A Builder’s Craft
By Sana Chaudhry
21 April 2016
In the boat building yard at Karachi Fish Harbour Keemari, I found myself surrounded with piles upon piles of wood. Huge structures, that are boats in the making, tower above me as I weave in and out of the maze utterly struck by the sheer size. Laborers carry slab of wood on their backs to and fro; a well oiled assembly line. Making my way to the very back I notice a little bench next to a makeshift office. That is where, in a little office by the boat yard, I find Haji Lal Baksh.Haji Lal Baksh, is a senior member of the boat builder’s union and a Baloch who came down with his grandfather and father to Karachi to pursue his family legacy of creating boats. Baksh Sahab, as he was called by his fellow craftsmen, does not remember the year he migrated but, during his tenure the entire yard has been scraped thrice and built again; a time period of roughly 70 years. During that time his remuneration was 4 Aana while his dad’s was 4 rupees.
Baksh Sahab’s own family consists of three sons, a daughter and a wife. Despite hard times that may have befallen his family, he has never compromised on the education of his children. His two sons are in the armed forces while the other one is mentally handicapped. His daughter studied and settled in Muscat. He shoulders the responsibility of his sisters, their children and his wife. In the past, he had no less than eight to nine ships getting ready at once, whereas now he has minimal orders.
When asked about the government’s input in the building yard, Baksh Sahab became very upset. He says, “This skill comes with life threatening situations, one day you have an eye and next day you don’t. We’ve asked for safety belts, goggles, boots, and gloves it’s the same answer every day. Providing this facility is another issue, they don’t care they don’t even bother asking. What can you expect then?” He said that they don’t have a dispenser, or even a glass of water to begin with, and it gets very difficult when the sun is on its peak.
Currently he is the most experienced one present on the yard, but due to his brittle bones he cannot walk and work with the craftsman. He was deeply saddened when asked how it feels to be just supervising. He says, “It feels like someone has taken my soul and ripped it into two. My hands miss the feel of the wood. My ears miss the sound of the hammer as I used to hit it on the nails. I miss my heart pounding as I worked 15 hours straight. But, one cannot be the champion for a long time so I take great pleasure in teaching the younger ones and see many younger Lal Baksh around me.”
