The Hindu (Thiruvananthapuram)
Knife sharpeners, mattress makers, and retinners, who were once patronised by thrifty households for their skills and craft, are a rare sight these days
Not long ago I had to dispose of a number of things which were somewhat outdated. These household articles, which were once the favourites of my forebears, stood testimony to the care with which they were maintained over the years. They made me recall across a gulf of seven decades the periodic visits to our house of Munusamy, the frail retinner of brass vessels, and Khadar, the burly cottonmattress maker. They were among the traditional artisans who helped our household in maintaining things in good condition.
Long before stainless steel vessels came into the market, it was brass, copper, bronze, and aluminium utensils that were used in our households.
Brass and copper vessels, however, needed a tin coating (kalai) inside them, and it had to be done periodically.
The retinning operation by Munusamy was a sight to behold. When a few brass vessels bereft of the shiny tin coating were given to him, he would set up a mini workshop in our courtyard. Digging a small pit in the ground he would create a temporary blast furnace, airing it with bellows. Taking up a vessel, he would heat it and sprinkle in it a powder (ammonium chloride).
Holding the red hot vessel in one hand with the help of a pair of tongs, he would, in the manner of a juggler, quickly rub the inner surface of the vessel with a cotton cloth, giving rise to a sudden curl of white smoke. Finally, the vessel would be dipped into a bucket of water. Humming a jaunty tune, he would take out the vessel, the inner surface of which would glisten with a silvery sheen. Even before he could complete retinning our vessels, Munusamy would get more clients from the neighbouring houses, each giving one or two vessels for retinning. We, the children of the locality, would watch with great admiration the whole operation.
Retinning workers have almost vanished from the streets now due to a lack of demand for their services. As have the makers of cotton mattresses who would come door to door, offering their services.
In those days, though people mostly slept on mats spread on the floor, each household had one or two mattresses stuffed with cotton that needed restuffing often. I vividly remember Rehman, one of the mattress makers.
Strumming a veenalike instrument that was used for carding the cotton, Rehman would announce his arrival on the streets. In our house, he would carry out his work in an open space in the garden. He
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used the carder to beat and fluff the cotton already in the mattresses and pillows. He would also add fresh cotton. He would finally handstitch the seams and return the mattresses in their new robust forms. The entire garden would reverberate with the “twang, twang” of the carder during the operation. Those of us who watched his work with interest did not mind the liberal cotton coating that we got. Rarely does one see these mattress makers on the streets now as people prefer to buy readymade mattresses, made mostly with foam.
I was surprised to hear a call of “kathi saannai” on the street the other day. It was that of a knife sharpener with a portable contraption slung over his shoulders. He said that he had continued in the traditional profession in which he was trained by his late father. He, however, rued the fact that it was not quite paying, as most people discarded knives or scissors with blunted edges and bought new ones.
Street vendors continue to be active in selling vegetables, fruits, and other food items. However, the sight of tradespeople offering unique household services may soon be a thing of the past.