Raigarh, Chattisgarh - 24th Feb 2011

After 7 hours of travel from Rourkela, we reach St. Michaels School in Raigarh,Chattisgarh at 12:30pm to have a warm, warm welcome by the students and staff. They listen to our whole program so attentively and even brave the sun beating down to hear us out. Some of the young students put up some nice group dances too..

It was an interesting interaction. Our audience was young, but they seemed to project a wisdom about them, balancing with their innocence. They were still kids, but blurring the transition into young adults. It was fascinating to watch them flicker between the two depending on what situation they were facing.

And I came across Solomon with these adorable little ones while making the certificates in a classroom at the back. Just look at that smile!

And then during the interaction they raise an issue running very deep in the region – In Dharamjaigarh, an area neighbouring the region, two companies Vedanta Coal Mining and the Dainik Bhaskar Newspaper are have set up their industries there and are chasing the residents away for more land. They’re giving Rs. 75,000 to the people with kuccha houses and Rs. 1 lakh to those with pucca housing and telling them to find a place to live elsewhere. Anyone who raises a voice in protest is beaten up by the industry people and forcibly removed. In such a helpless state what is a person to do?

No one can just uproot themselves and fly away from their own land and subsist on this sum for the rest of lives until they find another place to settle, if they find such a place and employment. Is industrialisation like this really development in our country? If we’re not cutting down trees, then we’re cutting away at people’s lives. Is this just?

Rakesh insisted on the fact that action needs to be taken and he insisted more that they shouldn’t attempt it alone. They need to hold together and take a stand hat ke. But it’s hard to define what to do and how to do it hat ke. And who to approach.

Can anyone suggest anything? Anything at all?

Despite such a heavy session at the program, soon after, before we left, everyone banded together and jived their traditional dance to the songs on the P.A. It was just like in Rourkela, just during the day. Everybody put their arms around each other’s waist, and did this sequence of step-forward-step-back-shake leg-step left 4/5 steps-and repeat dance. It wasn’t difficult to pick up and it was so much fun to do! And they would change the steps every 20 routines or so. The biggest thing that reflected from the whole thing was the feeling of community and belonging and the spirit that together we can learn from each other and live in harmony, no matter where we’re from. You know how they say dance is one of the few truly beautiful things in life that helps you forget about everything and actually live in the moment and let go and feel yourself be free? It really felt like that today.

Hehe.. Alan and the guys are sooooooooooo funny!