The swarm of locusts attacks in Rajasthan, Punjab, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh have given a reason to worry to the nation which is still fighting a tough battle against COVID-19 aka Coronavirus. It has severely affected the farmers in these five states by destroying their crops.
The majority of the people in the country are not aware of such locost attack, but the Tamilians have an idea about it. Wondering how? Thanks to KV Anand's Kaappaan, starring Suriya and Mohanlal, which had thrown light at locust attack.
How did the idea stuck his mind?
So how did the idea of using locust attack as an integral part of Kaappaan struck his mind? In an interview with The Times of India, KV Anand has said that he experienced locust attack when he was in Madagascar to shoot his Maattrraan in 2012.
The car in which he was travelling was met with locust attack and he waited 30 minutes to get it cleared. His driver was the first person to explain him about it and he gained more knowlege about it by reading books, while his assitants to provided crucial inputs about the swarm attack
The director had initially thought of using fire which destructed the crops of farmers in Kaappaan and later was toying the idea of dangerous fund, but in the end, he opted for locust attack.
"Actually, Bombay had witnessed such attacks from 1903 to 1906. Even less than 30 years ago, there was such an incident in India. As far as I know, there is no history of such attack having happened in Tamil Nadu. These locusts belong to a species of grasshoppers, and come in millions. There are different varieties, too. The ones in Africa are different from those found in Australia and other places. Climatic conditions and other factors decide such attacks," the daily quotes him as saying.
Giving further details about insects, he added, "Just like fish or frogs that appear soon after the rains in a pond that was dry because their eggs remained intact, locust eggs, too, remain dormant for years and hatch when conditions turn favourable. From what I've read, quite strangely, locust is a delicacy in Africa and China. I have heard that the government in Nigeria even encourages the public to eat them!"
