Curse of Badam Pahar: Savages of the East book review

Ritika Handoo

There are some books which comfortably fall in the category of fiction and others which are not completely a figment of one’s imagination, as they derive meaning and basis from real life instances. Author Amar Mudi’s ‘Curse of Badam Pahar: Savages of the East’ proudly belongs to the second category.

The book narrates and unfolds the crucial events which, I suppose, the author might have either been a witness to, or must have heard tales of while growing up, as the foreward by Niramal Kanti Bhattacharjee clearly hints at.

‘Curse Of...’ is a book which has what can be called a political writing as it narrates the challenges and hardships faced by the Adivasis or ‘savages’ (as the world calls them) in the backdrop of the most crucial movement post Independence, in Indian political scenario - Communism.

The author has tried his best to narrate the events in the Midnapore district and adjoining areas of West Bengal during the early 60s and 70s. How beautifully each incident has been etched, keeping in mind the whole trajectory of the political upheaval.

“We inhabited the country for centuries without creating an empire, emperor or war. That may be the reason why we do not have any ‘history’ of our own…”

The book unfolds a part of history, which might be fictional in terms of characters but definitely holds significance when read in accordance with the Left movement in the country. The story of Matu, Hadam and Hari chronicles how invading of the forests led to displacement for these ‘Adivasis’ and compelled them to move from one village to another constantly.

“There is no word like co-existence in the civilized world. The winner takes it all.”

How Badam Pahar and the Lulung forest (which often finds mention in the book) full of natural resources and held in great reverence for godly presence is ultimately left abandoned by the inhabitants due to forceful invasion.

“Badam Pahar! Elders say, the Hill is the abode of Deotas, Marang Buru, and the spirits. It can take any form that it wishes and appear before the fortunate. Tear drops rolled down from his eyes. The hill appeared before him—A renegade! The burning pain disappeared as soon as he felt the cool breeze on his body. It must be coming from the Lulung forest, the repository of herbs. Hanuman, the Monkey God, had taken some such herb to Lanka to put back life into Laxman. Suddenly, he heard drum beats. It must be beckoning fellow tribals for the worship of Deota. He swayed with the rhythm. His body trembled for a while and then Matu passed out.”

Matu, the tribal who decides to fight all odds against hunger and overpowering landlords, defies the set order and along with a few members from his clan builds a new place for his people. But his untimely death and sudden emergence of Hari (his grandson) as the next Matu gives a new twist to the tale of constant struggle and suffering for the ‘savages’.

However, the narrative gains momentum when Hari along with his ‘comrades’ find themselves in the middle of a conflict-like situation. The fact that there was a voice of dissent within the party made Hari and his friends battle out an internal struggle, which the clean-hearted uneducated ‘Adivasis’ were unaware of.

Hari held the flag in his left hand and raising his clenched fist of the right hand shouted slogans, “Inquilab Zindabad! Our demand—rightful wages! Our demand—right of land for sharecroppers!”

The active participation of Hari to rebel against the oppression of zamindars and jotdars led to the success of Communism in that part of the country. The Left movement which gained equilibrium in West Bengal, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh in the early 60s saw a number of educated and literate people joining in as well.

Suddenly, the peasant struggle of Hari and his ‘comrades’ which drove inspiration from Marx and Lenin lost its meaning and gave way to a new uprising in the history of this movement—it was time for the ‘guns’ to enter. It was Chairman Mao, who was the thrust of motivation now.

What happens to Hari? Who becomes the next face of the big cause? For these answers grab your copy of ‘Curse of Badam Pahar: Savages of the East’ now!