Kathi Kappal ( Paper boat with a rudder or navigator to steer the boat )
The name “ Kathi Kappal “ in Tamil must be familiar to all Tamil speaking people , young or old , and particularly children. It is nothing but a paper boat with a rudder or navigator to steer the boat, and put to float in the rainy season and the fun of enjoying it has no limit. I just recalled how I enjoyed making Kathi Kappal and floating in the rainwater ( storm water ) flowing in front of the door steps of our street house in Mylapore, Madras along with my brother and sister in our childhood days. We watch its movement from behind the verandah grill . There will be a number of paper boats with or without “ Kathi – the Rudder” and one after ,in a chain , it will be put to float in the running water . Some capsized boats used to be taken from the queue and put back again to float. Friends living opposite to our house also put theirs in front of their house and watch the fun of sinking few in the water current.
The joy knew no bounds while playing with Kathi Kappal and no one can forget the good old days of childhood memories , when there was no TV , no computers , no i-pads , no i-phones or tablets ( not the medicines , I mean ) and no electronic gadgets to play with.
The thought of writing about Kathi Kappal came to me when the Nilam cyclone hits Madras , now called Chennai, on 31st October 2012 ,and an oil tanker ship “ Pratiba Cauvery “ got stranded near Marina, Nochi kuppam, a place so close to our old Mylapore house. The ship becomes an attraction to Chennai vasi , as many would not have seen a ship , that too a big one , so close to naked eye.
I could recall a similar stranded vessel , a cargo ship “ Stamatis “ near Marina , in November 1966 , when I was 14 , and we all at home paid many visits to see the ship in the beach. It was there for many years and later scrapped by an auction . Still the submerged steel parts are a threat to amateur swimmers near the shore. In 1995 also another vessel got stranded near Ennore beach.
While searching in Google , it is a surprise to me to find a video in Youtube , helping us on how to make a Kathi Kappal . So we never miss our old art ! Thanks to science , technology, electronic media and continued inventions !
Anyone who wish to recall their childhood days but forgot making a Kathi Kappal , can make use of the technology!
I am fortunate to visit once , the premier naval combat vessel of India , INS Vikrant ( now retired like me ! ) and a world’s oldest active ocean going passenger ship ( 96 years now ) for a book fair onboard “ MV Doulos “ , when both touched Chennai in diiferent periods.
It was a great experience but I never sailed in a passenger vessel like “Titanic” !!!
I believe this is not a silly blog !
