The underprivileged

OVER THE RAINBOW: Aroti Dutt; Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd. L-10, Green Park Extension, New Delhi-110016. Rs. 150.

THE BOOK under review is an absorbing account by a brave woman of Bengal, who has traversed a good part of the globe to acquaint herself with the living conditions of underprivileged women and their children scattered in areas of which little is known. Hailing from a family, distinguished for its contribution to India's freedom struggle, the author married into a family reputed for its dedicated work in the preservation and propagation of Bengali culture and traditions.

When about to return home after completing her studies in Europe, she received a call to participate in a conference being held at the time in Edinburgh by the Associated Country Women of the World (ACWW). As an official of the Saroj Nalini Memorial Association and India's delegate to the conference, the author availed of the opportunity to widen her contact internationally and also have her organisation affiliated with the ACWW. Soon after she was entrusted with the task of looking after the activities of the world body from Lebanon in West Asia to the Philippines in the East. As vice-president, ACWW, she toured Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Sarawak, Indonesia and the Philippines which gave her first-hand knowledge of the living conditions of women in the Third World countries.

Her travels in the interior parts of these least publicised countries during the Sixties and the Seventies provide the book's exciting tales of the customs and traditions of countless villagers and tribals, especially of the Dayaks of Sarawak and the Tasadays of the Philippines.

During a conference in Manila she visited a museum dedicated exclusively to the islands in the Philippines and in some of the photographs on exhibition there were pictures showing wild- looking people swinging hand over hand from the branches of tall trees and some sitting naked in front of caves in a deep forest. At first she thought they were pictures of pre-historic people, but the descriptions clearly showed that they were of the present day. When the conference got over she told her friends that she wanted to visit the forest and see how these people, the Tasadays, lived. She was told that the forests were absolutely dense with no access to the place by road. Only a helicopter could get in. The island was a restricted area and required government permission, which she could not get. Friends had explained that the government was determined that the Tasadays people were not to be disturbed by outsiders. However, scientists and anthropologists were allowed entry to the island.

The information she gathered from these experts about the Tasadays is what she relates in her book in such a telling manner. This tribe has never engaged in warfare, never seen metal, has no concept of medicine, not even herbal remedy, has never tasted salt, rice or sugar, never smelt tobacco. When their existence was first reported to the world, only 25 years ago, it caused a stir in anthropological circles.

The author recalls her stay in Finland as a guest of the Finnish branch of the ACWW where it was customary for people to have steam baths in groups, known as ``sauna''. This ceremony has become fashionable in several parts of the world as far as California. Many cultures have accepted the therapeutic value of steam.

After a spell in the land of ice and snow she flew south to the equator to find Mount Kenya rise from the plains to a sheer 19,000 feet above sea level. She experienced the thrill of spending a night on ``tree-tops'' - a guest house literally built on top of a large tree of the Aberdare National Forest reserve, famed for its wild game. Close to this area lived the Mazai warriors, known for their skill in hunting lions with long spears and their penchant for consuming cows' blood mixed with milk.

There was also the Kikuyu tribe which considered infertility in married couple as sufficient ground for divorce. Women here were expected to have children as a sign of power and wealth for the man. In contrast, the Mazais did not accept divorce but allowed the men to take a second wife or permit the women to have an offspring through a lover and the husband can claim such issues as his own.

She is convinced that even in the remotest parts of the world an Indian like her is received well on account of her two national identities, her fascinating apparel, the saree, and next, the awe and respect the name of Mahatma Gandhi inspires. A lifetime of observing people around the world has convinced her that if a society abandons or oppresses its rural population, sooner or later that society would pay the price of a revolution.

D. VENKATESAN

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