Raghujiraje Angre: ‘Kanhoji had the vision to safeguard our coast’

Itrsquos not every day that you interact with the descendant of an admiral whose heroics graced the pages of your History textbook in school Last weekend Raghujiraje Angre ninth generation descendant of visionary Maratha admiral Kanhoji Angre was in the city to inaugurate Shastrstra an exhibition on the history of war through weapons and sculptures dating to 15th and 16th Century India It was organised by the Department of Ancient Indian History Culture and Archaeology of St Xavierrsquos College Autonomous with The Museum Society of Mumbai and CSMVS In between marvelling at these historic exhibits and patiently answering queries from visitors he spoke about the Angre legacyExcerpts from the interviewTell us about your familyrsquos connection with Maratha naval military warfareMy family has always been connected with the manufacture of arms and ammunition Back in the 16th and 17th centuries my forefathers Kanhoji Angre and his children were focused on shipbuilding and Maratha warfare tactics There was overt dependence on the Portuguese and later the British East India Company for metal Kanhoji built his own foundry and he envisioned designs for cannons that are still seen in our Maratha fortsDr Pheroza Godrej chairperson Museum Society of Mumbai looks at the cannon ball displaysThe Angres concentrated on metal and Indian weaponry and created indigenous versions and adapted them to suit local requirements including factoring the build of Indians rather than accepting foreign weaponry templatesAnd Kanhoji Angre had the vision to do this back in the 1600sYes A lot of people worked in the Angre foundries and plenty of research went into developing this indigenous weaponry Local knowledge also helped The British and Portuguese were blue water navies whereas the Maratha navy was a brown water navy They understood the terrain very well Those who were employed by Kanhoji Angre and the Marathas were familiar with the terrain and thus their knowledge superseded that of their rivals during battles along Maharashtrarsquos coastRaghujiraje Angre inaugurates the exhibition Also seen in the frame are Dr Anita Rane Kothare and Dr Pheroza Godrej PICSASHISH RAJEHow important is it to document warfareIt is of utmost importance In Europe maritime legacy is well preserved Unfortunately itrsquos not too visible here Look at the ironyhellip just across the road from here near Sardar Griha building a cannon is covered under a shanty I discussed this with the Archaeological Survey of India ASI I hope necessary measures will be taken to remedy it Itrsquos part of our naval treasures and historic documentation and must be preserved I am hopeful that change will emergeAn exciting development is the upcoming National Maritime Heritage Museum in Lothal Gujarat which is the Prime Ministerrsquos dream project Itrsquos shaping up well into one of the worldrsquos largest maritime museums I am involved with setting up the Maratha gallery sectionWhat are your plans to showcase Alibaugrsquos maritime rootsWork is in the pipeline Irsquom keeping my fingers crossed The Chief Minister of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis has given the goahead for these plans which includes a gallery We must try to preserve our heritage and also instill awareness With the TransHarbour Link and the RewasKaranja Bridge Alibaug will transform rapidly So when tourists come here it shouldnrsquot be to just chill or savour our seafood but to also experience our culture We are keen to change that narrativeSchool children attend the exhibition at St Xavierrsquos CollegeWhat is being done to protect the Angre legacyWe have preserved arms and ammunition as well as weapons from that era There is also the Kanhoji Angre Samadhi campus that we recently restored with support from the state archaeological department Plans are afloat for a show at the siteWhat are some of the valuable lessons that Kanhoji instilled in maritime warfareLetrsquos look at it the other way When we refer to Indiarsquos borders we immediately think of Wagah or Attari But we also have coastal borders and Mumbai is located along this border Our nation has 7500plus kilometres of coastline So when attacks emerge from the sea Mumbai is under direct threat The sea is a vulnerable natural factor It isnrsquot just the duty of the Navy or Coast Guard commoners too need to be vigilantKanhoji AngreWe conduct awareness drives among coastal communities in the area For example if an unidentified person is spotted or if suspicious activity is noticed it is reported back The same practice was followed 300 years ago in Kanhojirsquos time Until any ship or vessel docks at the port it doesnrsquot mean that it has reached its destination At the port itself strict checks are needed to prevent invasionKanhoji followed this practice Itrsquos why the Konkan has the highest density of sea forts as compared to any other part of Indiarsquos coastline There are sea forts at an average of every 15 kms Such was his visionDid you knowBlue water navy When a country is able to protect naval power away from its own country at a global levelBrown water navy When a country guards its waters near its territorial borders within its inland waterways