Dawa Lepcha is the driving force behind the relay Hunger Strike that lasted three years. He along with 40 other Lepcha tribal, mainly youth ranging from 14 to 40 years old were all jailed after being branded anti-national. All for protesting their homes from being swallowed up by the unecessary progress of the gigantic hydro electric projects(see the pictures and full story in the Photojournalism section under Damned Sikkim). They formed ACT - The Affected Citizens of Teesta that still fights the projects that threaten their very existence.
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Other than the endless hills and forests, an alternative draw in the North East of Andhra Pradesh, in one horse town of Tyda, is the railway station. The stations in and around Darjeeling and Shimla, with their little snail paced toy trains are charming, but this was the real thing. Here runs a broad gauge railway line at 1500 feet, higher than anywhere else in our impressive Indian railways. And in the middle of a veritable jungle. It was love at first track. Outnumbering some nearby tribal settlements, the largest concentration of humans here is the railway community, from Andhra and mainly across the border from Orissa. They live in their humble but quirky quarters adjoining the stations and lead a fascinating, even enviable life. Older folk have lived here for decades and smile quietly at the stability that a life in the railways has given them. The youngsters don’t think so, yearning for the multiplex-mall lifestyle so glorified in most movies. No hot girls waltzing by in minis, no superbikes whizzing around the corner, not even a movie theatre in a 50 km radius. With all its isolation, Tyda still manages to illustrate the universal antediluvian gap between generations.
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In a completely serendipitous stumble I found myself in the midst of Gods on Wheels. They motored by ever so slowly, smoke in their wake. Riding as they were in the backs of tractor trolleys, they might have been uncomfortable in the dust, Rajasthan sun, and the pounds of costumes and peeling make up they had on. But they consented to perform histrionics for the entertainment of the the thousands gathered to watch. In the aftermath of the harvest, every village in the region nominates vehicles, decorations and of course the Gods in full dress suit. And their belching tractors join a line of other belching tractors with their own Gods and depictions of adventures from Hindu scriptures. Alas, my time was brief but at least I got to bask in the omnipotence of faith.
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Human interactions from here, there and everywhere
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