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A talking point
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A determined youth seeks to enter the Guinness Book
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TALKATHON MAN Arun Pradheep Pandiyan PHOTO:K. ANANTHAN
Each person reacts differently to adversity. Anyone else suspended from college for a mistake he did not commit would have probably turned into a frustrated youth, angry at the whole world.
Arun Pradheep Pandiyan did just the opposite. Even after he proved his innocence, he bid his time for that one opportunity to prove his mettle — an entry in the Guinness Book of World Records.
Before he joined college, he stuttered a lot and even suffered fits. Then, he discovered the art of public speaking and made a mark as someone who could hold his own on stage.
What better than Tamil literature to fuel his dream to enter the Guinness in the `longest lecture marathon' category. He wanted to beat the previous record set by Narayanam Siva Sankar of Eluru, Andhra Pradesh who spoke to a `captive' audience for 72 hours 9 minutes on `Fundamentals of Hindi Grammar'.
Since his audience would primarily constitute school and college students, Pandiyan chose to speak about the Thirukkural, Tholkaappiyam, Aganaanooru and Puranaanooru. Starting off at 10 p.m. on December 30, 2005, he spoke till 5.17 p.m. on January 3, 2006, ringing in the New Year with a short greeting to his audience before continuing with his marathon. The first night was the longest for Pandiyan, who craved sleep. But soon he learnt to manage, drinking a cup of tea during the 15-minute break he was allowed every eight hours. Midway through the attempt, he learnt that someone else had tried talking non-stop for 88 hours.
So, he upped his target and soldiered on despite a searing throat, a cracked voice and a blood clot in the leg. He stopped once he had reached 91 hours and 17 minutes.
How responsive were the students to this attempt? "Very. I chose topics that were relevant to them. Like how body language and the art of appearing for an interview was dealt with in the Tholkaappiyam. In the night time, I spoke in a light-hearted vein, linking what our ancestors had said to present-day situations," says Pandiyan in a raspy voice, a hangover from the attempt. He is now waiting to send details of his attempt with his claim identification number to Guinness authorities.
SUBHA J RAO
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