How an excessive amount of professionalism made Kerala’s famed snake boat races a pricey affair

Alappuzha, Sep 26: Those have been the times! Like a talented oarsman slicing his approach by way of the famed waters of Kerala’s Punnamada Lake, Joji Philip slides effusively right into a rewind of the interval main as much as the Nehru Trophy Boat Race (NTBR).

“In my youth, meeting the oarsmen of chundan vallams (snake boats) was the high point of the weeks preceding the race. The entire kara (village) would deck up to welcome the rowers. There was no system of daily allowance for participants then. But a sumptuous non-vegetarian lunch would be prepared in their honour every day,” reminisces Philip (42), who hails from Pulinkunnu village in Alappuzha district.

A a lot sought-after vacation spot on Kerala’s tourism map, Alappuzha hosts the Nehru Trophy Boat Race on the second Saturday of August yearly. The regatta was not held for 2 years as a consequence of Covid-19 restrictions. It resumed this 12 months, albeit on September 4.

Twenty snake boats participated within the 68th version, with Mahadevikadu Kattil Thekkethil Chundan rowed by Pallathuruthy Boat Club profitable the coveted trophy and a money prize of Rs 9 lakhs.

The NTBR is the primary race of the Champions Boat League (CBL), a Kerala Tourism enterprise modelled after the Indian Premier League to showcase the wealthy custom of the land. In its second version since 2019, the CBL’s subsequent 11 rounds are on consecutive Saturdays beginning September 17.

Besides Alappuzha, waterbodies in Ernakulam, Thrissur, Kottayam and Kollam districts will host the CBL-2, which concludes with the President’s Trophy Boat Race within the picturesque Ashtamudi Lake in Kollam on November 26.

The CBL revolutionised the way in which races are organised, with prize cash taking pictures as much as above Rs 1 crore and Star Sports turning into the official broadcast associate. Nine groups with preppy names (for instance, Pallathuruthy Boat Club is Tropical Titans within the CBL) will combat it out to turn out to be the pace king of the backwaters.

Kara spirit takes a again seat

“Till the mid-1990s, the NTBR participants voluntarily came forward to practice, after winding up their day’s work by noon. They never expected anything in return. They only wished their kara should stay ahead in the race. That changed with the introduction of the daily allowance system,” observes Antony Arilchira, a researcher on regional boat races, hailing from Champakulam village in Alappuzha district.

The gamers shortly learnt to interrupt the emotional bond with their respective villages, preferring golf equipment that have been keen to pay extra and provide higher coaching.

“Too much professionalism dismantled the traditional spirit of the game. Unlike earlier days, boat clubs mostly hire players from other villages, districts or sports forums as physical fitness plays an integral role,” says Valentine Antony, a race fanatic from Champakulam. On sure events, even kayaking and water sports activities gamers from different states made it to the NTBR!

“Money power ultimately decides a team’s strength. The recent victories registered by a few clubs establish this theory,” suggests Valentine, who has by no means missed an NTBR occasion within the final 60 years. He endorses the hearsay that at the very least 10 chundan vallams spent over Rs 70 lakh every to arrange for this 12 months’s race.

The inevitable change was all of the extra seen from 2008, when Jesus Boat Club Kollam organised coaching camps lasting for round 40 days. Rowers obtained every day allowances, however have been barred from exiting the camps. The consequence was astonishing. They grew to become the champions of their first outing, and repeated the magic subsequent 12 months too. The stunning reality of a brand new entrant lifting the trophy was an eye-opener for different golf equipment, which didn’t suppose twice to undertake the technique.

“The intention was to make the competition more aggressive with a professional approach and to take the team to the next level,” says Arilchira. However, this pattern considerably escalated the budgets of native boat golf equipment, with coaching lasting for greater than a month these days.

“Training camps, professional coaches from other states and dieticians, all sound good. But we still cherish olden memories,” Joji Philip turns nostalgic.

“In those days, the regatta helped build a strong bond between the villagers from different backgrounds. By the end of a month, almost all families would have treated the team to a feast. Sometimes, families jointly hosted it. The responsibility kept rotating,” Philip remembers.

Ben Boban Velloor, a ship race fanatic from Kainakary, shares a distinct view. “People of all faiths stay, train and pray together for a common goal and it teaches them that unity is the biggest strength. That aspect of the race has not changed.”

However, there isn’t any denial that one thing actually cheap in yesteryears has remodeled right into a cash guzzler, to such an extent that the CBL’s prize cash will not be ample to fulfill the bills of premier golf equipment on this race season.

Big cash, massive aspirations

Over the years, fundraising has turn out to be essentially the most distinguished side of all boat golf equipment. Participation within the NTBR incurs a price ranging anyplace between Rs 60 lakh and Rs 1 crore for a reputed membership. In most circumstances, sponsors won’t get again even 10% of their funding, however they nonetheless pump in cash in step with the spirit of the sport.

“This year, we raised around Rs 70 lakh for the NTBR. For 35 days, we paid Rs 1,000 for freshers and Rs 1,500 for experienced rowers. We also had to pay support staff and a medical team. Other main expenses included purchase of 200 fresh oars, nutritious food for the team thrice a day, and regular boat maintenance charges. This time, we had over 90 rowers and around 30 support staff. Just calculate how much manpower we deployed in a single day of training,” says Vakkachan Theverkkat, who led the celebrated United Boat Club Kainakary for a few years.

“The Nehru Trophy regatta is probably the most expensive rural sports event in the country. I still remember the reaction of a foreign tourist when told about the expenses involved. He was so inspired that he voluntarily came forward to bear the cost of a day’s training,” shares Subhash Abraham Parambil, a tour operator in Alappuzha.

Non-resident Indians (NRIs) are the most important donors of most boat golf equipment. They yearn to nurture a robust bond with their native villages, and therefore lavish cash on their favorite golf equipment or boats. Local fundraising from the general public, neighborhood leaders and businesspersons occurs yearly. A earlier win or a spot within the last 4 immensely will increase the fund-raising capability of the golf equipment.

For Champakulam Boat Club, an energetic participant within the NTBR, issues are properly outlined. They elevate funds by way of the Champakulam Chundan Welfare Association (CCWA), a registered organisation that will get most of its contributions from the NRIs within the US and UK. “UST Global, a multinational technology firm, is our main sponsor,” says CCWA president Vipin Bharathan, who provides that they might seize solely the fourth spot regardless of associating with the rowers of the Kerala Police Boat Club.

An impressive custom

Normally, a chundan vallam is 47.5 to 50.5 koles (one kole is equal to 24 inches) in size and accommodates round 100 to 115 folks. There shall be 70-91 thuzhachilukar (rowers), 5 pankayakkar (rowers with giant oars to manage route) on the rear finish and 10 to 12 nilakkar (folks singers).

The workforce captain performs a key position in each side of the sport. Training begins at 6.30 am and ends with trials at sundown. Alcohol and different addictive medicine are prohibited. Before the every day trials, rowers provide prayers at temples and church buildings. “They follow many age-old rituals practised by their ancestors. This is evident right from the launch of chundan vallams for training to the day of competition.” Vakkachan explains.

“Probably, this is the only sporting event in the world where you can see over 400 players compete at once in a km-long track. This is purely a game of ear-hand coordination. Oarsmen are tuned into the claps, bangs, and folklores of nilakkar as it carries some instructions to change the pattern of performance at certain junctures,” Subhash explains.

Though chundan vallams are stars of the NTBR, competitions of smaller boats comparable to veppu vallams, iruttukuthy vallams, odi vallams and firm vallams entice enormous crowds and participation regionally as they contain fewer apply periods and trials. They make the competitors extra significant.

(The writer is a contract journalist and a member of 101Reporters, a pan-India community of grassroots reporters.)

How an excessive amount of professionalism made Kerala’s famed snake boat races a pricey affair IANS 26 September 2022 Post Your Comments Shared Recently! Super hurricane Noru slams Philippines, kills 5
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