Six-year-old Kamali Moorthy, from a tiny village in Mahabalipuram, was able to make several headlines this year as a picture of her skateboarding went viral — and was shared by the legendary skateboarder Tony Hawk himself. When Jamie Thomas, another skateboarder visited the village, he was surprised to find an entire community encouraging their children to skateboard on a small ramp — built by the HolyStoked Collective — and surf in the ocean.
Seeing Kamali in frocks sporting a pigtail, and doing everything she knows on the ramp, prompts you to think about how promoting children’s passions — as much as their school education — is important in creating a safer and more creative environment for them. We can’t wait to see the heights she will be touching in the coming year!
Mukesh Panjanathan
Born into a family of fisherman, Mukesh aka Mumu rose from running a small garage shop in Mahabalipuram to opening Mumu Surf School and Shop, where people from across the world visit to take surf lessons! Look up his school on TripAdvisor and you’ll find surfing enthusiasts from many countries praising Mumu for his techniques and making the surface water sport absolute fun.
‘Enjoy the nature while also protecting it’, is something he believes in firmly. Mumu has also been helping the local children learn how to surf — and in return for the classes — since most of these kids belong to underprivileged fishing communities, he asks them to help in cleaning up the beach, thereby protecting the water bodies around.
In the coming year, Mumu aims to receive help from the government in taking his beach cleanups to a bigger level. If he manages to get the sponsorship, he also plans to take these local kids to international surfing destinations and give them bigger exposure.
