Masula boats and the fishermen who kept Madras afloat

Before the harbour came into being, arriving in Madras by ship meant making the last leg of the journey on masula boats.

These boatmen, who were mostly fishermen from the coast along Madras, knew that they were a vital link in keeping the city’s trade alive and made full use of the opportunity.

But by the late 1890s, their era had all but come to an end