Camera mechanic C Sekar loves birds. Well, many of us do! But would you go to the extent of preparing meals for over 4,000 birds daily and feeding them on your terrace. Sekar does this relentlessly for more than a decade now. The 63-year-old spends around five hours every day to feed these parakeets on the terrace of his house in the Royapettah area and has little time left for camera repair work. Yet he wouldn’t have it any other way.
(Image Source planetcustodian.com)
Wearing a cap (to avoid bird poop) on his head, he is seen feeding the birds every day and passers-by swear that it is a spectacle to witness. The camera technician started feeding the parakeets unexpectedly in the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami. As an aftermath to the natural calamity, many villages were washed away and there was so much devastation around. There was food shortage for everyone, humans, animals and birds. During that time, he found two parakeets sitting on his terrace extremely tired and thirsty. He fed them that day. When he continued feeding them every day, the parakeets returned, but with more of their tribe. Since then it has been a daily ritual for the camera technician.
C Sekar (image source : planetcustodian.com)
But Sekar complained that people just gather around and even tend to harm the parakeets when he is feeding them and he really feels angry when crowds start accumulating around his house and many of them ask if this is a hobby or that how much does he spend on feeding the birds.
But he discloses that he spends around Rs 1,000 for 30 kilos of rice just for his little green friends each day and spends close to 40 percent of his income on feeding them. If he earns well on a particular day, the birds are treated with guava or American corn.
Sekar and his wonderful story is also now a short documentary as well. Check out the video
