On the wings of friendship
ROHINI RAMAKRISHNAN
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An art camp conducted at Koothankulam proved that for the kids there, the birds were their best friends.
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Totally engrossed: Painting what they see.
Lone birds, flocks of them, roosting, nesting — were painted in vibrant and sombre colours. “They are our friends and they trust us implicitly,” said a little boy to the team from the Government College of Fine Arts, Chennai, who had come to their village, Koothankulam. The team came to conduct an art camp at the bird sanctuary situated there. Students from Stds. IV to XII, from the six villages nearby attended. Their personal encounter and experiences of
the birds helped them to paint spontaneously and give realistic details.
Protecting their friends
About 40 km from Tirunelveli, the bird sanctuary has been host to many birds from ancient times. They flock here as the water bodies are enriched and teeming with food and the sea is not too far away either. During the season, around two to three lakh birds flock to Koothankulam as they have been doing so for the past few centuries. And the villagers welcome them as they would their own kin.
To protect their feathered friends the villagers ensure that there is no noise pollution. For example during funerals or weddings, the customary drums are not beaten and fireworks during Deepavali are taboo. Even loudspeakers are banned in the surrounding villages. The offensive smell of the bird dropping is tolerated. Due to this “give and take” of trust, the birds, largely consisting of painted storks, pelicans and spoonbills, walk freely on the road, visit homes and teashops with confidence that no harm would come to them. The villagers are protective of their friends and are aware of the “lifestyle” of the birds and especially of their movements. When a member of the art team, asked a little boy in jest to get him a bird’s egg, he was duly chastised.
Paul Pandian, a well known bird watcher, who lives there, has a “Home” for the fledglings which fall out of their nests and are not accepted by the mother bird. They are under his wings till they are able “to stand on their own feet” and fly away to make their lives.
This pocket of serenity, of living together, does give hope that the world of nature and humans can coexist in peace and harmony.
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