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The sons of sea prove they’re game for this too

PUDUCHERRY: Have you tried to play hide and seek in the sea? With the waves trying to push you under and the sand being jerked from under your feet… it would be next to impossible. But, boys belonging to the coastal villages seem to have no problem playing the game in the sea.

A student of Standard IX of Chevalier Sellane Government School, Prashanth, and his friends – Vimal, Anandbabu and Rajkumar, play ‘I spy’ in the water.

“We hide under water and others have to look for us. I can catch my breath for nearly 10 minutes,” says Prashanth, who learnt to swim when he was just 12 years old. The all permeating sea at their doorstep beckons the sons of fisherfolk, and they take to water as ducks and fishes do.

Prashanth goes for fishing on boats just for fun – his ultimate goal is to go on the boat that is anchored out in the sea!

From the first moment that the waves lap at their feet the craze for playing in the water begins and the sea becomes their playground. The boys make up a slew of games, including ball catching, racing each other to spots, surfing on wooden boards, diving off floating woods and fishing for small fish such as ‘kelathi’, ‘kezhangan’ or ‘sembadaka’.

“Nobody teaches the boys or girls (a few) to swim. My tryst with the sea began when I was just five years old. I would skip exams to just be there [at the beach]. Every morning I have to bathe in the sea and only then can I bathe in fresh water. Children sometimes play in the water for about half-an-hour, and then feeling cold would just lie down on the hot beach sand, and it would be so soothing,” says Ou Premanandane, who has set Limca records for swimming in the sea with his hands tied.

A Standard V student, Sathish, says he learnt to swim a “long time back.” Though small for his age, Sathish swims and bathes in the sea regularly with his neighbour Vignesh. Vijayshanti, a student of Standard VII, goes out to swim during the holidays in the afternoons, with her mother’s permission of course.

But, Vimalraj of Standard IX still hasn’t picked up the confidence to swim without a life jacket. Since his friends leave him out of their water games, he is now determined to learn to swim properly. “I can swim in one spot, but not move too much. These boys don’t teach me to swim, but leave me and go to play,” he says pointing to his friends!

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The sons of sea prove they’re game for this too

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