Vidarbha: Picture of a real Indian village
Vidarbha as the name suggests is a collection of 11 districts and is said to be culturally, politically and financially different than the rest of Maharashtra and this fact only grows when you visit this place once.
IT IS no unknown fact that the interiors of each state in India mesmerise you and leave you spellbound. The reasons for such an impact are many. Sometimes, it is the culture that leaves a striking impression on one’s mind, while at other times, it is the norms that take your notice but what is striking about the Vidarbha district is the innocence and the simplicity that dwells within its people.
If one is to be clear exactly of what the landscape is like, one only needs to remember the opening scene of the movie ‘Lagaan’. The land is ferociously dry, brazen and the trees seemed to have sucked all the water that they could possibly have. There seems to be no scope for even a single drop.
Not a very accessible region and definitely not amongst those which people would want to visit for a holiday, this remote area still has a story of its own to tell. No water, no food, arid land, poor helpless people yet there is a certain charm in its air (if air can be charming, that is!) and many unexplored regions within the state, not as appealing visually but disturbing beyond imagination. Only if we are ready to realise how lucky we are to be born in the ‘haves’ category can we understand the rustic beauty of this place.
Vidarbha as the name suggests is a collection of 11 districts and is said to be culturally, politically and financially different than the rest of Maharashtra and this fact only grows when you visit this place once. It is the eastern most region of Maharashtra state and is made up of Nagpur Division and Amravati Division. It occupies 31.6 per cent of total area and holds 21.3 per cent of total population of Maharashtra.
One of the major cities to visit is Yavatmal. Quite interesting actually that there are STDs and PCOs at almost every corner. Decorations on the road don’t adore them but suffocate the
already narrow streets.
And, if you are amongst those who have never seen wells except for your text books in schools, this is the place to be. There are villages that have about 25 wells dug to themselves, but the worst is that even those have dried up. You will find dish TV satellites on all roof tops, but these roofs are of the ‘kacha’ house that these labourers have built. One would definitely hear a Madhuri Dixit song but if one is to enter the kitchen of the house, all that one can find is a few grains (be it dal or rice). On the contrary, such people and such houses belong to the crème of the village.
If one is to look at it, Vidarbha is amongst those few places that have very peculiar sights within itself for others to witness. If we go beyond the Gateway of India in Mumbai and the famous Ajanta Ellora caves, there is a lot in store for the human eye to see and feel in Maharashtra and one needn’t travel too far. This plight is what can be something that one would want to comeback for. Those who do not want to face reality, this place can be disastrous. One has to get out of their comfortable realm to see and enjoy the pain collectively with these nomads.
Food can be quite amusing. For those who have never seen rural India, this can be one ‘helluva’ experience. Rotis are huge if they are made, or else people usually enjoy their rice. Dals and almost all other dishes are spicy. Sweets, like every other place in India are served everywhere. Fruits can also be a good and cheap offer. Oranges and watermelons are the best buy at one rupee and five rupees respectively.
Hotels are very modest. Most of them are two storey buildings cramped for space but they still maintain that they have 30 rooms and can accommodate more than100 people.
Culture in the villages is dominated by the ‘Banjaara’ tribe – the most colourful of the lot, who even in the most sunny days fail to wear anything but their usual orange lehengas with jewellery to be worn in the arms (bajubandh) and many tiny but very well crafted toe-rings (bichoos). So what if you will not see a single pair of shoes in any of those feet, only massive cracks of dry skin, about to bleed any minute. The men do not refrain from wearing their bright pagadis and seem to find women more beautiful in their attire, mentioning it to them repeatedly.
Flora and fauna is similar to that of any other place that is dry and humid. Apart from the regular trees, it is the cotton plant that one sees here, there and almost everywhere, thereby, knowing the reason why farmers commit suicides in such numbers, since they do not experiment with other cash crops, nor are they encouraged to. All tiger reserves of Maharashtra are in Vidarbha, Kanha Tiger Reserve (outside province) has lush green deciduous forests which are home to a variety of flora and fauna. These attract a large number of visitors each year.
Melghat Tiger Reserve in Amravati district, Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve in Chandrapur district and Pench Tiger Reserve in Nagpur district. Nagzira Wild Life sanctuary and Navegoan Bandh National Park (bird sanctuary) of Gondia district are also very popular. Although the eastern region of the Vidarbha is poorer in natural resources in comparison to the west, it contains Maharashtra's oldest National Park created in 1955, the Tadoba Tiger Reserve, one of India's 25 Project Tiger Reserves.
The means of transport like every other Indian village is primarily buses (by road, but ironically there aren’t many and in some villages people still walk barefoot for miles till they reach some other part of civilisation), followed by the age old rickshaws and cycles. Very few privileged ones have a car for themselves.
Some things that would unwittingly affect your soul are moments when one gets fixated to the rowdy look given by the old lady in the village, getting disturbed while cleaning her only three pots, hearing me do things with my camera…but it is the same woman who when asked how she was, would shed tears like waterfall. This is an experience of a lifetime. This is something that no Taj Mahal or India Gate would give you.
From striking stones to erupt fire to being able to fly to any part of the world, from gazing stars at night to being able to communicate through the phone, from collecting pebbles as a pastime to having a gourmet’s delight. All this has been possible because man chose the path of education and evolution. While this holds true for most places in the world, this part of India fails to reconcile with it. Time seems to have stood still in this region. People still get amused when one tries to click them. Women are shocked to see other women in pants and trousers are ignorant of the world outside their ‘basti’. Children smile cheek to cheek seeing and hearing sounds on the mobile phones. It is this innocence that coaxes one to stay on forever and do something incredible to uplift the condition of these people. Unfortunately, prosperity for this place is a long term goal, but only if malnourishment and poverty can be reduced by one’s visit I think the journey to this place is worthed.
It is said that it is not with language that people connect, but with emotions. Within each one of us therein lays a power, a power to make someone feel loved and wanted even if it were for a fraction of a second. It is this feeling that is worth living for. It is power enough to heal wounds, bring relief to an exasperated face and rain to such a desert like Vidarbha. It is power that no one can take away from you. Come visit this land and exert this power.
Not a very accessible region and definitely not amongst those which people would want to visit for a holiday, this remote area still has a story of its own to tell. No water, no food, arid land, poor helpless people yet there is a certain charm in its air (if air can be charming, that is!) and many unexplored regions within the state, not as appealing visually but disturbing beyond imagination. Only if we are ready to realise how lucky we are to be born in the ‘haves’ category can we understand the rustic beauty of this place.
Vidarbha as the name suggests is a collection of 11 districts and is said to be culturally, politically and financially different than the rest of Maharashtra and this fact only grows when you visit this place once. It is the eastern most region of Maharashtra state and is made up of Nagpur Division and Amravati Division. It occupies 31.6 per cent of total area and holds 21.3 per cent of total population of Maharashtra.
Vidarbha has its own rich cultural and historical background, distinct from rest of Maharashtra. Hence one is bound to see small temple like structures, about a foot long and a foot high made in orange stone in every field. The largest city in Vidarbha is Nagpur, second largest is Amravati followed by Akola, Gondia, Chandrapur and Yavatmal. A majority of Vidarbhians speak Varhadi, a dialect of Marathi. It holds two-thirds of Maharashtra’s mineral resources, three quarters of its forest resources and is a net producer of power. Throughout its history it has remained much calmer during the communal troubles than the rest of India but it is plagued very much by poverty and malnutrition. It is less economically prosperous compared to the rest of Maharashtra.
One of the major cities to visit is Yavatmal. Quite interesting actually that there are STDs and PCOs at almost every corner. Decorations on the road don’t adore them but suffocate the
already narrow streets.
And, if you are amongst those who have never seen wells except for your text books in schools, this is the place to be. There are villages that have about 25 wells dug to themselves, but the worst is that even those have dried up. You will find dish TV satellites on all roof tops, but these roofs are of the ‘kacha’ house that these labourers have built. One would definitely hear a Madhuri Dixit song but if one is to enter the kitchen of the house, all that one can find is a few grains (be it dal or rice). On the contrary, such people and such houses belong to the crème of the village.
If one is to look at it, Vidarbha is amongst those few places that have very peculiar sights within itself for others to witness. If we go beyond the Gateway of India in Mumbai and the famous Ajanta Ellora caves, there is a lot in store for the human eye to see and feel in Maharashtra and one needn’t travel too far. This plight is what can be something that one would want to comeback for. Those who do not want to face reality, this place can be disastrous. One has to get out of their comfortable realm to see and enjoy the pain collectively with these nomads.
The place is best suited for people undergoing research work. Enough is there to gather in case one is trying to study sociological patterns or maybe agricultural crisis. There are so many who want to speak their story of misery and what is startling about all this is the indifference with which they talk about suicides in family. For these sufferers it seems like a tale to tell. Their emotions have given way and food needs surpass tears.
Food can be quite amusing. For those who have never seen rural India, this can be one ‘helluva’ experience. Rotis are huge if they are made, or else people usually enjoy their rice. Dals and almost all other dishes are spicy. Sweets, like every other place in India are served everywhere. Fruits can also be a good and cheap offer. Oranges and watermelons are the best buy at one rupee and five rupees respectively.
Hotels are very modest. Most of them are two storey buildings cramped for space but they still maintain that they have 30 rooms and can accommodate more than100 people.
Culture in the villages is dominated by the ‘Banjaara’ tribe – the most colourful of the lot, who even in the most sunny days fail to wear anything but their usual orange lehengas with jewellery to be worn in the arms (bajubandh) and many tiny but very well crafted toe-rings (bichoos). So what if you will not see a single pair of shoes in any of those feet, only massive cracks of dry skin, about to bleed any minute. The men do not refrain from wearing their bright pagadis and seem to find women more beautiful in their attire, mentioning it to them repeatedly.
Flora and fauna is similar to that of any other place that is dry and humid. Apart from the regular trees, it is the cotton plant that one sees here, there and almost everywhere, thereby, knowing the reason why farmers commit suicides in such numbers, since they do not experiment with other cash crops, nor are they encouraged to. All tiger reserves of Maharashtra are in Vidarbha, Kanha Tiger Reserve (outside province) has lush green deciduous forests which are home to a variety of flora and fauna. These attract a large number of visitors each year.
Melghat Tiger Reserve in Amravati district, Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve in Chandrapur district and Pench Tiger Reserve in Nagpur district. Nagzira Wild Life sanctuary and Navegoan Bandh National Park (bird sanctuary) of Gondia district are also very popular. Although the eastern region of the Vidarbha is poorer in natural resources in comparison to the west, it contains Maharashtra's oldest National Park created in 1955, the Tadoba Tiger Reserve, one of India's 25 Project Tiger Reserves.
The means of transport like every other Indian village is primarily buses (by road, but ironically there aren’t many and in some villages people still walk barefoot for miles till they reach some other part of civilisation), followed by the age old rickshaws and cycles. Very few privileged ones have a car for themselves.
Some things that would unwittingly affect your soul are moments when one gets fixated to the rowdy look given by the old lady in the village, getting disturbed while cleaning her only three pots, hearing me do things with my camera…but it is the same woman who when asked how she was, would shed tears like waterfall. This is an experience of a lifetime. This is something that no Taj Mahal or India Gate would give you.
From striking stones to erupt fire to being able to fly to any part of the world, from gazing stars at night to being able to communicate through the phone, from collecting pebbles as a pastime to having a gourmet’s delight. All this has been possible because man chose the path of education and evolution. While this holds true for most places in the world, this part of India fails to reconcile with it. Time seems to have stood still in this region. People still get amused when one tries to click them. Women are shocked to see other women in pants and trousers are ignorant of the world outside their ‘basti’. Children smile cheek to cheek seeing and hearing sounds on the mobile phones. It is this innocence that coaxes one to stay on forever and do something incredible to uplift the condition of these people. Unfortunately, prosperity for this place is a long term goal, but only if malnourishment and poverty can be reduced by one’s visit I think the journey to this place is worthed.
It is said that it is not with language that people connect, but with emotions. Within each one of us therein lays a power, a power to make someone feel loved and wanted even if it were for a fraction of a second. It is this feeling that is worth living for. It is power enough to heal wounds, bring relief to an exasperated face and rain to such a desert like Vidarbha. It is power that no one can take away from you. Come visit this land and exert this power.
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