‘The
Adivasi Will Not Dance’, a 2015 book
of short stories on the Santhals of Jharkhand, penned by Jharkhand based
government doctor Dr Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar, has been recently banned by the
Jharkhand government. The young doctor has also been suspended from his job by
the state government. This, his second book, follows his novel ‘The Mysterious
Ailment of Rupi Baskey’ (2014), which won him the Sahitya Akademi Yuva
Purashkar in 2015.
In this candid interview, Dr Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar,
one of the speakers at the Goa Art and Literature festival 2017 explains his
stand on the issue…
If you enjoyed reading this article, you can help support our journalism by adding OHeraldo as a preferred source.
HERALD CAFÉ: ‘The
Adivasi Will Not Dance (2015)’ has been banned by the Jharkhand government
recently. They have also suspended you from your job as a government doctor.
Media reports suggest that the government feels you have shown the Santhal
women in poor light. What is your take on the issue?
DR HANSDA SOWVENDRA SHEKHAR: I stand by what I have written.
HC: How come
there is a furore two years after the book was published? Where do you think
this controversy is headed?
HSS: I don’t know
why this furore started after two years and which way this controversy is
headed. This question would be best answered by the people who created the
furore and fuelled the controversy.
HC: What should
the government be doing to alleviate the suffering of the Santhal tribals?
HSS: To start
with, anyone in the government who seeks to make laws that might affect the
tribals, should first live like the most unprivileged tribal, in situations in
which most unprivileged tribals live, for some period of time. This could
perhaps be the first step towards understanding the suffering of the tribals –±
any tribal, not only Santhals. Steps towards alleviating those sufferings can
be taken later.
HC: It is
interesting to see that you are juggling the two roles of author and government
medical doctor so well. How do you manage both roles?
HSS: I don’t know.
It just happens. Maybe it is a gift. And I do not want to analyse this gift. I
just want to be thankful for this gift.
HC: Take us on
the journey of your first novel. How did the plot for the story germinate in
your mind and when did you find the time to write it?
HSS: ‘The Mysterious Ailment Of Rupi
Baskey’ was inspired by an event that took place in my village. I heard stories
and gossip from my family and other villagers. I added my imagination to what I
heard and built a story around it. That story took the form of ‘The Mysterious
Ailment Of Rupi Baskey’, my first novel. I wrote this book from May 2011 to
October 2011. I was still in medical college then, so I was not really worried
about survival at that time. So whenever I found time – even during commute in
buses and trains between Jamshedpur (where my college is) and Ghatsila (my
hometown) – I wrote. I wrote on my laptop, I wrote on my mobile phone, I took
notes, I was at it for 5-6 months and did not stop till I finished writing the
entire novel.
