Shahid Habib / New Delhi

Can you think of a person who has attended school up to his primary and yet is a polyglot, a scientist and a innovator all rolled into one. Not only that his knowledge and skills have earned him the country’s biggest civilian honour Padam Shri.

Ali Manikfan of Lakshadweepwas fluent in seven languages by the time he had reached his seventh grade in school. Today the 82-year old Manifaken looks frail and yet stands as a testimony to a success story without one having to go for higher education.

Ali Manikfan, lives with his wife in Olwana, an island of Lakshadweep.  As a child he was sent to Kannur in Kerala for education. He returned after completing his fifth standard to his home Manikoi in the Lakshadweep Islands.

Manifakan with the ship that he built without using any metal

A man with perfect vision and high insight, he knows almost every fish that lives in the seas off Manikoi Island. His keen observation of fish turned into an obsession and he ended up doing a research into the lives and behavior of fishes.

Ali Manikfan has studied till class VII, but knows 14 languages. Their abilities are not limited to mastering languages ; he has done a self study in marine biology, marine research, geography, astronomy, shipbuilding.

Manifkan has also worked in the field of marine research and agriculture. He spent most of his life on Manikoi Island.

He was awarded the Padma Shri for his mastery of 14 languages ​​and excellence in other fields.

However, the journey of this polyglot and omniscient man from a small town to being honoured by the government with Padma Shri was not an easy one for Manikfan.

Born in Lakshadweep, Ali Manikfan's village did not have a school at that time. So his parents sent him to Kannur. After finishing fifth grade, he returned home. Later in 1956 he moved to Calcutta, where he bought books on various subjects. He carried the books with him to his home. Ali later taught himself many languages ​​with the help of these books.

Manifakan riding the who wheeler he invented

Ali is fluent in several languages, including Hindi, English, Malayalam, Arabic, Latin, French, Russian and German, without any formal education. He also knows Sangli, Persian, Tamil, Sanskrit and Urdu.

Ali Manikfan knows a lot about fish. He was so obsessed with fish that he got to know every species of fish on the island. So he got a job in the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute in 1960. During his tenure there, he discovered a rare species of fish, which was named after him.