For each performance, Iqbal makes roughly 5 pounds and despite knowing the perils, he continues performing it for a living.
A Pakistani snake charmer is wowing crowds by putting live snakes through his nose and taking them out from his mouth. Iqbal Jogi, 30, performs the bizarre act for students in schools and curious crowds at weddings.
The father of eight children - five daughters and three sons - from a village outside Karachi in Pakistan has been performing the tricky act for the past 12 years. Dressed in traditional, bright attire, he travels carrying his scaly friends in wicker baskets.
The snake swallower takes out the slippery reptile - which measure up to two-feet long - and pushes it through his nose before letting it slither out of his mouth alive.
For each performance, Iqbal makes roughly 5 pounds and despite knowing the perils, he continues performing it for a living. He said: "I hail from the community of snake charmers. Though it is not something everyone can do, I feel blessed to have excelled in it. I am proud of my talent. Of course I know it involves huge risk but I feel good when people anxiously wait to see if the snake would come out and scream in excitement when they see both the snake and me alive."
But it has not always been smooth sailing for Iqbal who had many close calls while performing with his wriggly friends. A few years ago, while performing the act for his young spectators at a college, a serpent had bitten him in the mouth. But luckily, he survived after three days of unconsciousness.
He says: "It was about to come out when the venomous snake bit me. Within seconds I lost consciousness and was battling for life for three days. I was given a new lease of life by my teacher who cured me with his mantras and prayers."
But incredibly the close call has not deterred the snake charmer from performing his potentially deadly act. "I understand it can kill me but the only way I can earn a living is by showing this act. I pray before every performance that the snake doesn't kill me and I stay alive so I can perform the next day," adds Iqbal who wants to get national recognition for his talent.
The father of eight children - five daughters and three sons - from a village outside Karachi in Pakistan has been performing the tricky act for the past 12 years. Dressed in traditional, bright attire, he travels carrying his scaly friends in wicker baskets.
The snake swallower takes out the slippery reptile - which measure up to two-feet long - and pushes it through his nose before letting it slither out of his mouth alive.
For each performance, Iqbal makes roughly 5 pounds and despite knowing the perils, he continues performing it for a living. He said: "I hail from the community of snake charmers. Though it is not something everyone can do, I feel blessed to have excelled in it. I am proud of my talent. Of course I know it involves huge risk but I feel good when people anxiously wait to see if the snake would come out and scream in excitement when they see both the snake and me alive."
But it has not always been smooth sailing for Iqbal who had many close calls while performing with his wriggly friends. A few years ago, while performing the act for his young spectators at a college, a serpent had bitten him in the mouth. But luckily, he survived after three days of unconsciousness.
He says: "It was about to come out when the venomous snake bit me. Within seconds I lost consciousness and was battling for life for three days. I was given a new lease of life by my teacher who cured me with his mantras and prayers."
But incredibly the close call has not deterred the snake charmer from performing his potentially deadly act. "I understand it can kill me but the only way I can earn a living is by showing this act. I pray before every performance that the snake doesn't kill me and I stay alive so I can perform the next day," adds Iqbal who wants to get national recognition for his talent.
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