On most days, people crossed the bridge over Kerala’s Meenachil River without slowing down. Boats drifted gently below, plastic bottles floated along the water, and life moved on around the river as though the waste had become part of the landscape.
But one afternoon, a young man carrying a rented camera stopped long enough to notice something that would eventually change two lives forever.
In the middle of the river sat an elderly 69-year-old man in a small wooden boat, rowing carefully through the water. Every few minutes, he leaned over to collect discarded plastic bottles floating nearby and placed them inside the boat.
Some people standing near the banks even tossed empty bottles towards him, knowing he would pick those up too.
The man was N S Rajappan, fondly known in his village as Rajappan Chettan. Paralysed since childhood, he could not walk. But every day, he dragged himself to the riverbank, climbed into his boat and spent hours cleaning plastic waste from the river.
Watching him from the bridge was Nandu KS, a young engineer who had recently returned to Kerala after working in Abu Dhabi.
At the time, Nandu was trying to rebuild his life around something he truly loved. Though he had trained and worked as an electrical engineer, photography had always been his real passion. After returning home, he began travelling through villages and towns with a rented camera, searching for stories that felt honest and meaningful.
That day by the Meenachil River, he found one.
The man who refused to ignore the river
Inquisitive about the elderly man in the boat, Nandu went down to speak with him. Even after the conversation ended, it stayed in his thoughts.
In the middle of the river sat an elderly 69-year-old man in a small wooden boat, rowing carefully through the water. Photograph: (Instagram @nandu_promedia)
Rajappan lived in extremely modest circumstances and earned almost nothing from the plastic he collected. Even after spending hours on the river, the bottles he gathered brought him only a few rupees at the recycling centre, often around Rs 12 in a day. But money was never the real reason he continued the work.
For years, he had watched the river slowly fill with waste. Unable to bear the sight of plastic floating through the waters every day, he decided to clean it himself in whatever way he could.
No organisation stood behind his work, no cameras followed him, and no one was there to record what he did. He just felt that the river needed someone to look after it. Despite the physical strain, he continued returning to the water every morning.
Moved by his determination, Nandu took a photograph of him sitting inside the boat surrounded by plastic bottles. Before leaving, he showed him the image on the camera screen. Rajappan smiled softly.
Nandu felt that the moment stayed with him more than the photograph itself.
A photograph that reached thousands
After returning home, the engineer-turned-photographer shared Rajappan’s story and photographs online through his Pro Media Facebook page. He hoped more people would notice the extraordinary effort of a man who had remained invisible for so long.
What followed surprised him completely.
The image spread rapidly across social media. Thousands of people were immensely moved by the sight of a paralysed man cleaning a polluted river while many others walked past it every day. The story travelled far beyond Kerala and began reaching audiences across the country.
Former UN Environment chief Erik Solheim shared the story online, urging people to support Rajappan and recognise his contribution to the environment. Soon afterwards, Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioned him during an episode of Mann Ki Baat, praising his dedication towards keeping the river clean.
For the first time in years, people began paying attention to the man in the boat.
Nandu and his family welcomed Rajappan into their home, and the bond between them continued long after the story. Photograph: (Instagram @nandu_promedia)
How life began to change
As Rajappan’s story spread, support started pouring in from across India. People who had never met him wanted to help ease the hardships he had battled for years.
A businessman gifted him a motorboat, making it easier and safer for him to continue collecting waste from the river. A wheelchair manufacturer from Bengaluru provided him with a motorised wheelchair, giving him greater independence in his daily life. Donations and offers of support followed from many corners of the country.
The sudden attention changed his life in ways he had never imagined.
But the experience changed Nandu too.
Until then, photography had been a dream he was still uncertain about pursuing seriously. Rajappan’s story showed him that photographs could do far more than capture beautiful moments. They could restore dignity, move people to action and shine a light on lives the world had overlooked.
Over time, the two men developed a close friendship. Nandu and his family welcomed Rajappan into their home, and the bond between them continued long after the story became widely known.
However, through all the recognition, Rajappan himself remained the same. Every morning, he continues returning to the river.
Rajappan lived in extremely modest circumstances and earned almost nothing from the plastic he collected. Photograph: (Instagram @nandu_promedia)
Long before the world noticed him, he had already decided that the Meenachil River deserved care. And because one young photographer chose to stop and look more closely, thousands of others finally stopped to notice, too.
All pictures courtesy Instagram@nandu_promedia
