An ode to the 'beedi'

(Deccan Chronicle) ... Basheer reclining on his chair beneath his Mangosteen tree and pulling on a beedi while listening to K.L. Saigal’s songs in his gramophone is an iconic visual of Malayalam literature.
It would be well-nigh impossible to imagine these giants lighting up a svelte Marlboro for instance. For them, beedi was the ‘democratic’ alternative.
In films, it was the maestro Satyan who made a fine art of beedi smoking. The way he lit up his beedi with a glare and spat after the first acrid taste of the smoke has never been matched by other smokers on screen.
The beedi went out of fashion in the arena of popular culture in the 80s and 90s when the Leftist accent in Kerala culture gave way to liberalisation. Actor Mammootty tried to create a new style by combining stylish western attire with Ganesh beedi, but it never really caught on. Continued