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The Adivasi Will Not Dance
SHORTLISTED FOR THE HINDU PRIZE 2016
In this collection of stories, set in the fecund, mineral-rich hinterland and the ever-expanding, squalid towns of Jharkhand, Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar breathes life into a set of characters who are as robustly flesh and blood as the soil from which they spring, where they live, and into which they must sometimes bleed.
Troupe-master Mangal Murmu refuses to perform for the President of India and is beaten down; Suren and Gita, a love-blind couple, wait with quiet desperation outside a neonatal ward, hoping—for different reasons—that their blue baby will turn pink; Panmuni and Biram Soren move to Vadodara in the autumn of their lives, only to find that they must stop eating meat to be accepted as citizens; Baso-jhi is the life of the village of Sarjomdih but, when people begin to die for no apparent reason, a ghastly accusation from her past comes back to haunt her; and Talamai Kisku of the Santhal Pargana, migrating to West Bengal in search of work, must sleep with a policeman for fifty rupees and two cold bread pakoras.
THE ADIVASI WILL NOT DANCE is a mature, passionate, intensely political book of stories, made up of the very stuff of life. It establishes Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar as one of our most important contemporary writers.
In this collection of stories, set in the fecund, mineral-rich hinterland and the ever-expanding, squalid towns of Jharkhand, Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar breathes life into a set of characters who are as robustly flesh and blood as the soil from which they spring, where they live, and into which they must sometimes bleed.
Troupe-master Mangal Murmu refuses to perform for the President of India and is beaten down; Suren and Gita, a love-blind couple, wait with quiet desperation outside a neonatal ward, hoping—for different reasons—that their blue baby will turn pink; Panmuni and Biram Soren move to Vadodara in the autumn of their lives, only to find that they must stop eating meat to be accepted as citizens; Baso-jhi is the life of the village of Sarjomdih but, when people begin to die for no apparent reason, a ghastly accusation from her past comes back to haunt her; and Talamai Kisku of the Santhal Pargana, migrating to West Bengal in search of work, must sleep with a policeman for fifty rupees and two cold bread pakoras.
THE ADIVASI WILL NOT DANCE is a mature, passionate, intensely political book of stories, made up of the very stuff of life. It establishes Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar as one of our most important contemporary writers.
200 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 1, 2015
About the author
Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar
11 books284 followersHansda Sowvendra Shekhar is the author of six books:
1. The Mysterious Ailment Of Rupi Baskey (a novel, published in 2014 by Aleph Book Company),
2. The Adivasi Will Not Dance (a collection of short stories, published in 2015 by Speaking Tiger),
3. Jwala Kumar and the Gift of Fire: Adventures in Champakbagh (a novel for children aged 9 years and above, with illustrations by Krishna Bala Shenoi, published in 2018 by Talking Cub, the children’s imprint of Speaking Tiger),
4. My Father's Garden (a novel, published in 2018 by Speaking Tiger),
5. Who’s There? (a book for children aged 5-6 years, with illustrations by Anupama Ajinkya Apte, published in 2020 by Duckbill, an imprint of Penguin Random House India), and
6. Sumi Budhi and Sugi (a book for Level 3 readers, with illustrations by Joanna Mendes, published in 2020 by Pratham Books),
translator of one:
1. I Named My Sister Silence (novel by Manoj Rupda, translated from Hindi, published in 2023 by Eka, an imprint of Westland Books),
and a number of other fiction and non-fiction works and Santali to English and Hindi to English translations.
More writings by Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar may be found here: http://independent.academia.edu/Hansd... .
1. The Mysterious Ailment Of Rupi Baskey (a novel, published in 2014 by Aleph Book Company),
2. The Adivasi Will Not Dance (a collection of short stories, published in 2015 by Speaking Tiger),
3. Jwala Kumar and the Gift of Fire: Adventures in Champakbagh (a novel for children aged 9 years and above, with illustrations by Krishna Bala Shenoi, published in 2018 by Talking Cub, the children’s imprint of Speaking Tiger),
4. My Father's Garden (a novel, published in 2018 by Speaking Tiger),
5. Who’s There? (a book for children aged 5-6 years, with illustrations by Anupama Ajinkya Apte, published in 2020 by Duckbill, an imprint of Penguin Random House India), and
6. Sumi Budhi and Sugi (a book for Level 3 readers, with illustrations by Joanna Mendes, published in 2020 by Pratham Books),
translator of one:
1. I Named My Sister Silence (novel by Manoj Rupda, translated from Hindi, published in 2023 by Eka, an imprint of Westland Books),
and a number of other fiction and non-fiction works and Santali to English and Hindi to English translations.
More writings by Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar may be found here: http://independent.academia.edu/Hansd... .
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September 5, 2017
Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar's collection of short stories, "The Adivasi Will Not Dance", has been banned in Jharkhand because it has allegedly portrayed adivasi women in bad light. He has also been suspended from his job. This is symptomatic of the attacks on freedom of expression which is becoming all too common in India nowadays. Please support him by buying his book, which is available on Amazon (I already did).
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national...
-------------------------------
Adi-vasi means "First Dweller" or "Original Dweller". In fact, the term "Adi" means the very beginning: all the way up to "primeval". So the adivasis (the tribals of India) were here much before any of us came; they could be considered the original owners of the land, if they had the concept of individual ownership before "civilisation" instilled it into them. Of course, in a script shockingly similar across the world, they were forcibly removed from their lands which the government appropriated for "development", and thrown on the margins where they forced to do wage slavery, beg, steal and their women were forced to sell their bodies to keep body and soul together. To add insult to injury, they are often compelled to perform their traditional arts for tourists and dignitaries, thus making themselves anthropological exhibits.
Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar writes from the margins. Being a Santhal tribal from Jharkhand, he knows first hand what he writes about. The stories are written in spare, highly readable prose with almost all the emotions drained away (except maybe perhaps for the title story); if one looks carefully, one can even detect a hint of black humour at the bottom.
Many common themes run across the stories, yet each one is refreshingly different. The exploitation of women (Merely a Whore, November is the Month of Migrations, Eating with the Enemy), the dispossession of land (Desire, Divination, Death, The Adivasi Will Not Dance), shiftlessness and general corruption of adivasi culture (Sons, Getting Even)... all are touched upon. The identity of the adivasi, different from the religion he is identified with (adivasis are considered Hindu, many are converted to Christianity - but they primarily remain tribals with a totally different set of myths and beliefs from traditional Hinduism) is constantly emphasised.
Shekhar's language is sexually explicit, which is what might have disturbed the self-appointed guardians of morality. (For example, Merely a Whore which deals with the life of a prostitute, is filled with lewd imagery sometimes bordering on the disgusting.) One might be excused for thinking that the author purposefully makes it so: to shock the reader into awareness of the degradation that the adivasi is subjected to on a daily basis.
These stories are explicitly political but does not resort to sloganeering. In addition to the subservient and downtrodden souls, we have a few firebrands here who raise spirited if lonely voices of protest: the housewives who frighten away a mob of murderous Hindus from a Muslim's house during the Gujarat riots, using kitchen utensils as missiles (They Eat Meat!), the girl who chooses to get impregnated by her lover before her wedding as a mark of protest (Blue Boy); and the narrator of the title story, The Adivasi Will Not Dance, who refuses to perform before the President as a protest for the land of his people which has been taken away.
When I first heard the term 'Dalit Literature' some time ago, I could not understand its significance; how could a person's caste influence his writing. Now I know. Like feminist literature, it is a whole new way of self-expression. Writing here is an active form of resistance of the subaltern against a system which is hell-bent on crushing him.
You will kill me? He asks. Fine! You have the power to do so. But I will go down fighting!
The Adivasi will not dance to your tune anymore, my dear sirs.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national...
-------------------------------
Adi-vasi means "First Dweller" or "Original Dweller". In fact, the term "Adi" means the very beginning: all the way up to "primeval". So the adivasis (the tribals of India) were here much before any of us came; they could be considered the original owners of the land, if they had the concept of individual ownership before "civilisation" instilled it into them. Of course, in a script shockingly similar across the world, they were forcibly removed from their lands which the government appropriated for "development", and thrown on the margins where they forced to do wage slavery, beg, steal and their women were forced to sell their bodies to keep body and soul together. To add insult to injury, they are often compelled to perform their traditional arts for tourists and dignitaries, thus making themselves anthropological exhibits.
Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar writes from the margins. Being a Santhal tribal from Jharkhand, he knows first hand what he writes about. The stories are written in spare, highly readable prose with almost all the emotions drained away (except maybe perhaps for the title story); if one looks carefully, one can even detect a hint of black humour at the bottom.
Many common themes run across the stories, yet each one is refreshingly different. The exploitation of women (Merely a Whore, November is the Month of Migrations, Eating with the Enemy), the dispossession of land (Desire, Divination, Death, The Adivasi Will Not Dance), shiftlessness and general corruption of adivasi culture (Sons, Getting Even)... all are touched upon. The identity of the adivasi, different from the religion he is identified with (adivasis are considered Hindu, many are converted to Christianity - but they primarily remain tribals with a totally different set of myths and beliefs from traditional Hinduism) is constantly emphasised.
Shekhar's language is sexually explicit, which is what might have disturbed the self-appointed guardians of morality. (For example, Merely a Whore which deals with the life of a prostitute, is filled with lewd imagery sometimes bordering on the disgusting.) One might be excused for thinking that the author purposefully makes it so: to shock the reader into awareness of the degradation that the adivasi is subjected to on a daily basis.
These stories are explicitly political but does not resort to sloganeering. In addition to the subservient and downtrodden souls, we have a few firebrands here who raise spirited if lonely voices of protest: the housewives who frighten away a mob of murderous Hindus from a Muslim's house during the Gujarat riots, using kitchen utensils as missiles (They Eat Meat!), the girl who chooses to get impregnated by her lover before her wedding as a mark of protest (Blue Boy); and the narrator of the title story, The Adivasi Will Not Dance, who refuses to perform before the President as a protest for the land of his people which has been taken away.
When I first heard the term 'Dalit Literature' some time ago, I could not understand its significance; how could a person's caste influence his writing. Now I know. Like feminist literature, it is a whole new way of self-expression. Writing here is an active form of resistance of the subaltern against a system which is hell-bent on crushing him.
You will kill me? He asks. Fine! You have the power to do so. But I will go down fighting!
The Adivasi will not dance to your tune anymore, my dear sirs.
January 18, 2023
Ten short stories
I like the writing and the various important topics/themes the stories brought up. Most of them deals with daily slice of life kind of events and the characters are quite the people we know of or familiar with in our day-to-day lives.
However, what stood out was the effortless blending of the cultural and ethnicity elements in the writing in each story.
I feel we must read such story collections for the sake of knowing more about the tribal groups we have less idea about. Regardless of the fact that it's still fiction yet the stories and the characters are quite real. The downtrodden and how they're being abused; the rich taking advantage of the poor and helpless, most of these stories paint a very realistic world of suffering and the struggles of such women.
I was not at all impressed with the overuse of swear words repeatedly in a few parts.
*Contents:
They Eat Meat!
4 🌟
*Culture shock, riots
Well, a family which loves eating meat tries to adapt in Vadodara without it and how the story ended will leave you thinking for days.
What matters the most to you?
Sons
4 🌟
*Social dilemma
The things we have to bear to be "nice"
What's a grand palace when the beings inside are rotting?
Upbringing matters
November Is the Month of Migrations
4 🌟
*How people take advantage of the less privileged
*Misusing power and authority
*Sexual assault
Getting Even
5🌟
False accusations, assault, caste discrimination
Eating With the Enemy
3🌟
*Domestic violence, self-harm, suicidal tendencies, assault
Blue Baby
3🌟
*Manipulation and manipulation, infidelity
Baso-jhi
4 🌟
*Story about a woman called Baso, found family but then how women are judged endlessly and stereotyped ruining lives for nothing
*Domestic violence
Desire, Divination, Death
5🌟
The struggles of a poor widow
Merely a Whore
1🌟
It could have been written without all the explicit scenes
I wish I could unread this one
The Adivasi Will Not Dance
5🌟
*The sufferings of the minorities, how far they have come and how far they have to go
*Riots and protests
I like the writing and the various important topics/themes the stories brought up. Most of them deals with daily slice of life kind of events and the characters are quite the people we know of or familiar with in our day-to-day lives.
However, what stood out was the effortless blending of the cultural and ethnicity elements in the writing in each story.
I feel we must read such story collections for the sake of knowing more about the tribal groups we have less idea about. Regardless of the fact that it's still fiction yet the stories and the characters are quite real. The downtrodden and how they're being abused; the rich taking advantage of the poor and helpless, most of these stories paint a very realistic world of suffering and the struggles of such women.
I was not at all impressed with the overuse of swear words repeatedly in a few parts.
*Contents:
They Eat Meat!
4 🌟
*Culture shock, riots
Well, a family which loves eating meat tries to adapt in Vadodara without it and how the story ended will leave you thinking for days.
What matters the most to you?
Sons
4 🌟
*Social dilemma
The things we have to bear to be "nice"
What's a grand palace when the beings inside are rotting?
Upbringing matters
November Is the Month of Migrations
4 🌟
*How people take advantage of the less privileged
*Misusing power and authority
*Sexual assault
Getting Even
5🌟
False accusations, assault, caste discrimination
Eating With the Enemy
3🌟
*Domestic violence, self-harm, suicidal tendencies, assault
Blue Baby
3🌟
*Manipulation and manipulation, infidelity
Baso-jhi
4 🌟
*Story about a woman called Baso, found family but then how women are judged endlessly and stereotyped ruining lives for nothing
*Domestic violence
Desire, Divination, Death
5🌟
The struggles of a poor widow
Merely a Whore
1🌟
It could have been written without all the explicit scenes
I wish I could unread this one
The Adivasi Will Not Dance
5🌟
*The sufferings of the minorities, how far they have come and how far they have to go
*Riots and protests
September 9, 2018
This book was recently marred by controversy where in it was banned for "painting the Santhals (a tribal community) in a bad light". Thankfully, better sense prevailed wherein the author was acquitted of the charges. After reading the book, I was bemused at the charge being levied in the first place, then again, in this age of outrage, it takes very little for "hurt feelings". On second thoughts, I can imagine some people making a hoopla over it, the stories are raw and rustic, feature unabashed sexual activity and promiscuity and the characters are flawed and impulsive. The supposed puritan society of ours which turns it face on the very mention of sex (while being the second most populated country of the world and bound to become the first in the future) would be made uncomfortable by it. And it's not glamorous, it's not taking place in exotic locales and among supposedly beautiful people of Bollywood, it's rural, it's tribal, it's realistic, it's raw with some graphic description. Add to that its references to anti-establishment sentiments owing to the neglect that the tribals have been facing, it was bound to rub a few people the wrong way.
The stories of the book are set in the community of the tribals who are native to the Jharkhand region, and the culture that is exhibited is a mix of Jharkhandi-Odia-Bengali. Being from the region I could relate to a lot of the references to food, slang, cultural practices,etc mentioned in the book. It might not be that clear for someone who isn't familiar with the region and the author doesn't always provide the translation/description. It was a burst of nostalgia for me which made the book more relatable.
It brings forward the socio-political apathy that the tribals have been facing. As the chariot of "development" rolls forwards, these communities are the ones who stand to lose a lot: their homes, their land, their culture. Sure, progress is needed, it provides jobs and modern amenities, urbanisation, a shift from agriculture (which isn't always profitable for them) but it brings with it its own evils in the form of crony capitalism, abject exploitation, state-sanctioned land grab, destruction of traditional farming, pastoral and hunting/gathering land, human rights abuses, migration and ecological damage especially in the context of the predominantly mining and industrial push in the area. The stories work together really well to provide a picture of what the region is going through, it shows the cumulative effect of the various factors which have ravaged the area.
Would definitely recommend this book.
The stories of the book are set in the community of the tribals who are native to the Jharkhand region, and the culture that is exhibited is a mix of Jharkhandi-Odia-Bengali. Being from the region I could relate to a lot of the references to food, slang, cultural practices,etc mentioned in the book. It might not be that clear for someone who isn't familiar with the region and the author doesn't always provide the translation/description. It was a burst of nostalgia for me which made the book more relatable.
It brings forward the socio-political apathy that the tribals have been facing. As the chariot of "development" rolls forwards, these communities are the ones who stand to lose a lot: their homes, their land, their culture. Sure, progress is needed, it provides jobs and modern amenities, urbanisation, a shift from agriculture (which isn't always profitable for them) but it brings with it its own evils in the form of crony capitalism, abject exploitation, state-sanctioned land grab, destruction of traditional farming, pastoral and hunting/gathering land, human rights abuses, migration and ecological damage especially in the context of the predominantly mining and industrial push in the area. The stories work together really well to provide a picture of what the region is going through, it shows the cumulative effect of the various factors which have ravaged the area.
Would definitely recommend this book.
December 13, 2015
4.5 stars
I had liked Hansda Sowendra Shekhar’s debut novel The Mysterious Ailment of Rupi Baskey very much, but with a few reservations that its rich and vivid detailing perhaps didn’t probe deeply enough into its characters’ predicament. As Shekhar returns with this collection of short stories he makes good on that concern. The ten stories in The Adivasi Will Not Dance cover a larger canvas and deftly lay bare the lives of ordinary people – a Central government tribal official’s family transferred to vegetarian Gujarat, a doctor summoned in to do a medical examination in an unusual rape, a migrant farm labourer, a cheating bride, a factory worker hurrying home to an ill child, a whore who makes the mistake of falling in love with a client, a musical troupe leader who refuses to dance before the President of India, are some of the characters who feature prominently. What I like about Shekhar’s writing is that it is simple, lucid and unsentimental and though issues of Adivasi identity are central to his work he never loses sight of the larger human story, doesn’t beat the tumdak too loudly on issues of injustice and oppression leaving the readers to put the picture together for themselves. Shekhar’s delineation of sex scenes (and there are plenty) can be hard hitting in its honest, unromantic and almost brutal detailing but the forthright tone distinguishes his writing and gives it a trademark earthiness which I admire much.
In addition to the title story I particularly liked November Is the Month of Migrations, Desire, Divination, Death and Merely a Whore.
I had liked Hansda Sowendra Shekhar’s debut novel The Mysterious Ailment of Rupi Baskey very much, but with a few reservations that its rich and vivid detailing perhaps didn’t probe deeply enough into its characters’ predicament. As Shekhar returns with this collection of short stories he makes good on that concern. The ten stories in The Adivasi Will Not Dance cover a larger canvas and deftly lay bare the lives of ordinary people – a Central government tribal official’s family transferred to vegetarian Gujarat, a doctor summoned in to do a medical examination in an unusual rape, a migrant farm labourer, a cheating bride, a factory worker hurrying home to an ill child, a whore who makes the mistake of falling in love with a client, a musical troupe leader who refuses to dance before the President of India, are some of the characters who feature prominently. What I like about Shekhar’s writing is that it is simple, lucid and unsentimental and though issues of Adivasi identity are central to his work he never loses sight of the larger human story, doesn’t beat the tumdak too loudly on issues of injustice and oppression leaving the readers to put the picture together for themselves. Shekhar’s delineation of sex scenes (and there are plenty) can be hard hitting in its honest, unromantic and almost brutal detailing but the forthright tone distinguishes his writing and gives it a trademark earthiness which I admire much.
In addition to the title story I particularly liked November Is the Month of Migrations, Desire, Divination, Death and Merely a Whore.
September 19, 2017
(Detailed review coming up)
Edit :
The reason the book intrigued me was the fact that it was banned due to “political” reasons in Jharkhand. The offended lot, who incidentally were Santhal people only, said that the Santhal women have been wrongly portrayed, that some details are even “pornographic” in nature. The author was suspended from his position of a medical officer for writing this book, for writing what he felt about his own culture. Yes, the writer is an Adivasi himself from the Santhal tribe. Who can tell the world about his own tribe other than the person living and breathing it all the time? I found the ban and the suspension strange. So I decided to do what I do fairly okayish. Read and analyze what might have gone wrong.
Yes, the book is disturbing in some places. Especially the story in question, “November is for Migration”. This was the story that irked all who were offended. The portrayal is as raw as raw could go. I flinched. Cried a few tears as well. But you know what I found the strangest? This wasn’t really a story of one Santhal woman or even sex/porn. It was a story of extreme poverty. It was a story of trying to get two pakoras to feed a hungry stomach. The meaning of “survival” laid bare without any unnecessary sheens of tact. While we sit in our cemented houses and do not give a second thought before wasting that extra pakora off, this is a story of a woman who was hungry for quite a while, and decided to do what she has been told she does the best.
The strange thing is, clearly everyone from the offended lot decided to ignore the hunger and desperation and chose to focus on the sex part of it. This brings us to the heavier question – morality or survival? And no, let us not attempt answering that question unless we have been really hungry till our bones ache and we still have chosen morality despite death looming over our heads.
I believe such books should be written, for if no one shows the world the ugly truth that other humans are being subjected to, nothing would change. I also gave a thought as to who has the right to be offended. The people about whom the book is written, yes. Offence should be taken, else there is no learning. But offence unfortunately is taken to remain stubbornly regressive and that is disconcerting. If things weren’t written about Sati in the past, we would still have wives burning at the pyre of their husbands. Someone who witnessed this, took offence and decided to turn things around.
There are other stories in the book too. It is a compilation of short stories and there are some brilliantly liberating short stories as well. The story that tore my heart up was about a woman who was ostracized by her own sons as a "dahini" or a witch. Brutality knows no bounds when one is blinded by superstition.
It is an introduction to tribal life for the novices like me who have been gorging our privileges quite unconsciously. I would recommend the book as a must read because a peep into the lives of those who were born on the wrong side of the caste structure is the need of the day.
Edit :
The reason the book intrigued me was the fact that it was banned due to “political” reasons in Jharkhand. The offended lot, who incidentally were Santhal people only, said that the Santhal women have been wrongly portrayed, that some details are even “pornographic” in nature. The author was suspended from his position of a medical officer for writing this book, for writing what he felt about his own culture. Yes, the writer is an Adivasi himself from the Santhal tribe. Who can tell the world about his own tribe other than the person living and breathing it all the time? I found the ban and the suspension strange. So I decided to do what I do fairly okayish. Read and analyze what might have gone wrong.
Yes, the book is disturbing in some places. Especially the story in question, “November is for Migration”. This was the story that irked all who were offended. The portrayal is as raw as raw could go. I flinched. Cried a few tears as well. But you know what I found the strangest? This wasn’t really a story of one Santhal woman or even sex/porn. It was a story of extreme poverty. It was a story of trying to get two pakoras to feed a hungry stomach. The meaning of “survival” laid bare without any unnecessary sheens of tact. While we sit in our cemented houses and do not give a second thought before wasting that extra pakora off, this is a story of a woman who was hungry for quite a while, and decided to do what she has been told she does the best.
The strange thing is, clearly everyone from the offended lot decided to ignore the hunger and desperation and chose to focus on the sex part of it. This brings us to the heavier question – morality or survival? And no, let us not attempt answering that question unless we have been really hungry till our bones ache and we still have chosen morality despite death looming over our heads.
I believe such books should be written, for if no one shows the world the ugly truth that other humans are being subjected to, nothing would change. I also gave a thought as to who has the right to be offended. The people about whom the book is written, yes. Offence should be taken, else there is no learning. But offence unfortunately is taken to remain stubbornly regressive and that is disconcerting. If things weren’t written about Sati in the past, we would still have wives burning at the pyre of their husbands. Someone who witnessed this, took offence and decided to turn things around.
There are other stories in the book too. It is a compilation of short stories and there are some brilliantly liberating short stories as well. The story that tore my heart up was about a woman who was ostracized by her own sons as a "dahini" or a witch. Brutality knows no bounds when one is blinded by superstition.
It is an introduction to tribal life for the novices like me who have been gorging our privileges quite unconsciously. I would recommend the book as a must read because a peep into the lives of those who were born on the wrong side of the caste structure is the need of the day.
February 11, 2020
I like reading regional literature because its the only way I can grasp India's diversity and learn about the different communities.
I really enjoyed this collection. The stories were simple and raw. They were a bit like Manto's stories; slice of life, introspective and amusing. I enjoyed some stories more than the others though. And a few made me slightly uncomfortable.
I really enjoyed this collection. The stories were simple and raw. They were a bit like Manto's stories; slice of life, introspective and amusing. I enjoyed some stories more than the others though. And a few made me slightly uncomfortable.
February 28, 2020
India, as we all know, is a land of diverse cultures, different peoples, customs, languages and lifestyles. Some of us get to experience that diversity through travel, visiting places and finding people as they are, relishing the experiences thus gained. For the rest and most of us, books offer a window into that vastness and one resolution that I had for 2020 is to explore the works by regional authors, be it fiction or otherwise. This book was one such a choice and what a choice it turned out to be!
When it comes to writing works of fiction that represent a particular culture, the authors can choose to depict either a rosy picture, portraying their culture as supremely special or they can present the reality as it is, letting us frame our own opinions about the things thus presented. Needless to say, most of the while, it is the works of latter styles that prove to be impactful. Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar, fortunately for us all, has chosen the second style.
This book, a collection of ten short stories will shock you and leave you with haunting memories. Like a raw wound, unattended and uncovered, this collection of stories will shock you, disgust you, invoke pity and a sense of helpless anger. Strangely, this book will also leave you wanting for more. Some stories, like that of Baso-jhi, a orphaned widow shunned by all and sundry, or that of Shubhashini, trying to reach home to her ailing son, will both invoke a sense of deep pity. Some other stories, like the couple who move across the country to Gujarat only to witness the fateful riots of 2002, or the plea of the ageing Santhal tribal who dared defy the ‘system’, will both stoke sentiments of a political nature. Stories of a prostitute who hopes for a better life or the servant maid whose moods change at the sight of money, both cause a deep sense of disgust. Equally impactful are the other four stories, each one certain to induce strong emotions in their own way.
The language is unpolished and yet unblemished. Though the author could have toned down the depiction of physical intimacy, which borders on pornography, it certainly doesn’t feel like cheap titillation. One negative though is the frequent use of vernacular with no meaning offered either as a footnote or endnote. Of course, one can interpret the meaning in the course of the stories, but still I would have loved to see the meanings shared separately.
There is an undertone of sadness that grips readers of the great Saadat Hasan Manto. A similar angst is bound to grip you as you finish reading this book and that I believe is the success of Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar. A memorable read!
When it comes to writing works of fiction that represent a particular culture, the authors can choose to depict either a rosy picture, portraying their culture as supremely special or they can present the reality as it is, letting us frame our own opinions about the things thus presented. Needless to say, most of the while, it is the works of latter styles that prove to be impactful. Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar, fortunately for us all, has chosen the second style.
This book, a collection of ten short stories will shock you and leave you with haunting memories. Like a raw wound, unattended and uncovered, this collection of stories will shock you, disgust you, invoke pity and a sense of helpless anger. Strangely, this book will also leave you wanting for more. Some stories, like that of Baso-jhi, a orphaned widow shunned by all and sundry, or that of Shubhashini, trying to reach home to her ailing son, will both invoke a sense of deep pity. Some other stories, like the couple who move across the country to Gujarat only to witness the fateful riots of 2002, or the plea of the ageing Santhal tribal who dared defy the ‘system’, will both stoke sentiments of a political nature. Stories of a prostitute who hopes for a better life or the servant maid whose moods change at the sight of money, both cause a deep sense of disgust. Equally impactful are the other four stories, each one certain to induce strong emotions in their own way.
The language is unpolished and yet unblemished. Though the author could have toned down the depiction of physical intimacy, which borders on pornography, it certainly doesn’t feel like cheap titillation. One negative though is the frequent use of vernacular with no meaning offered either as a footnote or endnote. Of course, one can interpret the meaning in the course of the stories, but still I would have loved to see the meanings shared separately.
There is an undertone of sadness that grips readers of the great Saadat Hasan Manto. A similar angst is bound to grip you as you finish reading this book and that I believe is the success of Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar. A memorable read!
February 10, 2020
"I'm writing this just so you all can realize understand and appreciate how good and blessed it is the kind of lives you all live."
"நீங்க எவ்ளோ நல்ல, ஆசிர்வதிக்கப்பட்ட தொரு வாழ்க்கைய வாழ்ந்து கொண்டுருகீங்கன்னு நீங்க புரிஞ்சுக்குறதுக்காக நான் இத எழுதுறேன்."
This I have taken from the opening narration of a Tamil movie Peranbu (2018) as I felt the same context relevant to this collected short stories of Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar. This collection has been banned in the State of Jharkand, as many of the people may already know, because of its portrayal of Santhal community people in 'derogatory' and 'obscene' ways. The stories filled with people toiling with numbness, humiliation, hopelessness; people trying to survive at the cost of their self respect and their ways of living. The writer has used this artistic platform and expressed the frustration and cultural oppression faced by Adivasi people in the name of acculturation, development, and other conflict of values from mainstream cultural perspectives.
How cruel it is of me or anyone to expect someone to live in certain ways just because I think it is the correct way without giving a damn about their ways of living. There's no liberal or conservative talking point here. Both have failed them. We all have. Irrespective of all the efforts being done, tribals remain the most voiceless among the oppressed and the exploited in which most of those don't even know the meaning of oppression and exploitation in the first place.
"It is this coal, sir, which is gobbling us up bit by bit. Our children - dark skinned as they are - are forever covered with fine black dust. When they cry, and tears stream down their faces, it seems as if a river is cutting across a drought-stricken land."
"Diku children go to schools and colleges, get education, jobs. What do we Santhals get? We Santhals can sing and dance, and we are good at our art. Yet, what had our art given us? Displacement, tuberculosis."
I've never felt this alive and tormenting myself mentally reading an Indian author before.
"நீங்க எவ்ளோ நல்ல, ஆசிர்வதிக்கப்பட்ட தொரு வாழ்க்கைய வாழ்ந்து கொண்டுருகீங்கன்னு நீங்க புரிஞ்சுக்குறதுக்காக நான் இத எழுதுறேன்."
This I have taken from the opening narration of a Tamil movie Peranbu (2018) as I felt the same context relevant to this collected short stories of Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar. This collection has been banned in the State of Jharkand, as many of the people may already know, because of its portrayal of Santhal community people in 'derogatory' and 'obscene' ways. The stories filled with people toiling with numbness, humiliation, hopelessness; people trying to survive at the cost of their self respect and their ways of living. The writer has used this artistic platform and expressed the frustration and cultural oppression faced by Adivasi people in the name of acculturation, development, and other conflict of values from mainstream cultural perspectives.
How cruel it is of me or anyone to expect someone to live in certain ways just because I think it is the correct way without giving a damn about their ways of living. There's no liberal or conservative talking point here. Both have failed them. We all have. Irrespective of all the efforts being done, tribals remain the most voiceless among the oppressed and the exploited in which most of those don't even know the meaning of oppression and exploitation in the first place.
"It is this coal, sir, which is gobbling us up bit by bit. Our children - dark skinned as they are - are forever covered with fine black dust. When they cry, and tears stream down their faces, it seems as if a river is cutting across a drought-stricken land."
"Diku children go to schools and colleges, get education, jobs. What do we Santhals get? We Santhals can sing and dance, and we are good at our art. Yet, what had our art given us? Displacement, tuberculosis."
I've never felt this alive and tormenting myself mentally reading an Indian author before.
August 17, 2019
A collection of stories set in the culturally and mineral-rich land of Jharkhand, ‘The Adivasi Will Not Dance’ features a singular and unapologetic voice that will make you aware of the actual problems of a community that has been pushed down the ladder of development.
Shekhar’s stories comprise of characters devoid of so many facilities in the name of development. This collection has stories that are diverse yet converge at one singular point that is built on deprivation, social injustice, bureaucracy, and marginalization.
When troupe master Mangal Murmu declines to perform the traditional ‘Santhal’ dance in front of the president of India, he is beaten mercilessly. But the government doesn’t know the reasons underlying this aggression, that Mangal Murmu is being forced to leave his land because some company from far away wants to take over his ancestral land for electricity production. It is not just about him, but hundreds of villages being displaced in order to build concrete houses and main roads for settlers who don’t belong here. Extensive mining poses another problem as their farms are confiscated and soil dug out to extract coal that will later be shipped to other parts of the country.
The collection also has stories from the ‘Santhal’ community. Stories of black magic, that is a major belief in these regions and stories of exploitation and abuse within a family. Their stories give us a glimpse of their day to day life, keeping us more grounded and turning these stories about social problems into something humane.
Each story is captivating and realistic. The unyielding narration can be proved by the fact that the book was later banned in Jharkhand as it misrepresented Santhal Women (which is debatable, given the current scenario). As a resident of this place, this story hits home. The author’s purpose is to bring facts into the light and he does that without any fuss. Progress in Jharkhand has come with a price and this book is an eye-opener.
Shekhar’s stories comprise of characters devoid of so many facilities in the name of development. This collection has stories that are diverse yet converge at one singular point that is built on deprivation, social injustice, bureaucracy, and marginalization.
When troupe master Mangal Murmu declines to perform the traditional ‘Santhal’ dance in front of the president of India, he is beaten mercilessly. But the government doesn’t know the reasons underlying this aggression, that Mangal Murmu is being forced to leave his land because some company from far away wants to take over his ancestral land for electricity production. It is not just about him, but hundreds of villages being displaced in order to build concrete houses and main roads for settlers who don’t belong here. Extensive mining poses another problem as their farms are confiscated and soil dug out to extract coal that will later be shipped to other parts of the country.
The collection also has stories from the ‘Santhal’ community. Stories of black magic, that is a major belief in these regions and stories of exploitation and abuse within a family. Their stories give us a glimpse of their day to day life, keeping us more grounded and turning these stories about social problems into something humane.
Each story is captivating and realistic. The unyielding narration can be proved by the fact that the book was later banned in Jharkhand as it misrepresented Santhal Women (which is debatable, given the current scenario). As a resident of this place, this story hits home. The author’s purpose is to bring facts into the light and he does that without any fuss. Progress in Jharkhand has come with a price and this book is an eye-opener.
May 17, 2021
• r e c o m m e n d a t i o n •
Have you ever wondered why certain books are banned? Is it because authors spin yards of lie or because the governments are afraid that the truth will finally make people see things for what they are, without the rose tinted glasses? Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar was suspended from his job as a medical officer when he published this book. The government then went on to impose a ban on it. So what's so scandalous about this book, you ask? Truth. Truth about the injustice and unfairness that the Santhal community are put through even to this day. Santhals are the largest tribe in Jharkhand and I knew next to nothing about them until I read this book of short stories.
In the ten stories that are within this book, majority of them are narrated by female protagonists. Shekhar very cleverly uses an engaging tale to start the book with, thus captivating our attention. Not only do they carry different themes but even the characters are diverse in nature. There's one of bold women taking matters into their own hands to look after a neighbour but the other story is about a prostitute who thinks she has a shot at a normal life but eventually falls prey to the society's idea of chasteness. He also makes it a point to starkly highlight caste differences that are so common in rural areas. Some may find the stories crass and even sexist but I loved how Shekhar has managed to retain the authenticity of the characters. The last chapter is the one after which the book is named after and it also ended up being my favourite. An adivasi refuses to dance for the mere entertainment of the privileged. And this ties up all the chapters into a neat bundle.
These are stories of defiance, submission, oppressed and also bravery. I couldn't have chosen a better book for this month's #readingindia project. Thanks to @theobviousmystery @every.turn.a.story and @deepthi.m__ for hosting this.
4.5/5.
P.S. My only problem was that of a missing glossary.
Have you ever wondered why certain books are banned? Is it because authors spin yards of lie or because the governments are afraid that the truth will finally make people see things for what they are, without the rose tinted glasses? Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar was suspended from his job as a medical officer when he published this book. The government then went on to impose a ban on it. So what's so scandalous about this book, you ask? Truth. Truth about the injustice and unfairness that the Santhal community are put through even to this day. Santhals are the largest tribe in Jharkhand and I knew next to nothing about them until I read this book of short stories.
In the ten stories that are within this book, majority of them are narrated by female protagonists. Shekhar very cleverly uses an engaging tale to start the book with, thus captivating our attention. Not only do they carry different themes but even the characters are diverse in nature. There's one of bold women taking matters into their own hands to look after a neighbour but the other story is about a prostitute who thinks she has a shot at a normal life but eventually falls prey to the society's idea of chasteness. He also makes it a point to starkly highlight caste differences that are so common in rural areas. Some may find the stories crass and even sexist but I loved how Shekhar has managed to retain the authenticity of the characters. The last chapter is the one after which the book is named after and it also ended up being my favourite. An adivasi refuses to dance for the mere entertainment of the privileged. And this ties up all the chapters into a neat bundle.
These are stories of defiance, submission, oppressed and also bravery. I couldn't have chosen a better book for this month's #readingindia project. Thanks to @theobviousmystery @every.turn.a.story and @deepthi.m__ for hosting this.
4.5/5.
P.S. My only problem was that of a missing glossary.
December 3, 2017
The stories were compelling, but the narrative had a terrible male gaze and in some places, was downright sleazy.
July 21, 2020
Spectacular display of the short story writer's craft - the best of these stories are as good as any short you'll ever read. It's not hard to see why the authorities banned this book and why the author nearly lost his government doctor's job too. Shekhar's prose is brutal, graphic, desperate, matching the violence of that grimy patch of Indian earth it is his lot to serve and inhabit. This is none other than Jharkhand province, the very underbelly of the neoliberal sham that is otherwise known to the world as Incredible India. Here in a few pithy lines, Shekhar sets out his stall:
"Sarjomdih, which for about sixty years was another nondescript dot on a map. That part of the Chhotanagpur area which is now formally known as the Purbi Singbhum district. Sarjomdih, where most of the population is Santhal and the rest are Munda; all of them are followers of Sarna, the aboriginal faith of the Chhotanagpur area. Saijomdih, which stands atop the mineral-rich core of the Indian subcontinent. Sarjomdih, outside whose southern frontiers a mine and a copper factory were established, where the Copper Town sprang up, and which was now gradually threatening to swallow all of Sarjomdih. Sarjomdih, which bore the repercussions of development, the nationalization of the mine and the factory, the opening up of two more quarries, and the confiscation of the villagers' properties so roads and living quarters could be built. Sarjomdih, whose men were given jobs as unskilled laborers in the mines and the factory in return for their fecund land. Sarjomdih, which is a standing testimony to the collapse of an agrarian Adivasi society and the dilution of Adivasi culture, the twin gifts of industrialization and progress. Sarjomdih, which within sixty years acquired all the signs of urbanity, just like the Copper Town: concrete houses; cable television; two-wheelers; a hand-pump; a narrow, winding tarmac that everyone called the 'main road'; and a primary school..."
There you have it, the dusty east of India laid bare, the lives of its indigenous people turned inside out by a rapacious capitalism that started at least three decades ago with the Manmohan reforms (and perhaps going back even earlier). Jharkhand echoes the same physical and mental landscape as Bihar, home district of Balram Halwai, the once and forever literary hero of this other India. Balram, for all his social climbing genius, would have felt perfectly comfortable among these people in Jharkhand, eternally losing in their battle to live with a shred of dignity, most of the time struggling even to survive. Three words repeated themselves insistently in my reading of this book - sweat, semen, coaldust.. sweat, semen and coaldust - there is just so much filth and desperation here that after a while the reader himself is benumbed under the impact of so many hammerblows. And the sex. Boy oh boy, the cruel, relentless, explicit sex in the pages of this book, from Gita fucking her boyfriend one last time on the eve of her wedding to the prostitute Sona getting her ass rammed by the hired muscle Nirmal. It can even seem as if sex and violence provide the only release from a life of almost continuous brutality and debasement.
My favorites here are "They Eat Meat!" (about the Ahmedabad riots), the short and matter-of-fact sex-for-food story "November is the Month of Migrations", "Getting Even" where Shekhar echoes one Dr Mikhail Bulgakov a century before him, "Blue Baby" which is a fucking masterpiece, and "Merely A Whore", playground of the above-mentioned, and ill-fated, Sona and Nirmal. And all this is even before I've read the final title story, of which I have equally high hopes.
A word here on Shekhar's Santhal origins, which are beautifully reflected in his compassion and understanding for his hopeless characters. There is quite a lot the uninformed reader could pick up about Santhal life; for a Bengali reader like me, the pleasant surprise was finding out just how much in common our languages share. Not for Shekhar the pandering and whitesplaining inherent in footnotes and glossaries. He rejects all that shit and presents his world as is, on his own terms, take it or leave it. I take it, and I want more.
"Sarjomdih, which for about sixty years was another nondescript dot on a map. That part of the Chhotanagpur area which is now formally known as the Purbi Singbhum district. Sarjomdih, where most of the population is Santhal and the rest are Munda; all of them are followers of Sarna, the aboriginal faith of the Chhotanagpur area. Saijomdih, which stands atop the mineral-rich core of the Indian subcontinent. Sarjomdih, outside whose southern frontiers a mine and a copper factory were established, where the Copper Town sprang up, and which was now gradually threatening to swallow all of Sarjomdih. Sarjomdih, which bore the repercussions of development, the nationalization of the mine and the factory, the opening up of two more quarries, and the confiscation of the villagers' properties so roads and living quarters could be built. Sarjomdih, whose men were given jobs as unskilled laborers in the mines and the factory in return for their fecund land. Sarjomdih, which is a standing testimony to the collapse of an agrarian Adivasi society and the dilution of Adivasi culture, the twin gifts of industrialization and progress. Sarjomdih, which within sixty years acquired all the signs of urbanity, just like the Copper Town: concrete houses; cable television; two-wheelers; a hand-pump; a narrow, winding tarmac that everyone called the 'main road'; and a primary school..."
There you have it, the dusty east of India laid bare, the lives of its indigenous people turned inside out by a rapacious capitalism that started at least three decades ago with the Manmohan reforms (and perhaps going back even earlier). Jharkhand echoes the same physical and mental landscape as Bihar, home district of Balram Halwai, the once and forever literary hero of this other India. Balram, for all his social climbing genius, would have felt perfectly comfortable among these people in Jharkhand, eternally losing in their battle to live with a shred of dignity, most of the time struggling even to survive. Three words repeated themselves insistently in my reading of this book - sweat, semen, coaldust.. sweat, semen and coaldust - there is just so much filth and desperation here that after a while the reader himself is benumbed under the impact of so many hammerblows. And the sex. Boy oh boy, the cruel, relentless, explicit sex in the pages of this book, from Gita fucking her boyfriend one last time on the eve of her wedding to the prostitute Sona getting her ass rammed by the hired muscle Nirmal. It can even seem as if sex and violence provide the only release from a life of almost continuous brutality and debasement.
My favorites here are "They Eat Meat!" (about the Ahmedabad riots), the short and matter-of-fact sex-for-food story "November is the Month of Migrations", "Getting Even" where Shekhar echoes one Dr Mikhail Bulgakov a century before him, "Blue Baby" which is a fucking masterpiece, and "Merely A Whore", playground of the above-mentioned, and ill-fated, Sona and Nirmal. And all this is even before I've read the final title story, of which I have equally high hopes.
A word here on Shekhar's Santhal origins, which are beautifully reflected in his compassion and understanding for his hopeless characters. There is quite a lot the uninformed reader could pick up about Santhal life; for a Bengali reader like me, the pleasant surprise was finding out just how much in common our languages share. Not for Shekhar the pandering and whitesplaining inherent in footnotes and glossaries. He rejects all that shit and presents his world as is, on his own terms, take it or leave it. I take it, and I want more.
January 5, 2017
In Desire, Divination, Death, a widow, hurrying home down the road through the villages to an ill son, is accosted by a hungry child. Another woman, the eponymous Baso-jhi, finds a welcoming new home—before a sense of déjà vu sets in. A young girl does a bit of quick, well-paying work for a stranger while waiting for transport. Another woman, a popular and accomplished prostitute, pins her hopes for a settled life on a client whom she begs for kisses on the lips…
Some of my favourite characters from Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar’s collection of short stories, The Adivasi Will Not Dance, are women. Strong women, sensitive women. Foolish women, wise women. Long-suffering women, women who refuse to learn from their mistakes. Maligned women, esteemed women. Women who gossip and the women they gossip about. Prostitutes and servants, mistresses and the wives they help wrong. Women of every shade and hue, their emotions understood and portrayed brilliantly.
This is a very diverse collection of stories, ranging all the way from the relatively long Eating With the Enemy, in which the gullible Sulochona entrusts much of her life to the woman who was once her husband’s mistress, to the very short but powerful November Is the Month of Migrations, in which Talamai has a brief, businesslike encounter with a policeman. There are stories of betrayal and of surprisingly heartwarming support from those one may have considered one’s enemies. Of the issues that beset the Santhals (The Adivasi Will Not Dance, even if it is garbed as a story, is really an essay on the horrendous exploitation of Jharkhand and its indigenous people). Stories of relationships, emotional and sexual and social and political.
Shekhar has a way of creating atmosphere, of using words to bring to life the Jharkhand he writes about: its people, their way of life, their problems. You can almost smell the soil and the sweat, taste the singharas dipped in ghugni and dahi, see the trekar racing down the road in a cloud of dust, a young khalasi clinging to its step. He brings Jharkhand and the Santhals to you.
Highly recommended.
Some of my favourite characters from Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar’s collection of short stories, The Adivasi Will Not Dance, are women. Strong women, sensitive women. Foolish women, wise women. Long-suffering women, women who refuse to learn from their mistakes. Maligned women, esteemed women. Women who gossip and the women they gossip about. Prostitutes and servants, mistresses and the wives they help wrong. Women of every shade and hue, their emotions understood and portrayed brilliantly.
This is a very diverse collection of stories, ranging all the way from the relatively long Eating With the Enemy, in which the gullible Sulochona entrusts much of her life to the woman who was once her husband’s mistress, to the very short but powerful November Is the Month of Migrations, in which Talamai has a brief, businesslike encounter with a policeman. There are stories of betrayal and of surprisingly heartwarming support from those one may have considered one’s enemies. Of the issues that beset the Santhals (The Adivasi Will Not Dance, even if it is garbed as a story, is really an essay on the horrendous exploitation of Jharkhand and its indigenous people). Stories of relationships, emotional and sexual and social and political.
Shekhar has a way of creating atmosphere, of using words to bring to life the Jharkhand he writes about: its people, their way of life, their problems. You can almost smell the soil and the sweat, taste the singharas dipped in ghugni and dahi, see the trekar racing down the road in a cloud of dust, a young khalasi clinging to its step. He brings Jharkhand and the Santhals to you.
Highly recommended.
September 25, 2018
3.5 stars
Shekhar’s writing is raw and there are moments of brilliance: the title story should be part of the national school curriculum. The adivasi will not and should not dance for anyone.
Overall, an interesting collection of stories and Shekhar is a much-needed voice in the south Asian literary landscape. I found the gratuitous scenes of graphic sexual violence very difficult to read and wonder how these stories and scenes in particular would have read rinsed clean of the obvious male gaze. I wait for the day a Santhal woman author creates a stir in India.
Shekhar’s writing is raw and there are moments of brilliance: the title story should be part of the national school curriculum. The adivasi will not and should not dance for anyone.
Overall, an interesting collection of stories and Shekhar is a much-needed voice in the south Asian literary landscape. I found the gratuitous scenes of graphic sexual violence very difficult to read and wonder how these stories and scenes in particular would have read rinsed clean of the obvious male gaze. I wait for the day a Santhal woman author creates a stir in India.
July 2, 2021
Each story rattles you in a different way, the prose flows with perfection. This is a crucial work from the margins in the mainly elite dominated Indian English writings.
November 17, 2020
This was a great story collection, covering a lot of ground through various characters and providing a very textured portrayal of the Santhal community. No bad stories here, though some were very short and felt a little truncated, and the titular The Adivasi Will Not Dance was a stand-out for me.
I was surprised to learn that this book ran into some controversy on its release. Having read through it, I am glad to hear that the author was acquitted of any charges. Personally, I felt that his is a kind of voice we definitely need more of, even (especially) when he is not engaged in providing a unquestioned, rosy images in his work.
Highly recommended for fans of Indian fiction.
(Some stories in the collection include explicit scenes of rape and sexual violence, including involving minors. Please take care while reading!)
I was surprised to learn that this book ran into some controversy on its release. Having read through it, I am glad to hear that the author was acquitted of any charges. Personally, I felt that his is a kind of voice we definitely need more of, even (especially) when he is not engaged in providing a unquestioned, rosy images in his work.
Highly recommended for fans of Indian fiction.
(Some stories in the collection include explicit scenes of rape and sexual violence, including involving minors. Please take care while reading!)
November 13, 2020
When I finished this book, I stared at its cover, its title for a good two minutes. I was taking in everything that I had read just now. These stories from the hinterland will haunt you for a long-long time. I later got to know that this book was banned for sale in Jharkhand because of these stories. Especially the ones that have portrayed the condition of Santhal women. It's not the ban that makes this book interesting, it's the raw, pure form of storytelling that makes this book a must-read.
August 24, 2019
'The Adivasi will not Dance' is my very first exposure to Tribal Literature. The language in which Hansda composed the stories is simple, smooth, almost flowing like a gentle stream. Hansda's use of various colloquial Santhali words makes it an even more enjoyable read. Nothing seemed unfamiliar to me, as I had stayed in Jharkhand since I had a mind mature enough to grasp the state's state of affairs.
Nevertheless, while reading, I felt as if I had never really known the people, I had only seen them, they had been around me all along and I had been unable to see through them, see the profound grief behind their seemingly-jovial faces all this time. Hansda provides us with a lens through which we can look into the lives of the Adivasis closely. He allows us to deviate from the romanticized vision that we have of Adivasis that they are merely artistic people who love to sing and dance, put before us by various other writers, and help us see the real people that they are, their everyday struggles against poverty, "development", and most importantly their efforts to save their identity.
All the stories are extremely engaging and full of life. If you want to know the Adivasis, this is your pick.
Nevertheless, while reading, I felt as if I had never really known the people, I had only seen them, they had been around me all along and I had been unable to see through them, see the profound grief behind their seemingly-jovial faces all this time. Hansda provides us with a lens through which we can look into the lives of the Adivasis closely. He allows us to deviate from the romanticized vision that we have of Adivasis that they are merely artistic people who love to sing and dance, put before us by various other writers, and help us see the real people that they are, their everyday struggles against poverty, "development", and most importantly their efforts to save their identity.
All the stories are extremely engaging and full of life. If you want to know the Adivasis, this is your pick.
August 14, 2020
And we Santhals, our men are beaten io thrown into police lockups, jails for flimsy reasons and on false charges. Our women are raped, some sell their bodies on Koyla road. Most of us are fleeing our places of birth. How united are we? Where are our Santhal leaders?
This book is a collection of short stories regarding the Santhal Adivasi community in Jharkhand, India.
The book has a lot of controversial stories including how Santhal women are forced into prostitution and also, stories regarding the Santhal middle class families who have respectable government jobs.
The best short story is of course the last one which is called 'The Adivasi Will Not Dance'.
There are no shouters, no powerful voice among us Santhals, and we Santhals have no money. Though we are born on lands under which are burried riches, we Santhals do not know how to protect our riches. We only know how to escape.
A must read if you are an Indian.
This book is a collection of short stories regarding the Santhal Adivasi community in Jharkhand, India.
The book has a lot of controversial stories including how Santhal women are forced into prostitution and also, stories regarding the Santhal middle class families who have respectable government jobs.
The best short story is of course the last one which is called 'The Adivasi Will Not Dance'.
There are no shouters, no powerful voice among us Santhals, and we Santhals have no money. Though we are born on lands under which are burried riches, we Santhals do not know how to protect our riches. We only know how to escape.
A must read if you are an Indian.
September 12, 2018
This book helped me to understand the subtle aspects of the Santhal lifestyle through the stories and gave a powerful punch right at the end. There is a lot for me to know about the circumstances the Santhals are put in and the issues they face and my curiosity remains unsatiated in spite of the last story. One can easily identify the activist in Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar and I would like to read more of his works on those lines.
As a sidenote, this book caters only to the Indian readers and in a few cases only to the people who belong to that area since the vernacular is used a lot more without any English/Hindi translation. While the author has full right to choose his readers and has also made sure that the essence of the story remains intact, the reader may have to use his/her figment of imagination to draw the weave in those rare occasions. :)
As a sidenote, this book caters only to the Indian readers and in a few cases only to the people who belong to that area since the vernacular is used a lot more without any English/Hindi translation. While the author has full right to choose his readers and has also made sure that the essence of the story remains intact, the reader may have to use his/her figment of imagination to draw the weave in those rare occasions. :)
March 18, 2020
A collection of short stories based in Jharkhand majorly focussing on the plight of tribals- displacement, forced immigration, racism, xenophobia, identity crisis and so on.
March 29, 2017
Had this book not been handed to me as a part of our PGP curriculum during the fag end of our first year in MBA, I would have probably not have chanced upon it. This was a supplementary reading to a course called 'Socio-Cultural Environment of Business' or SCEB as we more commonly referred it through its acronym. Although the hard-bound book in all its glory and the shiny blue cover had aroused my curiosity every now and then, the B-school curriculum hardly ever allowed time enough for the core readings. The supplementary ones would had to undoubtedly wait.
And so this one waited. Until yesterday, when I once again picked it up and unlike other times, started reading. I am not sure if it were because the stories are short and incredibly easy to read or their strong social and political themes, that really drew me into the book. Story after story, page after page, I found myself wanting for more. What is most realistic about each of these stories is that they have no clear endings and no clear beginnings. Some of them are sad, some thoughtful, some mildly and temporarily joyful and others just abstract, but they do draw you into the lives of their characters for the brief period of time they play in, such that you start living with them. Hansda Sowvendra Shekar's portrayal of simple Santhal village life is particularly endearing and his matter-of-fact tone of delivering ugly truths is commendable. My two favourites from the lot were Baso-jhi and eponymous story The Adivasi will not dance.
This book is that dose of reality check that most of us privileged ones need once in a while to understand the plight of those living in a world that is still two steps behind our own. It gives immense perspective on the struggle of the tribals, particularly the Santhals here, and is a humbling experience for those of us who unflinchingly pass on armchair pan-India social and political commentary merely after reading an editorial or two from one or the other unsubstantiated sources with vested interests. It helps us reconsider the meaning of the term 'development', how its definition is not objective and how it might mean different things to different people. Lastly, if nothing else, it will leave you with the warm feeling of gratitude that how blessed in being far-removed from the struggles of daily life you are. If you are lucky enough, it might inspire you to action.
And so this one waited. Until yesterday, when I once again picked it up and unlike other times, started reading. I am not sure if it were because the stories are short and incredibly easy to read or their strong social and political themes, that really drew me into the book. Story after story, page after page, I found myself wanting for more. What is most realistic about each of these stories is that they have no clear endings and no clear beginnings. Some of them are sad, some thoughtful, some mildly and temporarily joyful and others just abstract, but they do draw you into the lives of their characters for the brief period of time they play in, such that you start living with them. Hansda Sowvendra Shekar's portrayal of simple Santhal village life is particularly endearing and his matter-of-fact tone of delivering ugly truths is commendable. My two favourites from the lot were Baso-jhi and eponymous story The Adivasi will not dance.
This book is that dose of reality check that most of us privileged ones need once in a while to understand the plight of those living in a world that is still two steps behind our own. It gives immense perspective on the struggle of the tribals, particularly the Santhals here, and is a humbling experience for those of us who unflinchingly pass on armchair pan-India social and political commentary merely after reading an editorial or two from one or the other unsubstantiated sources with vested interests. It helps us reconsider the meaning of the term 'development', how its definition is not objective and how it might mean different things to different people. Lastly, if nothing else, it will leave you with the warm feeling of gratitude that how blessed in being far-removed from the struggles of daily life you are. If you are lucky enough, it might inspire you to action.
February 11, 2021
The ten short stories in The Adivasi Will NotDance by Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar offer varied themes around the politics of oppression: people who are judged on the basis of what they eat; what it means to belong to a minority population and where in there are further levels of being better off than others; how being in a cycle of any form abuse can seem to have got over but in reality continues and how it looks easy for an observer to point out what is wrong about it but the people involved continue to beingpart of the same.
The ten stories are defiant in their rawness, in the way they comfortably tackle political narratives and themes while taking us to the personal lives of people who are trying to find agency, find a voice, find someone to listen. All the stories are set around Adivasis and their struggles: having to fend off being exploited in back breaking labour at the cost of not having personal joys and connections; to seasonal migration in search of work which can also entail the sale of bodies for use by men; to being used as cultural tropes that depict the celebratory nature of Adivasis who in reality have naught to be happy or content about their livelihoods being snatched, their homes uprooted and their access to their own lands stopped.
My personal favourites from this collection: ‘GettingEven’ that stands out for the way it paints a simple looking picture of a complex system at work: the workings of a Government health care office where the poor clamour to get treated but in this case, come with a certain agenda that is a commentary on fissures within a community and the title story for the personal yet political narrative that resonates with every mariginalized community that ends up used as token representation at social and Government gatherings and who are not heard ever.
Full review here: https://bookandconversations.wordpres...
The ten stories are defiant in their rawness, in the way they comfortably tackle political narratives and themes while taking us to the personal lives of people who are trying to find agency, find a voice, find someone to listen. All the stories are set around Adivasis and their struggles: having to fend off being exploited in back breaking labour at the cost of not having personal joys and connections; to seasonal migration in search of work which can also entail the sale of bodies for use by men; to being used as cultural tropes that depict the celebratory nature of Adivasis who in reality have naught to be happy or content about their livelihoods being snatched, their homes uprooted and their access to their own lands stopped.
My personal favourites from this collection: ‘GettingEven’ that stands out for the way it paints a simple looking picture of a complex system at work: the workings of a Government health care office where the poor clamour to get treated but in this case, come with a certain agenda that is a commentary on fissures within a community and the title story for the personal yet political narrative that resonates with every mariginalized community that ends up used as token representation at social and Government gatherings and who are not heard ever.
Full review here: https://bookandconversations.wordpres...
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June 20, 2018Important as this collection of stories about Adivasi life, is written by an adivasi himself, a Santhal, which is rare as so much of what is written about Adivasi communities and societies is written by outsiders. Unlike Dalits, Adivasis have not generally enjoyed the same autonomous representation in fiction until recently. The book covers a wide range of topics concentrating on Santhal middle-class life, in simple and unsentimental prose and it tackles difficult issues of communal relations, witch-hunting, the clash with modernity and the encroachment of corporations on adivasi rural societies. IT was banned temporarily in Jharkhand, allegedly for portraying Santhal culture and women in a poor light. It does no such thing and is clearly proud of Santhal traditions which are rapidly disappearing and while its portrayal of gender relations with explicit accounts of sexual relations is explicit and harsh; it is sympathetic to the precarious position of Santhal women. The only troubling aspect is the rather two-dimensional and reductive representation of Christians and Christian missionaries; who are shown as insincere, inconsistent in their support of adivasi causes and rights and more interested in religious conversion than adivasi welfare. Not only is this a misrepresentation of Christian missionary and parish activity in the region, it merely reiterates the tired old Hindutva tropes about Christian missionaries and their ulterior motives and bad faith. Its disappointing to see such a perceptive author replicate this narrative in an otherwise penetrating re-telling of adivasi lives.
August 13, 2022
TW: Sexual Assault, Human trafficking, casteism, Islamophobia
The Hindi word "adivasi" (Adi: early, vasi: resident) refers to tribal/indigenous people in India. This is a collection of short stories about adivasi people, mostly in the state of Jharkhand, where I'm from. So reading this book was nostalgic. I really liked the first (They Eat Meat!) and last story (The Adivasi Will Not Dance), I'd rate them at least 4.5 stars. But rest of the stories, I found okay. The writing is good, nothing lustrous. But that doesn't mean that it's not impactful.
One thing I've noticed in Indian books written by male authors is the casual depiction of sexual assault of women. Ofc it's a harsh reality, especially against tribal women. But most times I find the writing as insensitive and merely for male gaze, rather than for the sake of holding a mirror to society. And in this book too, this depiction bothered me.
This might be the first adivasi book that I've read. The oppression and prejudice faced by tribal people is often ignored, so I am happy that this book exists.
The Hindi word "adivasi" (Adi: early, vasi: resident) refers to tribal/indigenous people in India. This is a collection of short stories about adivasi people, mostly in the state of Jharkhand, where I'm from. So reading this book was nostalgic. I really liked the first (They Eat Meat!) and last story (The Adivasi Will Not Dance), I'd rate them at least 4.5 stars. But rest of the stories, I found okay. The writing is good, nothing lustrous. But that doesn't mean that it's not impactful.
One thing I've noticed in Indian books written by male authors is the casual depiction of sexual assault of women. Ofc it's a harsh reality, especially against tribal women. But most times I find the writing as insensitive and merely for male gaze, rather than for the sake of holding a mirror to society. And in this book too, this depiction bothered me.
This might be the first adivasi book that I've read. The oppression and prejudice faced by tribal people is often ignored, so I am happy that this book exists.
August 23, 2017
In this slim volume of ten short stories, Shekhar deftly packs in a wide range of characters and experiences. Very matter-of-fact writing with subtle socio-political commentary on the lives of Adivasis in contemporary India.
March 25, 2018
Some books make you ponder on deep seated issues- how little things we take for granted/misuse comes at a great price to some.
The harsh reality of exploitation and being judged at every step be it due to caste/creed/colour/economic differences, makes survival very challenging for some.
The harsh reality of exploitation and being judged at every step be it due to caste/creed/colour/economic differences, makes survival very challenging for some.
February 22, 2022
This is my second read by Hansda, have to say it is as impressive as the first one.
Ten intense libidinous stories of Jharkhand and Santhal culture give you the insight of an unknown world.
Ten intense libidinous stories of Jharkhand and Santhal culture give you the insight of an unknown world.
November 23, 2023
I've read very few of these ...stories of central India and the STs. Good start, the last one was the best written I'd say!
January 20, 2019
"The Adivasi will not dance" is a collection of short stories by Souvendra Shekhar Hansda..
The powerful narrative brings out stories of different people from Santhals community.. Some stories are really interesting and some are told in a matter of fact-ly manner but you wont be bored while reading them. Some stories depict the educated tribals and their lives.. Some shows how the santhal women are exploited by corrupt policeman or gundas..
This book is controversial and banned in jharkhand for its socio-political background of the stories.
The powerful narrative brings out stories of different people from Santhals community.. Some stories are really interesting and some are told in a matter of fact-ly manner but you wont be bored while reading them. Some stories depict the educated tribals and their lives.. Some shows how the santhal women are exploited by corrupt policeman or gundas..
This book is controversial and banned in jharkhand for its socio-political background of the stories.
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