Kochi: When Aparna, a Haritha Karma sena worker from Chottanikara realized her husband Sivakumar had become an alcoholic, she thought of an unusual remedy. It wasn't the de-addiction centre or a religious offering. She prodded him to join a gymnasium and even pawned her gold to ensure money never came in the way of his regimen.
Sivakumar joined a gym in June 2023 and started intense workouts in September. He participated in the Mr. Ernakulam competition held in January where he bagged the first prize.
This strengthened his resolve to join in the Mr. Kerala competitions held in Wayanad later that month. He became Mr.
Kerala in the Masters category. In February, he was placed second in the Mr. Kerala Seniors category competition in Kannur.
'' I got into drinking quite early. I did painting jobs and would go drinking with the workers from there. It was difficult to stop.
I give full credit to my wife for bringing me back. She is my support system,'' says Sivakumar. Aparna had watched her husband work out earlier and she thought getting him to focus on something would deviate him from alcohol.
The journey wasn't easy though. Even before our marriage, he had a habit of working out," says Aparna. “But he started to seriously prepare for competitions recently”.
Sivakumar used to go to another gym in the beginning where he was told that he had the potential to participate in competitions but only if he gave up drinking. He couldn’t stop drinking at the time and was kicked out. .
