two sons.

Siddhartha, who had been grappling with a financial crisis, was reported to have jumped off a bridge over Nethravathi River, on the outskirts of Mangaluru, on Monday evening. His driver was the last person who saw him. His body was recovered on Wednesday morning.

His sons Amartya and Eshan lit the funeral pyre at Chethanahally Estate after the last rites were performed according to the traditions of the Vokkaliga community. Amartya, the elder of the two siblings, broke down repeatedly during the rituals.

SM Krishna and his wife, Prema, were also overwhelmed by emotions. Malavika was inconsolable in the final moments. Siddharatha’s mother, Vaasanthi G Hegde, was comforted by relatives. His father, Gangaiah Hegde, is unaware of his death as he is undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Mysuru.

Before being brought to Chethanahalli Estate, the body was kept at the company’s compound in Chikkamgaluru in the afternoon. Nearly 10,000 mourners gathered there, according to one estimate. Buses were arranged for people, who travelled from nearby towns and villages to bid farewell to Siddhartha. Police were deployed in large numbers and emergency services were also placed on standby.

Later, the body was taken inside the ancestral home, where close family members paid their respects.

Earlier in the day, a postmortem was performed at Wenlock Hospital in Mangaluru. After the process, Siddhartha set out on his final journey to the family estate.

Close family members and MLAs Raje Gowda and UT Khader accompanied the ambulance, which left Mangaluru at 10.50am. Around 1pm, they reached Kottigehara, covering a distance of 90km. “Police made necessary arrangements to clear all junctions. There was no roadblocks or rains during the journey,” Khader told TOI.

In Kottigehara, the entry point to Chikkamagaluru, a huge crowd, which included coffee growers and estate workers, waited for the ambulance. They held flowers and banners at almost every junction as a tribute to Siddhartha. Their numbers swelled as the ambulance passed through Banakal, Phalguni and Mudigere junction.

Nearly 5,000 people assembled on both sides of Kadur-Mangaluru Road. Shops and commercial establishments remained close, and students stepped out of their campuses to bid goodbye to Siddhartha. People stood atop buses and compound walls to get a glimpse of their “Anna”.

There were emotional scenes at Amber Valley Residential School, the brainchild of Siddhartha. “He viewed the school as a place to do good things for children and to make them good human beings,” said the institution’s trustee and chairman, Poornima Jairaj. “The school was set up in 2004 and the following year, a vocational centre was set up to train locals in hospitality.”

Many schoolchildren said Siddhartha was their role model.



In Video: People pay last respects to CCD founder VG Siddhartha in Karnataka's Chikkamagaluru