Padma Shri Ali Manikfan: 'The Quran inspired my explorations’

KOZHIKODE: When a friend rang Ali Manikfan at 10 pm on Monday to congratulate him on his Padma Shri, he was already asleep with his wife attending all his calls. The self-made scientist always kept a low profile, distancing himself from fame and recognition.

The boy – born in Minicoy, Lakshadweep in 1938 – was sent to Kannur for his formal education; but he had little interest and abandoned studies midway. At 83, Manikfan is a multifaceted genius: marine scientist who has a fish named after him, a shipbuilder who reconstructed an ancient trade ship, and an astronomer who designed a lunar calendar.

The unassuming, pious believer said it was the Quran that inspired him to explore the mysteries of the universe. “The Quran asks us to think. In many places Allah asks us-why are you not thinking? Human beings are endowed with this rare capability to think and innovate, we should tap its full potential,” he said.Manikfan believes that the lack of academic qualifications hasn’t hindered his exploring mentality. “I tried to appear for matriculation but was not allowed as my age was below the required limit at that time. Then I lost interest in formal studies,” he said.Manikfan said there are enough resources to aid one's explorations. “Now it is easy because you have the internet. There are no limits if we have the will to walk that extra mile,” he said.

Manikfan, who knows 14 languages including French, German and Arabic, employs seven of them for his communication.Manikfan also worked as a teacher and later joined Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute where he worked for 20 years. It was during this time he discovered a rare species that was later named after him as Abudefduf Manikfani.

He bought parched land in Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu and converted it into a green patch using his innovative ways. “We can live with whatever is available in nature. People of Lakshadweep can survive with coconuts and the fish they get from the sea. We are greedy and want more,” he said.Manikfan’s knowledge of traditional engineering was put to use to build a traditional trade ship to reconstruct the voyage of Sinbad. He went to Oman to oversee the shipbuilding that didn’t use metal.“It was the way ships were built in ancient times. The art was known to the people of Lakshadweep, it was lost with the passage of time,” he said. The ship later traveled to China and is currently preserved in Muscat.

Manikfan uses his engineering skills in his daily life too. “I once traveled from TN to Delhi on a modified bicycle which was fitted with a motor in 1982. It took 45 days to complete the journey,” said Manikfan, who now lives in Kozhikode.Manikfan has three daughters and a son and none of them have a formal education. Two of his daughters are employed as teachers while his son is a marine engineer. They studied on their own and then appeared for qualifying exams.