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Egg-citing
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Radhe Shyam Patel rewrites the Guinness Record by cracking 22 eggs in 30 seconds. PRINCE FREDERICK reports
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— Pic. by Vino John
Bet he can do it: Radhe Shyam Patel
EVEN BEFORE Radhe Shyam Patel showed up for his "egg-smashing" effort to get into the Guinness Book Of World Records, I wrote him off. I can only forgive myself for it. For, it was difficult not to join the "I-betcha-he-will-not-do-it" group, when many at the World Of Titan showroom in Anna Nagar, the venue for the performance, sniggered knowingly, "Party romba nervousa irukaru; athanala than veliyila nikuraru" (he is very nervous and for this reason he prefers to stand outside).
All the while that Radhe Shyam was supposedly fidgeting and invoking his guardian angel, judges Fr. John Santhosham, Principal, Don Bosco School, and Dr. Ravi Kumar, oncologist, numbered and measured the diameter of each of the 35 raw chicken eggs that were placed in a bowl. If he crushed 14 eggs in 30 seconds, he would better the previous record held by K. S. Raghavendra, who squashed 13 eggs with the back of his wrist in as many seconds at Sree Rama Vidyalaya School in Bangalore on September 9, 2003. According to the rule book, for an egg to be considered crushed, its diameter after crushing should be less than half its original diameter.
Creating a record
When Radhe Shyam made his appearance, he seemed to be sweating buckets and I found myself repeating what I had been hearing a while earlier - "I betcha he will not do it!" The referee counted down from five in Hindi, and Radhe Shyam went cracking. He would balance an egg on the wrist of his left hand, with the nails and fingers raised upwards, and with the back of the wrist of his right hand, he would smash the egg. When the 30 seconds lapsed, I knew he had sealed the lips of those who went by appearances and doubted his ability. The judges inspected the broken eggs, counted them and announced "Twenty-two!" amidst thunderous applause.
This achievement having wiped out my earlier assessment of Radhe Shyam, I sought to replace it with one that conformed to reality. I learnt that he hails from Raipur and is a post graduate student of history. When he read about Raghavendra's achievement in 2003, he was determined that he would topple it. To see his desire come to fruition, he started practising vigorously.
He almost blew a hole in his father's pocket, breaking 30 eggs every day. Although depending on a modest income that comes from the agricultural produce he sells, the father would not stand in the way of his son's goal. Despite this encouragement at home, Radhe was often forced to pose himself a question - "Why am I doing this?" For, he could not find an organisation or a government body that would consider his claim and try him out. His search led him to Chhatisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Orissa. In vain. Still, he tenaciously clung to his ambition.
Goes to Bangalore
Last year, a curious sequence of events brought Radhe to Bangalore where he met Manoj Chopra, India's Strongest Man, and by dint of his ability to balance a bike on the back of his palm, joined Manoj's Power Team India. Manoj prevailed upon the owner of the Titan showroom to provide the setting for Radhe to fulfil his dream.
In fact, Radhe still thinks his dream remains to be fulfilled. "I know I can smash 30 eggs in 30 seconds. I will do it soon and surpass my own record."
And what do I say now? "I betcha he will do it!
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