One doesn’t have to read comic and inspirational books or watch movies to get inspired by heroes as there are plenty of them in our daily life. One such – Alag Natarajan, fondly called as the “Matka Man” — was brought to limelight by industrialist Anand Mahindra in his post on Twitter.
Appreciating the good work which Natarajan is doing, Mahindra wrote that he provides drinking water to lakhs of Delhi’s citizens. This resident of Panchsheel Park drives around his SUV daily, not for a joy ride but filling up clay pots or matkas – nearly 80 of them — placed all round South Delhi, with clean drinking water so that people can quench their thirst with cool water free of charge.
A Superhero that’s more powerful than the entire Marvel stable. MatkaMan. Apparently he was an entrepreneur in England & a cancer conqueror who returned to India to quietly serve the poor. Thank you Sir, for honouring the Bolero by making it a part of your noble work. 🙏🏽 pic.twitter.com/jXVKo048by
— anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) October 24, 2021
Sharing details on his website, Natarajan said: "A matka is an Indian clay pot traditionally used to store and keep water cold. I am using matkas to provide drinking water to poor people."
The website mentions that Natarajan who grew up in Bengaluru worked for nearly 40 years in the United Kingdom and fought cancer, before finally returning to the Capital. It was in 2014, that the searing heat of the city made him realise the need for drinking water especially by the poor and thus was born the idea of providing water in matkas.
He started this initiative in a small way as he placed an earthen pot outside his home and from then graduated to quenching the thirst of thousands in the city earning the nickname “Matka Man”.
Mahindra in his tweet along with a video wrote: “A Superhero that’s more powerful than the entire Marvel stable. MatkaMan. Apparently he was an entrepreneur in England & a cancer conqueror who returned to India to quietly serve the poor. Thank you Sir, for honouring the Bolero by making it a part of your noble work.”
Later, Natarajan turned his attention to several other social activities like preparing nutritious salad and feeding construction workers and labourers, security guards and drivers. He visits almost six sites like this in a day and feeds nearly 150 people.
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Besides, he has provided 100 cycle pumps in the neighbourhood to enable cyclists to fill air while also distributing glow stickers for safety and nozzles for their wheels.
Exhibiting his artistic side, Natarajan has tastefully the two vehicles he uses for ferrying water and salad. “I have engineered both my vans as a spectacle. I want to draw attention to my project and I enjoy the artistry of the work,” he writes on the website.
