CHENNAI: On Friday, over 800 artistes gathered at the SMK Vidhyashram in Kodungaiyur to recreate history. The energy was high and the participants, despite the rising temperatures, were ready to set the Guinness World Record. Raaba Media and Events India conducted two events from May 10 to May 12 where the participants performed silambam and other cultural arts one after another continuously for three days. The event came to an end on Sunday at around 6 pm. Participants received certificates and the provisional certificate for the world record was given to the organisers.
Prasanna Ramanujan, founder of Raaba Media and Events India, said, “This event is the result of many sleepless nights, meticulous planning and hard work. We had two record-breaking events — Non-Stop Silambam Solo Marathon Relay and All Solo Talents Festival. The participants performed for 60 hours continuously. This is the third world record event that we have attempted.” Former Justice of Madras High Court K Swami Durai was the chief guest for the inaugural event. The event kickstarted on Friday with a performance by Susmitha, a national-level silambam player.
“I’ve always been interested in silambam and it’s exciting to be part of a world record event,” she said. In the All Solo Talents event children performed a classical dance, instrumental songs, and classical and western musical pieces. On Saturday, participants across the state continued to perform silambam and other art forms.
The much-awaited announcement of the record was made by Vivek Nair, the representative of the Guinness World Record of South India as well as Asia Book of Records, on Sunday evening. “This is the first world record for non-stop silambam marathon done for 54 hours and 11 minutes,” said Prasanna.