CHENNAI: Tribal communities in villages along the Thar desert, Rajasthan, consider water to be purer than mother’s milk. This is one of the reasons why droplets of water are given to a newborn even before milk is fed. People from these villages have a name for each of the 40 clouds that pass by them every year,” says Sivaraj of the volunteer-run Cuckoo movement for Children. “They know the clouds’ distinct characteristics — including how much rain each of them will yield, and how long they will stay on for,” he adds.
Cuckoo Movement was started by a group of friends in 2004. The team mainly works with children from rural Tamil Nadu, who lack opportunities. They introduce them to nature, good books, photography, folk arts, martial arts, tell them stories and also engage them in discussions on socio-political and environmental issues.
A tale of forgiveness
Their upcoming project is titled ‘Thanneerin Mannippu’ (Water’s Forgiveness). It will have a series of photo and art exhibitions, film screenings, plays, and walks along water bodies, for children across Tamil Nadu’s schools and villages, for 45 days. The journey began on July 1.
“The problem we’re trying to address is beyond Chennai’s water crisis and drought. We’re inspired by author Anupam Mishra’s compilation of water problems in his books after travelling around the country. We don’t want to look at water as a political problem but spread awareness among children on its origin, properties, importance and how it needs to be respected,” he says.
Among the highlights of the event, is an exchange of letters and artwork between children in Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan. “At the end of the event, we will send a selection of letters from participating cities to three villages in Rajasthan — Asutaar, Gharisar, and Amar Sagar — as a token of their understanding and respect of the latter’s philosophy on water,” says Sivaraj.
Volunteer driven
A team of 16 volunteers, comprising storytellers, artists and photographers are involved in putting together this mammoth event that is travelling from different cities in Tamil Nadu including Thiruvannamalai, Peramballur, Coimbatore, Madurai, and Nagapattinam.“Beyond language being a barrier, the crux of Cuckoo Movement’s works reaches larger population just by their actions.
This is the third year of our collaboration. The students’ works will be displayed in a two-day exhibition at the Madras Literary Society library. Considering the water problems our city is facing, this initiative will be impactful,” says Thirupurasundari Sevvel, secretary of MLS. The exhibition will be held at MLS on July 19 and 20. The performances will be held on July 20 from 3 pm onwards.
