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The knife grinding business seems to be a dying trade. At least that is what Balakrishnan, the Katuru Muwath man says.

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S Balakrishnan

The reason for his business not being successful baffles him. He can only put it down to the economic changes in the country. But what he probably does not know or accept is the fact that there is a lot of modern day easy-to-use equipment to get ones knives sharpened, right in the kitchen.

Earning Less

“Business has gone down drastically recently. I usually earn Rs 400-Rs 500

a day, some days I can’t even earn that much. In the past we used to earn close to Rs 700- Rs 800 a day – now that is impossible,” he says.


His Own Invention

 Having been in the business for more than 35 years, Subramaniam’s dedication to his profession is evident in the sharpening machine which is custom made for the job, and he says that the ‘model’ is his very own invention.

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“I gave it to a tinker shop to weld the pieces together, it took me over a month to find the ones I needed,” he says adding that he found most of the parts for his machine from bottle and newspaper sellers and used-metal shops.

“The people who have been in this business each have their own machines, made to fit the method that they usually sharpen,” Subramaniam says. Some knife grinders have machines that operate on a battery and a motor, not a pedal like his.

Before

alt In the past their method used two wooden planks and a sharpening stone they used to turn by hand, this changed after the planks kept snapping easily and more sophisticated machinery – on a wheel and lever basis, was born among those who wanted to seriously continue the business.

Subramaniam, who lives in a rented house in Wellampitiya, travels for more than 25Km’s a day along the lanes and roads of Bambalapitiya and Kollupitiya, and is at a loss now because his customer base have resorted to giving him only one or two knives per session and not the 5 to 6 like they did in the past. He puts it down to the bad economic situation the country is going through, saying that this situation has worsened for them over the past three years.

After

But in reality it just could be changing times that is the real culprit behind the diminishing business. The mini sharpener which has magnets and grooves that a knife can be run-over a few times to get that perfect edge is something that most households have resorted to. 

And soon we might not get to hear the familiar cry of Kathuru Muwath! Pihi Muwath! on our streets any longer.

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