Students gathered in their thousands at the Marina Beach against Jallikattu ban

The students had gathered in their thousands at the Marina Beach. Some ideologically motivated activists knew all the nuances of the jallikattu issue as well as how to organize protests. A few college-level leaders had a good grasp of the details. Most were aware of only the basics – and Facebook posts, WhatsApp messages and propaganda videos were their sources of information.

For them, joining the protest was a way of expressing solidarity with the protest.They were driven by a sense that Tamil pride was at stake and there had to be a show of strength so Delhi would sit up and take notice.