KOCHI: Murals depicting the landmarks in India’s maritime history right from the Indus Valley Civilisation to the modern day will adorn the walls of the Kochi Naval Base. The Better Kochi Response Group (BKRG), has launched an initiative to create a 1.3-km-long mural wall that will chronologically depict India’s expansive maritime history. Once completed, it will be the longest mural in the country, and the project will be submitted to the Guinness Book of World Records for consideration, said BKRG president and architect S Gopakumar on Tuesday.
Launching the brochure for the proposed mural project, Cochin Shipyard CMD Madhu S Nair said the mural project will help remind the new generation of our maritime history and reconnect them with our past. “At one time India accounted for 30% of the world’s GDP, but our youths remain largely unaware of Kerala’s maritime legacy. Our ship-building prowess was famous and even now the ‘Urus’ (wooden dhow) made by our craftsmen in Beypore are being used by countries in the Middle East,” he said.
There are around 250 panels along the 103-km-long stretch where artists, historians and curators will create murals about maritime history in a chronological order. Each panel will be handled by a lead artist supported by one or two junior artists and art students.
The Navy has already requested the tourism department to develop a walkway alongside the Naval Base compound wall. The Cochin Shipyard has promised to donate H20 lakh for the project and many builders have come forward to support the initiative.
“The maritime legacy of India right from the Indus Valley Civilisation which was carried forward by the Mauryas, Cholas, Chatrapati Shivaji and the Zamorins will be depicted in murals in a chronological order,” said Vice Admiral Prem Sudhan who will coordinate the initiative. “The mural wall will narrate how Rani Abbakka of Ullal, Chatrapati Shivaji, Tipu Sultan, Kunhali Marakkar and Travancore resisted the western forces,” he said.
“Traditionally Keralites have not been seafarers, but we have received benefits of maritime trade. There were thriving ship building yards at Kallayi and Vypeen and the guidance of Portuguese and Dutch helped us build warships. We had supplied warships to European countries and the UK. One of the warships built in Kerala was used in the Battle of Waterloo,” said journalist and former Resident Editor of TNIE, M K Das.
On completion, the mural wall is expected to become a major tourist landmark for Kochi and serve as an educational resource offering students and the public deep insights into India’s maritime heritage.