27-year-old ayurvedic physician from Cochin lives with 122 poisonous snakes for 127 days

Snakes, those scaly, cold-eyed, slithering animals, are usually given a wide berth by human beings wary of their fangs, but in the last few months, some fearless persons have actually been living with hordes of the creatures in glass cages for long periods of time.

Last month, Dr Tom Nambi, a 27-year-old ayurvedic physician from Cochin, came out of just such a cage with elation written all over his face. He had lived for 127 days - from October 12, 1980 to February 15, 1981 - with 122 poisonous reptiles in a transparent chamber measuring 18 feet by 18 feet. With this extraordinary feat, Nambi staked a claim to a mention in the Guinness Book of Records.

He is the latest in a line of snakeyagna enthusiasts who have been doing their thing all over south India for quite some time now. It all started with a provocative Guinness Book of Records entry for 1979, which said that Leigh Vandenberg, 18, had spent 65 days with 65 live poisonous snakes in a cage in Durban, South Africa, and had emerged from the ordeal alive.

Velayudhan, an employee of the Kerala State Electricity Board, backed by a Calicut businessman, Ram Mohan, entered a glass cage and proclaimed that he would live with the 65 snakes inside for 66 days and beat the world record. However, he would give himself a half-hour respite from the reptiles every day.

Big Success: He drew huge crowds from all over Kerala, who waited in serpentine queues for a glimpse of the daredevil. The show was dubbed "the greatest on earth" by the press and, to add to the publicity gimmicks, Velayudhan was bitten by a black cobra and admitted to hospital. When discharged he bravely insisted on entering the cage again. The promoters permitted him to do so, but prudently made it clear that he alone was responsible for his life. A few more days, and Velayudhan was bitten again, and his show folded up without even completing 50 days.

While it had lasted, it had been a lucrative success and the cash registers never stopped ringing. Like snakes drawn to the snake-charmer's flute the sound attracted other adventurers, and all over south India people started entering glass cages filled with battalions of reptiles. Sivakasi, in Tamil Nadu, witnessed Vetrivendan, a hypnotist and magician, spending a month in cosy togetherness with 167 snakes.