A fleet of four J80 sailboats are docked at Chennai harbour on a sultry mid-June afternoon. Aboard them are 25 policewomen smiling and celebrating completing eight challenging days at sea. Terms like jig, sail and keel are now commonspeak for the amateur sailors who were part of a 1,000-kilometre expedition through Chennai-Pulicat-Point Calimere-Chennai to commemorate the golden jubilee year of women in the Tamil Nadu Police Force. Undeterred by the brutal sun, salty sea breeze, and the occasional drizzle, and fired up with adrenaline, the women say they cannot wait to get back to sea.
“Some of us hadn’t even seen a sailboat before,” says E Rajeshwari, Inspector, Law and Order, Zam Bazaar. (Many in the city will know her as the cop who rescued an unconscious 25-year-old cemetery worker during the 2021 rains in Chennai, by carrying him on her shoulder to the hospital.) “We were given theoretical classes on sailing at the Royal Madras Yacht Club. In those moments, we became children who are eager to learn,” says Rajeshwari. They prepped for the expedition after eight months.
