Out at sea: Behind the scenes at Veraval

Fishing trips of migrant fishermen from the port in Gujarat are stuff of adventure and endurance.

Big and small boats at Gujarat’s Veraval fishing port ready to offload their cargo for the adjacent fish market. The fresh catch is sold to distributors, who then transport it to shops and markets in the city. | Photo Credit: Aayush Chandrawanshi

Veraval in Gujarat’s Gir Somnath district is one of the biggest fishing ports in India, accounting for 35 per cent of the marine fish catch in the country. Fish is not a favourite with most Gujaratis, but that does not impact fish production and its export, both of which are major industries.

Social, political, and economic factors are behind this growth, which has also attracted to Gujarat’s shores, especially to Veraval, fishermen from all parts of India since the late 1980s.

Veraval, as seen from the old lighthouse during the golden hour. On the right is the port and on the left the sea. | Photo Credit: Aayush Chandrawanshi

Cranes are used to haul the new boats out to sea as well as to pluck old and damaged boats out of the water for repairs. | Photo Credit: Aayush Chandrawanshi

A large section of them, around 25,000 every season, are from Srikakulam district in Andhra Pradesh. What sets the migrant fishers apart from the locals is their readiness to remain at sea for a month or so at a stretch. While the local fishermen are happy with their daily catch, not so the Srikakulam men, who have to justify coming so far from home. They spend at least a month at a time on the waters, enduring ennui and hardship as they toil for bigger catches.

Cleaning and drying the nets and maintaining them are an important part of preparation before venturing out on long fishing trips.  | Photo Credit: Aayush Chandrawanshi

A newly assembled boat being transported to the port. Shipbuilding units are a common sight around the port. Fishermen prefer the traditional and locally crafted boats to commercial fishing vessels.  | Photo Credit: Aayush Chandrawanshi

As soon as they return from one trip, they are already preparing for the next. But this does help in at least two ways: first, they do not need to look for a place to stay, and second, they save more money to send back home. A few of them have their families with them in Veraval, working in the port or in processing and packaging factories nearby.

An elderly fisherman whose fishing days are done watches the ships return to port as the sun sets.  | Photo Credit: Aayush Chandrawanshi

All crew members here. From captain to cook, the cabin is where everyone spends free time and sleeps. The cabin is right behind the steering wheel.  | Photo Credit: Aayush Chandrawanshi

While the sea is always unpredictable, long days at sea on a small boat with very few personal goods and even less space can get claustrophobic.

The newbies who have joined the crew last get the task to clean and organise the various items in the boat.  | Photo Credit: Aayush Chandrawanshi

All set and squeaky clean, the boat is readied for the month-long trip. It is mandatory now to have a GPS system on all boats because they sail close to international waters.  | Photo Credit: Aayush Chandrawanshi

Some crews bring CD players on board, some bring books and magazines. And then there is the phone. Each boat typically accommodates seven or eight crew members, and they remain together for eight months (except for three months of downtime during the monsoon).

Sub-zero below decks is the ice chamber where the catch is preserved. The job of crushing and spreading the ice is given to the youngest crew member.  | Photo Credit: Aayush Chandrawanshi

Each has a role and duty to perform, and over time they are like one big close-knit family with collective memories and individual experiences enmeshed.

Meal time begins with fish brought out of the boat’s cold storage.  | Photo Credit: Aayush Chandrawanshi

Master chef spices are being ground to marinate the fish, which along with steamed rice is the staple meal for the entire month at sea.  | Photo Credit: Aayush Chandrawanshi

Boats parked during the downtime. | Photo Credit: Aayush Chandrawanshi

The boats might all look similar, but it is the crew that gives them character. And that becomes important when one is bound to a routine and the boundary between work and personal life gets blurry.

Back home the fishermen’s families work in fish processing and packaging units.  | Photo Credit: Aayush Chandrawanshi

Ready to sail. A fisherman arrives with his luggage to join the rest of the crew for a fishing expedition that will last several months.  | Photo Credit: Aayush Chandrawanshi

In the summer of 2017, I spent time with them in Veraval, and what I found intriguing was that with the limitless sea all around them, they interacted very little with each other. And perhaps therein lies the secret.

Aayush Chandrawanshi is a photographer from Chhattisgarh. He is currently working as a curator and project anchor with Conflictorium in Raipur for their new museum project.