Waiting for a break
| It's daredevilry with a difference. Meet G.Selvakumar who campaigns against social evils in his shows... . |
HE IS a well-built youth in his early thirties. Might weigh some where between 70 kg and 80 kg with a proportionate height. Anything special about this? Of course, for he has achieved a feat. He rolled a 7.5 tonne bus on his hands.
"All you need is an able body and sound mind to create such feats", was the reply from G.Selvakumar, a 33-year-old, an unemployed graduate and a native of Madurai.
Mr. Selvakumar, a student of Shihaan Hussaini and a 5th dan black belt holder, is the chief karate instructor in the Madurai Central Jail. He has been giving training for jail officials and other personnel for the past four years.
The karateka says, "doing risky feats of this sort is not new to me. The maiden test to the strength of my hands was from the two wheelers, then my power was challenged by a Maruti van and now it is a bus, a six-wheeler".
It is not just the indomitable will in him that he was able to do such adventures, but his chest is also equally strong. "I am sturdy externally too. I broke 101 bricks, placed on the fingers of one of my hands, with another hand in 25 minutes and it is a testimony to my physical power. With no time given to recuperate myself, 30 rock boulders, weighing 8 kg each, were placed on my chest and were hammered into pieces in just 20 minutes. But all these were done one after the other. All these took place in 1995.
Later in 2000, a rejuvenated Selvakumar attempted a world record by rolling 102 cars on him continuously in a time of 40 minutes in the presence of the then Collector Thangavelu, the then DIG Jangidd, and the MP Mohan. This, he feels, is a turning point in his career.
Another interesting feature of his daredevilry shows is that he has a habit of launching a campaign against social evils and cautioning people against the bad effects caused by them.
This month, he was again in the news for rolling a 7.5 tonne bus on his hand.
But, what could be termed as his lifetime ambition is the next adventure he is planning to do. It is breaking of 1070 rocks in a span of 13 hours. "Probably, I may go ahead with my new attempt in April next and want to do it in the presence of the Chief Minister", he says, adding, "I am also working hard to get sponsors, as it had been a problem always for me".
Mr. Selvakumar claims, "if I am able to do it successfully then it will be one of rarest feats in the entire history of the art of karate".
He has also received many medals from several VIPs, including the former Chief Minister, O.Panneer Selvam.
"Though I have received enough honours for my acts, I am not financially comfortable. In fact, my entire family is languishing in poverty. None of us in our family has a regular income and ekes out a living only through some temporary employment", he says.
"This is also one of the reasons for my being particular about staging my next record in the presence of the Chief Minister, so that I may get some help from the Government", hopes this bachelor karateka, who has dedicated his life to this branch of martial arts.
"But, anyhow, I am firm in continuing this journey in creating newer and newer records in the years to come" was the parting shot of Selvakumar, who is also the chief instructor and chief examiner of the South Zone All India Exerkai Isshinryu Karate Association.
To know more about Selvakumar, write to The All India Exerkai Isshinryu Karate Association, No.2, T.B. Road, Singarapuram, Madurai - 10.
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