The sunny side: Bollywood celebs soak in sounds, sights of nature amid lockdown

Celebs such as Shraddha Kapoor, Adil Hussain, Dia Mirza and Zoya Akhtar have opened up about getting closer to nature during this time of crisis.

The rustling of leaves and the colour burst of spring blooms; the cawing of the crows and the twitter of the birds; the waves lapping the shore, the chirp of the crickets and the star-filled sky... Humans, caught in the fast-paced life of the urban milieu, have had, as poet W.H. Davies put it, “no time to stare”. But the lockdown in the wake of coronavirus, has allowed them to soak in these joys.

Actor Vicky Kaushal soaks in the sun from his balcony. (Photo: Instagram/vickykaushal09)

Actor-producer and nature lover Dia Mirza feels happy to see how many more urban dwellers are now enjoying the sounds and sights of nature. “Be it the variety of birdsong in our neighbourhoods or the cleaner air that gives us the most spectacular visuals of sunrise and sunsets... There’s a silver lining in this dark cloud that the world is experiencing,” she says, adding that this “sensory therapy” is a reminder that we’re all connected and are nothing without nature.

Whether it’s Ashutosh Gowariker talking about waking up to the melody of seven different birds, or Manish Malhotra, Shraddha Kapoor, Shruti Seth, Parineeti Chopra, Arjun Bijlani, Zoya Akhtar, Manav Kaul, Elli AvRam, Juhi Chawla and more, posting pictures and videos of the sky, plants, birds and sea -- celebs are making the most of their ‘me’ time.

Gowariker tells us, “My neighbourhood has become so free from traffic and other community sounds that I wake up to as many as 7 different birds - in addition to the sparrows and crows, there were parrots, nightingales, golden oriole, bulbul and yet another one the name I don’t know of. Squirrels were in abundance, making their tick tick calling sounds.”

Actor Saqib Salim says, “The one thing I’ve noticed is that the sparrows are back. The bird chirping in the morning is therapeutic.”

For filmmaker Anurag Basu, his mornings now begin with the chirping sounds of a bunch of parrots in his balcony. “I bought my current house because it has a great sunset view. But I could never enjoy it. Thanks to the lockdown, my evening coffee has never been better,” he says.

Mesmerised by the number of sparrows she’s been spotting, actor Rakul Preet Singh has also been experiencing the “beauty of silence” at night. “The sound of the crickets is there... and there’s calm. We’ve to realise that we’ve to co-exist, that we’re not a superior race and we shouldn’t behave like one either.”

There’s also Richa Chadha, who was joyous to spot a butterfly outside her 14th floor apartment in Mumbai. “It was beautiful. I love being home and observing everything inside out. While we’re taking precautions, let’s look at other species and how free they feel now that they don’t hear engines and drilling machines. The sky is clearer, the air is cleaner. What if the human race is the virus? Because of its greed?,” she questions.

As for Pankaj Tripathi, he finds a positive impact on pollution levels and cleanliness. “Raat mein taare bahut achhe dikh rahe hain,” he continues, “The more we disconnect from nature, the more problems we’ll have. Ye thoda sa jhatka mila hai to value nature more.”

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