Janmabhumi charaoli

PARASHER BARUAH

According to Bhadra Rajwar, a folk artist from Nazira, Assam: While they are collectively called the ‘Tea Community’, their origins are different. They once had their own distinct tribal identity and culture, and their own land until the British got them as indentured labour for the newly opened tea estates of Assam. These people have come to be identified as tea labour or the tea community in Assam.

When the British rulers needed labour for their tea gardens, they rounded up aboriginal tribal communities from different parts of India, especially from the very backward regions of the country. The British noticed that these impoverished people who were used to hard work were best suited for the tough hostile terrain and back-breaking work in the many remote tea gardens they were opening in that region.

The British created artificial economic crises and scarcity in the region to further choke the already-suffering tribes to such an extent that the poor had no other option but to sign up for the arduous journey to Assam. The gullible natives signed up for the new work with the hope of becoming rich, but the hard work and paltry wages made them realize that they had been duped into becoming indentured labourers through the evil designs of the British and their agents. They had become nothing better than slaves.

This sense of betrayal found expression in their songs. Those who left their homes and land sang about their birthplace, their longing for their own people and about the hardships in the estates. The songs they carried with them still resonate centuries later.

‘We have left our birthplace for this eastern land

Our saga is of sadness and hardships

We work the whole day and get paid very less

Our saga is of sadness and hardships

We work the whole day and get paid very less

Our saga is of sadness and hardships.’

– Song sung by Bhadra Rajwar

This kind of duplicity was carried on in the early days of the tea industry: The British induced scarcity of food and resources through specially appointed middlemen called Arkatis who carried on the business of luring naive tribes into the hardships of the tea gardens. The Arkati went around meeting villagers and warning them that their region was facing drought and scarcity, and that there was no hope for them. They sold them the dream of a better life in far off Assam. They hyped the tea plantations to almost mythical levels, telling the natives about how the new plants sprouted gold and silver.

The gullible tribes were lured into travelling great distances in search of such a tree that sprouted money. They were made to sign agreements, mostly based on false promises of prosperity. The villagers were first brought to ports like Calcutta, put into boats, and sent to Assam. The agreement never clearly mentioned the provisions for the people to return to their homes.

‘Come Mini let’s go to Assam

Comel Mini let’s go to Assam

There is nothing left in our land anymore but hardships and sadness

They say, in Assam, the magical tree sprouts money

So many of our people were duped thus!

They say, in Assam, the magical tree sprouts money

So many of our people were duped thus!’

– Chal Mini

These songs are elegies of life in the plantation. They experienced much hardship at work and pain of homelessness and exile. This sentiment found expression in such songs that have still been sung in all our rituals and traditional customs. These are expressed in our Jhumur songs which are very popular across Assam now.

Oral tradition says that my people migrated from Jharkhand in central India. After all these years I am still curious to know where our roots lie: Why they came here, what was it like back there?

We have started looking at our own histories and have realized
that we are aboriginals of India. The Constitution of India has recognized us and has granted a specific status to our tribe. Our ancient people who remained in their own land are getting those benefits but we, as migrants in Assam, remain deprived from any such benefits. Here we are confined
in a corner as the Tea Tribe/Tea Community and are denied our rights.

Footnotes:

*Transcribed by Muskan Kaur and Shreya Saksena, Jindal School of Journalism and Communication, from Parasher Baruah’s short film streamed at ArtEast 2021.

Video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
IaVFg-mWnUE