Favourite Character in Village by the Sea

So..... The title says it all. Its what I want to discuss today. Hmmm.... For every book that I have read, I always have a definite favourite character, but I encountered a kind of dilemma after reading this book. Who to "vote" to be my favourite character? After much consideration, I shortlisted these 2 people.
Mr Panwallah~ He is caring and generous and is the first friend that Hari made when he first went to Bombay(Jagu doesn't count, Hari takes Jagu as his employer and not really a friend, watchman at Seabird also applies). He is the very character who voices out the need for change, an important theme in the book.
Mr de Silva~One of the main benefactors in the story, he helps Hari's family out of their situation indirectly by enabling them a salary every time he comes to Thul.
Who would I choose?
Well, actually, my opinion was that it was mainly Hari's salary in Bombay that helped the family out of their miserable situation. However, I thought Mr de Silva would also make it as my favourite character as Hari's mother was cured and would not prove as a burden for the family.
But, in the end, I finally came up with a decision. Hari could always go back to Bombay to work under Mr Panwallah(his wages are higher than with Jagu) and eventually come up with the money to cure his mother. Mr de Silva coming along to help Hari's mother get medecine was just a coincidence that their family could do without.
Verdict:
Mr Panwallah is my favourite character as he helped the family the most by helping Hari to earn money and support the family. Most importantly, he taught Hari that change was neccesary in any kind of community and also taught him to work independently. Hari could then make money in his village by selling chickens and more money when the working colony for the factories came and he could put his watchmending skills to good use.