Actor donates money, cattle to jallikattu victim’s kin

MADURAI: In a kind gesture, a Tamil film actor, donated Rs 1 lakh to the family of S Kalimuthu, 19, who was gored to death during the Palamedu jallikattu.
The actor, Abi Saravanan opened a bank account in their name and deposited the money in a fixed deposit. He then handed over the passbook to the victim’s family by visiting the village near Sanarpatti in Dindigul district.
Saravanan, who hails from Madurai also donated a dairy cattle along with a calf to the poor family. He took some of the known bull-tamers like Mudakathan Mani along with him during his visit. Saravanan has acted in lead roles in films like Kerala Nattilam Pengaludane and Touring Talkies.
Kalimuthu was killed when a raging bull, gored him at the collection point in Palamedu, where the jallikattu event took place on January 15. The bull had escaped from the owners and others tried to catch it at the collection point, located at a few hundred metres away from the ‘vaadivasal’. He was working in a spinning mill and was the sole breadwinner of the family comprising his mother and younger sister. He had gone to the event along with his friends as a spectator.
Saravanan said that he was one among the lakhs of youngsters who took part in the protests for the conduct of jallikattu last year. Expressing sadness at the untimely demise of the youth, Saravanan said that he has sought help from others through social media and the donation would be sent to the family members. He is also planning to give the family a monthly assistance.