The Hidden Gem of India- Tribal Literature

 Culture is used to denote the complex practice of networking and collecting knowledge and ideas that are transmitted through social interaction and exist in specific human groups or cultural groups and are transferred to further generations. Some aspects of human behavior, such as language, social practices, expressive forms such as art, music, dance, ritual, religion, and technologies are said to be cultural fundamentals, found in all human societies. India rightfully named unity in diversities strategically built majestic palaces, mystic architecture, colonial artifacts, humungous bazaars, hymns and chants from the temples on the peaceful bank of rivers, snow-covered the Himalayas, everything truly represents the cultural heritage of India but somewhere we forgot the importance of oral literature and the tribals who played the most important role in preserving their ancestors' literature let us see some of the important works who highlighted it's the importance and explored the transition of a tribal culture into a culture more inclined towards western traditions.

Introduction to Tribal Histography:

Mahasweta Devi has been an astonishing literary figure, who worked hard for the upliftment of the tribals by glorifying tribal culture and their oral literary works. She dedicated her entire life for uplifting and highlighting the tribals. Some of her most important works are  Aranyar Adhikar, The Queen of Jhansi, The Fire Within, and Chhoti Munda and His Arrow are the perfect reflections of tribal people’s culture, and who they are their identity, and their origin. Her fiction is more focused to overthrow the domination of mainstream society’s biased historical writings that purposely overshadowed the culture of tribal people. Her works are focused to fill the gap and absences of the hidden gem culture of tribals, which are the symbols of the marginalization of tribals. “History of Indian nationalism is a sort of spiritual biography of the Indian elite.”  All the works by the mainstream society are niche and fail to depict the struggle of tribals and their riches which was their oral literature. Oral literature has been a most important phase of communication in human evolution and tribals were the ones who preserved it through their songs and folklores which were never written by the mainstream writers of early times.  Rewriting and revising the history of tribals, Mahasweta Devi has highlighted the efforts of marginalized people against discrimination and marginalization by the upper class. She had a deconstructive strategy to correct the history throughout her entire literary works. A huge portion of literature exists about the tribal culture and its glorious past in the form of tradition which is orally transmitted from one generation to another generations. This form has been unavoidable which consists of songs, poetry, folklore, and stories and myths. The historians considered these as fictional and never wrote or gave it them recognition and that is the reason that the tribal literature has now become rare and there is barely any book you find about them written by the early writers. However, Mahasweta Devi used these tribal materials: the songs, poetry, and folklore extensively in her literary works. “Devi’s fictions are the reflections of history projected through fictions.” She fastidiously raised the problems of tribals and raise awareness among the tribals with respect to their rights through her fictional works.

Significance of Tribal Literature and Mahasweta Devi's work:

Chotti Munda and His Arrow is one of the first novels where Devi voiced the history of tribal people with colonial and postcolonial history and their struggles. The novel highlights the miserable conditions of tribals and their revolt against corrupt, landlords invaders, and dominant oppressors. “It inquires and unveils how the socio-economic exchange was done based upon the dominancy upper class. It also depicts the shifts in the daily lives of oppressed tribals and celebrates the legendary character of Chotti who is a thoughtful, a role model for his young community”. She explores and rewrites the history of the Indian Freedom Struggle by revealing the truth about how mainstream upper-casteist society’s people: capitalists, landlords exploited tribals and other lower caste people. Her works glorified the tribal people’s historical revolts against the British rule which was insensibly neglected by the upper caste people.

Conclusion:

Mahasweta Devi was a writer who never followed the traditional path of writing, was fearless and did all she could to raise her voice against mainstream writers. She strategically weaves the history and fiction in the context of the untold history of tribes and uncovered the real history of tribal people’s revolt against their exploitation by upper caste people. People took tribal literature, their culture and their traditions as myths but she reveals the hypocrisy of aristocratic society and exposes the evidence for her claims. She thoroughly researched the history of tribal people and the revolts undertaken by their leaders and documented them telling the truth through her novels. Her novels have realistic touch because her protagonists are the real tribal heroes who were considered myths but they awaken the spirit of ordinary people. Her works are a reflection of her felt experiences with the tribal people and she has written her heart out to address the issues of tribal people. She experienced the plight, and sufferings of these people and highlighted them in her novels. Thus, Devi’s literary works play a vital role in tribal historiography because her novels explore the untold history of tribal culture, their marginalization, and their revolts.