I was fascinated by the boat races (Vallam Kali- in the local language) of Kerala since childhood. This unique legacy of Kerala, today stands as the unparalleled attraction of God’s own country. This water sport draws a large number of domestic and international tourists every year.
The boats of Kerala are named after their shapes, sizes and purpose. The most popular one is Chundan Vallam( Snake Boat) which has the record of the biggest water vessel used for sports. The long stem of the boat with the rear end similar to that of the hood of a snake confers the name snake boat. The front end is tapering and is highly elevated above the water level. These boats, made of a very strong wood, called ‘Anjily’( a wild jack fruit species ) and require years of apprenticeship to master the art of making one.. It has a length of about 60-65 meters and a capacity to carry over a hundred to hundred and ten people during a race. The stern is majestically caparisoned and decorated with a flag and brass ornaments. Silken parasols are arrayed along the entire length of the boat. These boats were the traditional battle vessels of Kerala. Now that kings and kingdoms are gone, these boats are used for races, the most important being the Nehru Trophy, held on the 2nd Saturday of August every year.
It is such a fabulous show to see these boats racing through the lakes of Kerala. Huge crowds gather at the water’s edge to cheer the huge black crafts as they slide through the waters to a spectacular finish
During race there are almost 95 oarsman, 5 Amarakkar (Controllers) and 10 'Nilakkar' (persons supposed to enhance the vigour and enthusiasm of the participating oarsman) who row in unison to the fast rhythm of vanchipattu (song of boatsmen).
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What I want to highlight is the connection between these ancient races and modern theories of management. These boat races are unique not only for the shape of the boats but also for the fact that, this is probably the only sport in which the entire community is involved. Just as a modern business is not about the day’s trade, the preparations for the race begin several weeks in advance. The top management draws the strategies and policies for the year, middle level goes to fine tuning them and lower level gets to implementing them. In these races, strategies are simple but very demanding. The snake boats have to be smeared with sardine oil for a smooth passage through the water, the best oarsmen have to be selected and finally the practice session begins under the supervision of the senior most oarsmen. Around 100 oarsmen, who would represent the village, take the vow to observe strict abstinence and celibacy till the oars are handed over to each of them. Feeding the oarsmen during the practice sessions and on the day of the festival is done by the villagers themselves or by the rich and wealthy who foot the entire expenses incurred.
Like the different levels of management to guide them to reach their targets, the oarsmen, on an average, have 10 'Nilakkar' who sing the fast paced “vanchi paatu” to maintain the coordination of these oarsmen and increase the speed as they almost zip through the 1400 m track. The three leaders two at two ends and one in the middle lower a stick or their hands to a beat the rowers follow. This beat is also picked by the two drummers from the Nilakkars whose main job is to ensure that all the rowers follow the same beat. These oarsmen are from different castes and are from different age groups. The ‘Amarakkar’ control these youth and channelize their collective energies to win the race. Even at the height of the caste system, the peculiar feature of these regattas was that the caste Hindus, Scheduled Castes, Christians and Muslims all sat in the same row for the feast symbolising the communal amity in Kuttanad. In fact, the Church has a traditional role in the celebrations at Champakkulam even though the water festival there is associated with a temple legend.
To sum it up, there is an old proverb in Malayalam, transliterated as, “The jasmine in one’s own backyard has no smell”. May be Mr. Prahalad could use this example in his next book. What say, Sir?
The boats of Kerala are named after their shapes, sizes and purpose. The most popular one is Chundan Vallam( Snake Boat) which has the record of the biggest water vessel used for sports. The long stem of the boat with the rear end similar to that of the hood of a snake confers the name snake boat. The front end is tapering and is highly elevated above the water level. These boats, made of a very strong wood, called ‘Anjily’( a wild jack fruit species ) and require years of apprenticeship to master the art of making one.. It has a length of about 60-65 meters and a capacity to carry over a hundred to hundred and ten people during a race. The stern is majestically caparisoned and decorated with a flag and brass ornaments. Silken parasols are arrayed along the entire length of the boat. These boats were the traditional battle vessels of Kerala. Now that kings and kingdoms are gone, these boats are used for races, the most important being the Nehru Trophy, held on the 2nd Saturday of August every year.
It is such a fabulous show to see these boats racing through the lakes of Kerala. Huge crowds gather at the water’s edge to cheer the huge black crafts as they slide through the waters to a spectacular finish
During race there are almost 95 oarsman, 5 Amarakkar (Controllers) and 10 'Nilakkar' (persons supposed to enhance the vigour and enthusiasm of the participating oarsman) who row in unison to the fast rhythm of vanchipattu (song of boatsmen).
.
What I want to highlight is the connection between these ancient races and modern theories of management. These boat races are unique not only for the shape of the boats but also for the fact that, this is probably the only sport in which the entire community is involved. Just as a modern business is not about the day’s trade, the preparations for the race begin several weeks in advance. The top management draws the strategies and policies for the year, middle level goes to fine tuning them and lower level gets to implementing them. In these races, strategies are simple but very demanding. The snake boats have to be smeared with sardine oil for a smooth passage through the water, the best oarsmen have to be selected and finally the practice session begins under the supervision of the senior most oarsmen. Around 100 oarsmen, who would represent the village, take the vow to observe strict abstinence and celibacy till the oars are handed over to each of them. Feeding the oarsmen during the practice sessions and on the day of the festival is done by the villagers themselves or by the rich and wealthy who foot the entire expenses incurred.
Like the different levels of management to guide them to reach their targets, the oarsmen, on an average, have 10 'Nilakkar' who sing the fast paced “vanchi paatu” to maintain the coordination of these oarsmen and increase the speed as they almost zip through the 1400 m track. The three leaders two at two ends and one in the middle lower a stick or their hands to a beat the rowers follow. This beat is also picked by the two drummers from the Nilakkars whose main job is to ensure that all the rowers follow the same beat. These oarsmen are from different castes and are from different age groups. The ‘Amarakkar’ control these youth and channelize their collective energies to win the race. Even at the height of the caste system, the peculiar feature of these regattas was that the caste Hindus, Scheduled Castes, Christians and Muslims all sat in the same row for the feast symbolising the communal amity in Kuttanad. In fact, the Church has a traditional role in the celebrations at Champakkulam even though the water festival there is associated with a temple legend.
To sum it up, there is an old proverb in Malayalam, transliterated as, “The jasmine in one’s own backyard has no smell”. May be Mr. Prahalad could use this example in his next book. What say, Sir?
Hi Khursheed,
ReplyDeleteGreat article. You are right, no one would have taken our own " vallamkali " as a management case study so far. Lot of lessons to be learned from them especially, team work, detailed planning, perfect execution and above all leading from front, the unique quality of leadership. How about having a pic of snake boat in your article ? Keep writing and thanks for your feed back on my blog. Take care, have a great week end.
With best wishes
Shamim
I am not sure, if you are still actively engaged with this blog... but I was scouring the internet if there is any material on team management and Winning with the example of Kerala's snake boat...
ReplyDeleteI feel it will make one of the amazing 'case studies' for 'team management' and strategies...