As part of my short film "Why Ma?" i went to bird shops at Serengoon North Ave 2. Birds of many shapes, sizes, colours and sounds. It was nice to see so many birds up close. The cages came as big as dog cage sizes to as small as 12inches. Old school bamboo or ratten types to metal square types. It was birds birds everywhere. Squawking, chirping, squeaking and even growling.
I could smell the feathers and taste their fear. It was scary. I could not take photos of the cages or the birds but they were all scared. Mata Putehs, cannaries, love birds and other small birds were kept in cages with up to 20 birds in one cage. They just fluttered around and making sounds that came close to "Get me out of here...please". I felt sad, angred, depressed. Birds portray the epitome of freedom. They soar the skies, see everything. They live a life that many humans dream of; Unadultrated freedom of movement. Now they were in cages. Stuck. Moved only from one cage to another. God bless their souls.
Bird owners i met there were scary. I wonder if all bird owners are like that. Unhelpful, rude and uninterested. Dog and cat owners are fun and will talk about their pets in a friendly manner. I just asked about the types of birds and these people just blew me off. I was shocked. Could it be that just like the birds, they are stuck too? So thus their mean streak?
I guess I am Meera. I want to know why birds are in a cage. Why we are enclosed in the rules of society. Why we are made to live in a cage, believing that it the the world, that it is the whole truth. We are no different that the birds in a cage. Once out of our little cage, we never want to go back in. Some die trying to leave the cage. Some never do. Why Ma? is a story about all of us. All of us still in a cage.
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