Manish Kumar
Post News Network
Ramchandi, Feb 6: Hundreds of water sports enthusiasts thronged Ramchandi beach to get a taste of a different kind of adventure at the three-day India Surf Festival (ISF) that kicked off at the beach Friday.
The festival, which promises an exotic mix of entertainment and adventure, has a bevy of performers showcasing breathtaking stunts and activities on board surfing equipment.
The showstopper however was the Stand-Up Paddling workshop which attracted a large crowd.
“The response from people interested in stand-up paddling is overwhelming. The crowd is very energetic and the wonderful ambience is acting as a catalyst. This is an enjoyable water sport which many people love to start off with. This guides them on how to maintain an adequate balance while in the sea. This is an ideal sport for beginners. People from all age groups are coming to me for learning the art of SUP,” says Louise Nolau, an SUP trainer who has come to participate in the festival all the way from London. Apart from the workshop, a preliminary SUP race was also organised by ISF officials, with a final round scheduled to be held on the last day of the festival.
An enthusiastic surfer, Chitrangada Samantrai who lives in Chennai says she makes it a point to be a part of surf festivals. “I make sure that I visit these surf fests and get acquainted with the different water sports offered during the fest. But this time I like it more mainly because I can see a surge in the number of people taking part in the fest. An added attraction is the kind of music that is being played at the event, helping create a wonderful ambience on the beach. The music is livening up proceedings and the visitors love it,” she said.
Many people from different parts of the country and from abroad are taking active part in the festival. The fest had many things to offer to the visitors who were gathered there from the morning, such as events like kite-surfing, water boats, surfing on sea, yoga on boat, balance on board, installation art work, live painting, projection mapping, and sand art.
Mehak Puri has come from Delhi to participate. “In Delhi, we don’t have the luxury of hanging out at any water body, let alone a beach. So naturally water sports are the last thing you’d associate Delhi with. Even in our country water sports is yet to become popular. Here, my friends and I are exhibiting ‘Yoga on Boat’ in order to showcase how much fun water sports can be. We want to show people that it is not as difficult as it looks and we want to raise awareness on this. It would be nice if water sports became more popular in our country,” Mehak said.
The festival will conclude Sunday. Various competitions and workshops are likely to be organised during the three-day–event. Sanjay Samantrai, organiser of ISF-2015, says the crowd is likely to swell in the weekend and voiced his appreciation for the easy online registration system which allowed many from across the country and abroad to take part.