The eight-hour travel from Chennai to Madurai in a rickety bus is not a hassle for 69-year-old S. Sundarambal.
“I love jallikattu and will go out of my way to be present here every year,” she says.
For Sundarambal, an enthusiastic viewer of the sport, who was present at Alanganallur on Tuesday, it is compulsory to visit the sporting arenas around Madurai during the harvest season.
“This is what my Pongal looks like each year,” she beams.
She quickly perches herself on the makeshift media gallery and refuses to leave despite coercion.
She is one of the several hundred spectators who travel to watch the sport each year.
According to a source associated with the tourism industry, several tourists both from India and abroad book tickets every year as they enjoy the thrill the sport has to offer. They patiently watch each bull waltzing through the entrance and intimidating the wannabe-tamers.
“As more such tourists arrive, the economy in villages and cities nearby boosts up,” he says.
Having participated in the pro-jallikattu protests in Chennai in 2016, Sundarambal says that she understands why she is attached to the sport.
What the bull teaches
According to her, jallikattu calls for world peace though it involves risking one’s life. “The bull teaches us patience and anger-- opposing but real emotions. I could not visit Palamedu and Alanganallur when the ban was imposed in 2014 and 2015. I will ensure that I will come here everyday till I die,” she says.
