KOLLAM: 28-year-old Anand Chandran had always wanted to fly. The lad from Kunnathur, better known as Anand Helics Kalyani, realised his dream by building a trike.
“When I told people about my dream of building a three-in-one trike which could travel on road, go over water and also fly, they ridiculed me,” he said. But Anand, who has a marine diploma and has done ITC and aircraft maintenance engineering courses, wasn’t deterred. “I set out to build a trike,” he said.
The project became a reality after a person from Balaramapuram approached him to build a machine that he could fly, Anand said. Shaji Chandran, a PWD contractor, was into flying hang gliders. “Since there are restrictions on hand gliding in India, he asked me for an alternative. And I presented the idea,” Anand said. Shaji agreed to sponsor the funds, and the project took off. His friends Chandrashekaran and Jackson too chipped in with funds, he said. It took him three years to build.
“I’d have brought the trike out earlier, but got laid up with fractured legs following an accident during paramotor flying,” he said. Those were tough times during which he had to relearn walking. “But I did get back on my feet and the very first thing I did was to finish my project,” he said. One thing that sets Anand’s trike apart from other branded ones is its unique ability to be customised.
“The cost is also very low compared to the ones available in the market. My trike costs only Rs 1.8 lakh (the price doesn’t include the wings). In the market, branded ones come at a price starting from Rs 18 lakh,” he said. As for the wings, Anand said, “They are difficult to make and hence have to be bought. A new wing costs Rs 3.45 lakh while a second-hand one can be procured at a price ranging from Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 2.5 lakh.”
Among the various plus points of the trike, its feature of being propelled by a huge fan makes it ideal for travel on the lakes and rivers in the state. “There’s no need to fear the propellers will cut through fishing nets,” he said.