When Srivilliputhur wakes up to the sounds of the Thiruppavai from its many temples, the frail S Raman, 65, walks from his house on West Car Street to the Andal Temple. He spends at least two hours in the the temple garden in the southern prakaram, picking flowers and leaves. “She holds it in her left hand for almost the same duration it takes to make it,” says Raman, who’s the lone parrot maker of the town in Virudhunagar district of Tamil Nadu. “It is by God’s grace that I have been making this offering for 26 years, uninterrupted,” he says. “Not everyone gets such an opportunity,” he says, swelling with pride.

Source: The Hindu May 07, 2019 15:08 UTC