Hope in the midst of havoc

Every year, Dhaka resident Trinath Baurusetty retraces the steps his forefathers took nearly two centuries ago. The 27-yearold embarks on a journey to India from the Bangladesh capital. After crossing the international border into West Bengal, he takes a train from Kolkata to Visakhapatnam. His destination is Etikoppaka village, renowned globally for its traditional toys. The village holds a geographical indication (GI) tag for its handicrafts. For Baurusetty, the place connects him to his Telugu roots.
“From a very young age, I was curious about my identity. I asked myself many questions about who I was. This quest has led me to make regular trips to Andhra Pradesh,” said Baurusetty in fluent Telugu. According to the information he gathered, his great-grandparents or the generation before them had migrated from Etikoppaka to Dhaka during British rule. People from many dalit families on the Andhra coast were taken for manual labour in the 1850s and later employed in tea plantations or as cleaners and scavengers in the railways and the Dhaka municipality. Today, Baurusetty is part of the 30,000-odd Telugus in Bangladesh.
K. Suryanarayana, professor emeritus at Andhra University in Visakhapatnam, said the trend was the result of cheap labour exploited by the East India Company. “The tea, teak and coffee plantations required labour, and the East India Company used workers from the area stretching from Rajahmundry to Ichapuram. They migrated to countries like Myanmar, which were considered Suvarnabhumi. In fact, in the 18th and 19th centuries, those who migrated to work in those countries earned a lot and were treated as rich foreigners by the locals. But some of them had to return without making much money and had to be rehabilitated by the governments.”
Denne historien er fra September 08, 2024-utgaven av THE WEEK India.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9500+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra September 08, 2024-utgaven av THE WEEK India.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9500+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på

Wheelchairs and miracles
They are sending that Tharoor fellow for the phoren bijit. Surely you know as many big words as he does, no?” asked Misser Ji, my neighbour.

I find it difficult to revisit my work
Tucked away on a narrow lane behind Chennai’s upscale Greenways Road, the Madras Talkies office exudes the same aesthetic and visual artistry as Mani Ratnam’s films. Journalists, TV crews and assistant directors crowd the front office, eager to catch a glimpse of the director a day before the release of Thug Life. The office, flooded with natural light, feels as vibrant as his work. Young staff, fashionably dressed and reminiscent of his movie characters, discuss their mentor, “Mani Sir”.

Sindoor and India's new normal
Leading one of the seven outreach groups which travelled to 33 countries to communicate India's new normal on Pakistan-backed terrorism was an eye-opening experience. I have had the honour of leading many such delegations in the past, but this one stood out.

The eighth nerve
Nothing is coming,” Aaftab said in broken English, tapping on his ear and shaking his hand to denote his loss of hearing. Fluent only in Arabic, he had travelled from Oman because he had been told that his tumour was too big and in a precarious location, and that there was a significant risk to life.

SILENT KILLER
Seventy-two countries have banned asbestos, a known carcinogen. India is not one of them

We are not another Pakistan
INTERVIEW - MAHFUJ ALAM adviser to the ministry of information and broadcasting, Bangladesh

LESSONS FROM SINDOOR
While India's military actions on May 7 and 10 were successful, it is vital to assess strategic and tactical lessons and shortcomings

Banker’s gamble
Bangladesh’s political future will depend on how well Muhammad Yunus and the interim regime he heads brave the dissent at home and pressures from abroad

Cultural weave
Tibetan Muslims in Kashmir carved out a space for themselves by blending two rich cultures, all while dealing with statelessness and economic hardship

THE CRAFT OF CALM
Anavila Misra on her new collection, a launch into home textiles and why living in a bubble has many merits