Vadodara: The deadly jaws that come home knocking every monsoon don’t scare Barodians anymore. People have gotten so used to crocodiles that now they post memes of the reptiles on social media . The city’s flooding brought dozens of crocodiles on to roads and many citizens are making light of it.
A video of a woman playing with a young crocodile went viral in the city over the last three days. The 11-second video shows the woman, whose face is unseen, with the young crocodile in her lap, holding its front legs and playing with it like one would with a pet dog. Another popular meme is of Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan carrying a large bound crocodile on his shoulder.
The original scene is from his 1988 film “Ganga Jamuna Saraswati”. Many users shared the photo with the caption ‘Barodians in Monsoons’. “The sight of a crocodile scares people anywhere but not Barodians.
People here have become so used to seeing crocodiles swimming near their homes in the monsoon that now they find humour in it. When I go to rescue crocodiles in Vadodara, I see onlookers standing very close to the reptile. They have no fear now,” said Hemant Vadhwana, a crocodile rescuer.
Another meme titled ‘Crocodile Tourism’ floating on social media has a jolly crocodile image with a ‘special offer’ on a three days and four nights stay in the Sayajigunj, Salatwada, L&T Circle and Ratri Bazaar areas for a crocodile safari, with the offer valid till the flooding lasts. An artificial inte.