|
INTERVIEW
BORN CRIMINAL
KATTOOR MURALI
met the writer
LAXMAN GAIKWAD
recently at his
residence in Goregaon situated in the Western suburbs of Mumbai.
Excerpts from a friendly talk…
BORN
CRIMINAL is a usage in British English. 'Jamgama' (also Jadhav,
Uchalya, Kasakonore, Ilenore, Gant-Chor..) is a wandering tribe
whose main profession for ages has been stealing. The caste system of
India had rejected this lowly placed segment of the society as born
criminals and Gunhegaars. The British classified this community as the
'Criminal Tribe' and put a lot of restrictions on their employment and
movement. Since all other means of earning were closed to a Jangama,
they typically took to small thefts.
Laxman
Gaikwad, the author of Uchalya, himself an Uchalya, was
the first to bring to light the inner workings, the suffering and the
exploitation of the community. His 1987 book titled 'Uchalya'
was honored by India's Central Literary Academy in 1988.
This
novel created much excitement in Marathi literary circles when it
first appeared in 1987. The following year, it won the Central Sahitya
Akademi award for the best work in that language.
The
autobiographical novel tells the story of a member of the Uchalya
tribe, who overcomes the disabilities arising from the circumstances
of his birth and emerges as a leader of the dispossessed people. As he
goes along, he gets wise to the ways of the rich and the powerful and
recognises the inadequacies of the Dalit leadership.
Lakshman
Gaikwad's work is as much sociological as it is literary. He presents
a realistic picture of the life of the Uchalyas, who have to
put up with extreme humiliation and harassment for survival. They have
to bribe policemen even when they have not committed any crime.
Apart
from laying bare the tyranny of the caste system, the novel exposes
the primitive ideas of crime and punishment that prevail in our
society. It also provides insights into the ethical standards of the
thieving community — by implication it raises an important question:
what is the stake of the dispossessed people in the Indian nation?
Born Criminal? It is a new phrase for all of us. Can you explain?
It may
be new phrase for you people. However, for us it is not like that.
It is a sin on our community, ie, Uchil community. There is no
proven record that our community indulged in criminal activities. We
belong to a wandering tribe whose main profession for ages has been
staling. The caste system of India had rejected this lowly placed
segment of the society as born criminals and Gunhegaars. The
British classified this community as the ‘Criminal Tribe’ and put a
lot of restrictions on their employment and movement. Since all other
means of earning were closed to us our ancestors used to wander
throughout the region for meeting the day-to-day needs. However, the
British rulers, in 1871 introduced a law and officially our community
became ‘criminals’. In 1913 the British rulers constructed a
settlement admeasuring about 300 acres. The people inside the
settlement don’t have the permission to go out of the settlement or
colony and the caretakers or wardens used to take daily attendance
twice or thrice in a day to ensure everything are ‘safe’. The
community forced to live as slaves.
Tell us something about your family.
The
first such settlement was in Bholapur in Maharashtra. The British
took our ancestors to Hyderabad in Andhra Pradesh to build
Nissamsagar Lake. You may see the lake in Hyderabad even this day.
My family run away from Hyderabad and reached in Dhanigaon in Latur,
Maharashtra.
We faced problem there too. Whenever we reached in a new place, we
were asked to produce a certificate from the place where we lived
saying that we are not problem creators. Then only we get some odd
jobs or a shelter.
When the changes begin in the life?
It is
all like a fiction. When India was freed by British rulers in 1947,
our community received it only during
August 31, 1952. Our
community was not mentioned in the Indian constitution, since the
Constitution was prepared before independence. That is why our
community was denotified as nomadic (wandering people) in
Indian constitution, even after the independence. That is why we are
not citizen of
India
even today.
Did you people struggle against the establishment to get the things
put straight?
Frankly
speaking, we did. We founded an organisation called All India
De-notified Nomadic Tribes Association. I am the president of this
organization. We are working with Mahaswetadevi, Ballayya Naidu.
However, most of our problems are not been solved yet.
Your education, writing…
I am the
first person who passed SSC examination from the nomadic community
(read as Born Criminals)… I did my education in Latur. However,
circumstances did not allow me to go further; even though I was
ambitious to learn more.
I joined
in a textile mill in Latur when I was 17 year old. When the mill
owners used to beat me up and harass me, I met Bhagwanrao Deshpande an
advocate by profession. He advised me to join a leftist trade union.
During those days, I got an opportunity to mingle with books. I read
lot books including that of, Dr B R Ambedkar and Mahatma Jyotibha
Phule. I started writing some poems but nothing got published and I
used to read those poems during the workers meeting and gatherings.
People around me started congratulating me, which was an inspiration
for me to write more and more.
Once, I
wrote some lyrics on Indira Gandhi and many Congress leaders took me
during elections in an autorikshaw and I was asked to recite the
poems, for which I used to get a remuneration of Rs 10-15 per day.
When the
Marathwada struggle begins I led a crowd of 25000 people and the
leaders started notifying me. I met Sharankumar Limbaye a writer and
he introduced me to Sreevidya Prakashan, which later published my
novel Uchalya.
Your first publication and what inspired you to write Uchalya…
My first
published book was Banderwasa, which was welcomed by the
readers, when it published in a local magazine.
The
feeling against the people who doesn’t want to recognize our community
as human beings forced me to write Uchalya. I witnessed when
police beat up my mother and striped her in public. My sister too was
brutally beaten up by the police. The owner of the mill used me to
beat me up regularly as a routine. Then the theme of Uchalya
had born in my mind.
How did you reached the dream city, Mumbai?
I was in
Latur during 1993 when the earthquake happened in Killari and Latur.
I run away from the place alongwith my family and reached Mumbai to
save our live and the rest is on record!
What about the fame that brought Uchalya to you?
The name
and fame? I am satisfied that I did something for my community and a
lot to do. I dedicate all the felicitations whatever I got to my
community and the people who rendered my support to me.
Future projects?
Recently
I completed a book called Ottav (Progress). It is all against
the corruption that grips the society.
It seems you are going to become a social reformer, since all your
creations are against the establishment?
May be.
It is in my blood. I don’t have any godfather or mother. All my
creations are entirely depends upon my experience and I always
thankful the people who supported me during my struggling times.
That’s all.
THE
THIEF PEOPLE (UCHALYA)
By
LAXMAN GAIKWAD
Excerpts, translated from original Marathi.
"... My
name is
Laxman Gaikwad... I was born in
a vagabond family with no home, no land to plough, not even a caste to
call our own. I told folks that I am from Ghanegao as I was born there
and grew up during my early years. My childhood was spent in a
bird-nest-like hut. To enter it, one had to bend their knees. My
grandmother Narasabai ran the household. Her husband, my grandfather,
Lingappa, had no job and had to report to the local police station
twice a day. He once had a flourishing practice. He would go to far
way towns, pick pockets, steal shopping bags and come home by night.
He was a famous thief of his time in this part of the country. His
name was well known even in Nizaam's kingdom.
Once my
grandpa went to the marketplace under the influence of alcohol and
found an old man with lots of money tucked into his dhoti.
While cutting the dhoti, grandpa slipped and cut the old man's thighs.
In the chaos that followed, he was arrested and tortured by the
police. They came home and searched for other stolen goods. 'Bol
kahn kahn rakha
hai paisa aur sona ? nahi to
bahut maar khayega'. (Show us all the stolen goods. else we will
beat you up.) Grandpa told them that he has nothing at home. Then the
police started beating my grand mother -- 'Your whore would know' -
they said. My mother got scared and ran away into the forest. They
beat all of us, especially my grandma - they even squeezed her breasts
in rage. My grandfather was sentenced to prison for several months and
since then had to go to police station twice a day for attendance --
because of which he could get no job. If he missed a day or two, the
police would come home and beat the entire family up. Eventually,
grandpa had to become the police informer (Guranda) and had to
help police nab other thieves from our community.
Because
our caste is that of thieves, my father could never get a job; neither
could my mother. Not even as farm helps. Then grandma herself had to
take to stealing to feed the family. She would cut the necklaces of
women and children in crowded places and then sell them to the local
jewelers. Sometimes police would come home in search of some stolen
jewelry but they never succeeded as she never brought stolen goods
home. People from my community (caste)
could not go to other towns without a certification from local police.
The British government branded every member of my caste as a criminal.
If we did not carry the certificates, the police of the town would
harass us by arresting for theft and robbery. They would let us go
after taking adequate bribes.
The
razor blade was our
Laxmi. We
would pray to the God of instrument (Ayudha) before every outing. We
would cut chicken with the same blade and spray its blood on the
participants and prayed --"God, we pray for success in today's
stealing mission. Rescue us from Police if we get caught...".
We were
very afraid of the police. I cannot count the times I have defecated
in my clothes during police tortures. My community members started
hating my grandfather as he was giving inside information to police.
"...because of Lingappa the life has become hard; we are not able to
feed our wives and children..." they complained. One day, they held a
meeting to decide the next
course of action. That night, they stuffed grandpa's mouth with rags,
and killed him with an axe. They even burnt his body to destroy any
evidence.
That is
how grandmother became head of the family...."
post your comments here
|
