Small Things Of God....

 It is fascinating to observe that, how big beauties exist in relatively small, sometime even tiny forms in nature. The beauty attracted me so much and created such enthusiasm in me, that I borrowed my friend's 105mm Macro lens  and wander around the fast disappearing  green, wild bushes of Kolkata to capture life. Small, beautiful lives, either we simply overlook or kill with a blow of rolled magazine with our utmost annoyance. Here are some moments that I saw through that 105 Macro...

       

Wrestle to Survive

After 500 push-ups, 600 sit-ups and a workout with the Gada (Indian club) it is time to face his disciples at the akhara (ring of wrestling). After two hours of tireless kushti (wrestling) with his students, Pal Babu gets a soothing massage from his disciples. Mahendar Pandit (48 years), alias Pal Babu, adopted this routine only for last 10 years at the Shree ‘Swami Gyan Yoganand Parimath’ at 126 Cotton Street, which has been a wrestling venue for the last 95 years. The ashram is at the end of a dark, narrow lane near Burrabazar in Kolkata, India. Those who enter the lane have no idea what is coming at the end of the damp and dark alley. However, it surely gives a feeling of nostalgia, as hundred-year-old buildings stand side by side forming those very narrow lanes. This feeling intensifies as one enters the ashram, where the disciples of the late Swami Gyan Yoganand, the founder of the ashram, run a full-fledged akhara.

Unfortunately, akharas face the risk of extinction today. “Most teenagers in the city, who are conscious about their physique, prefer a modern gymnasium to an akhara,” says Manoj Sonkar, one of the present gurus of the ashram, “and those who come to learn are constrained by their economic conditions to learn it properly”. Any physical exercise needs proper diet that these students can hardly afford. “For Pahalwani milk is essential, which many of the disciples cannot buy,” says Mahendar Pandit, one of the present gurus of the ashram who works in a Papad (Indian flat crispy bread) factory for a living.

The scenario was not like this even 40 years back, when akharas used to be the only place for bodybuilding. With the advent of hi-tech gyms and various steroid-stuffed capsules, the akharas have lost their former glory and importance. “When I first came here 10 years ago, this akhara used to be full of people from Bihar or UP who had migrated to Kolkata for their living. But nowadays the number of these migrants has reduced,” says Pandit. Echoing Pandit’s feelings Ashok Kumar Agarwal, the 65-year-old trustee of the Ashram says, “I used to come here in my childhood. At that time, I still remember, the place used to be chock-a-block with people, but as time passed the crowd became thinner.” However, the akhara has managed to survive with more than 30 devoted members. In return for their commitment to the ashram, they receive lessons on wrestling from their gurus.

Mahendar Pandit, Manoj Sonkar and Suresh Yadav are the gurus who work tirelessly to keep alive this ancient art and tradition of self-defence. “Whoever comes to learn kushti in the ashram is trained for toughness with the help of various exercises. Once we are satisfied with his physical strength, we start teaching them different techniques of Pahalwani,” says Pandit. Achieving physical strength is the biggest challenge for every student. “We still do physical exercise every day like free-hand exercises and weightlifting and only after that we practice wrestling in the akhara,” says Sonkar. He further adds, “The flexibility and fitness that one acquires from a session at the akhara are extremely long lasting compared to a gym. You do not lose or gain weight after quitting kushti”.

 

The levels of physical strength and fitness that can be achieved from kushti were visible when 27-year-old Vickey Pataniya started working out by swinging a couple of 20-kilo Gadas in two hands. A regular at the akhara for the last 10 years, Vicky with his robust chest and huge muscular body recalls, “I used to be very thin and weak in school, and students from senior classes used to bully me a lot. That was the reason I joined kushti at first, but as time passed I gained much physical strength and slowly fell in love with the art”. Another student of the ashram, 17-year-old Vijay Yadav, has just completed training and started learning techniques of wrestling.

Pahalwani is not only about bodybuilding or a muscular body to impress the opposite gender, but also about being equipped for self-defence. “The various techniques of kushti are specially created for fighting in the battlefield. Rajas and Maharajas used to learn these in their times,” says Suresh Yadav. Techniques like Dhak, Nikas, Dhobi Pachad or Kanpheri are specially designed to defeat the opponent in freehand combat. “Like Kanpheri, which happens to be Pal Babu’s speciality, is about pulling the opponent by holding his neck, while he automatically pulls himself back, and then giving him a sudden push that he falls on his back,” says Pal Babu by rubbing his face with the specially made clay of the akhara.

“The clay is made by mixing various ingredients like sandal dust, Multani Mitti (Fuller’s Earth), Neem leaf, Mustard oil, various flower petals and clay from the Ganges. These help to fight back various skin diseases,” says Pal Babu. “You see, Pahalwani is not only for physical health but for mental health as well. It needs strong will power and an attitude to give up many worldly pleasures; for that a Pahalwan should avoid the company of a woman, and that is the only way to learn the core of Pahalwani and Sanskriti (culture),” adds Pal Babu.

When asked about the sanskriti, Manoj Sonkar points towards an old man, clad in a red dhoti, sweeping the ashram premises with the utmost concentration. “His name is Dhonilal Sonkar and he is 75-years- old. He has achieved everything in his life a common man can dream of, yet he comes here every day to sweep the floor. It is not his devotion to God but a habit of many years that drives him to perform this chore. It has become a part of his culture that tells him that sweeping the floor is his duty. He has been doing this for years ever since he started practice in the akhara. The culture of Pahalwani taught him the virtues of hard work and devotion”.

Freedom Movement

Alokananda Roy performing with Nigel Akkara

"Ever since Ma came into my life, I have been a changed person," says Sanjoy Patra, 37, an ex inmate of Presidency Jail, Kolkata. Patra is referring to Odissi dancer Alokananda Roy, who has been regularly visiting jails in West Bengal, helping the prisoners to freely express their minds and bodies through dance.

The danseuse and her students call it dance therapy. And therapeutic it is. "It has been an exercise in self-realization," explains Patra. "It gave us the strength to believe in ourselves, to realize the happiness of living in the present." Not surprisingly, the prisoners who have partaken of Roy’s lessons refer to her as "Ma".

Roy visited the Presidency Jail l for the first time on 8 March, 2007, on an invitation to celebrate International Women’s Day with the female prisoners. "I still remember as if it were yesterday,” smiles Roy. “They presented a dance recital for us, and with their make-up and costumes, they seemed just like the students in my regular classes."

Roy wanted to do something for them. Her wish turned into reality when Banshidhar Sharma, IG (Correctional Services), approached her in this regard. Besides her dance school, Chandanaloke, Roy also runs an NGO called Inspiration Foundation, a centre of performing arts for underprivileged youth.

The dancer reveals how her very first visit to the Presidency Jail changed her idea about a jail. Contrary to what she expected, the place presented a clean and tranquil environment. The warmth of the inmates touched her. Seeing young male prisoners "walking aimlessly", she thought "one of them could very well have been by own son". And that’s how she conceived of dance therapy for them.

Convincing the male prisoners, however, was not an easy task. "Initially, we were wary. I thought ‘who is this crazy woman trying to teach us dance?’” recalls Nigel Akkara, who served nine years as an under trial for 18 cases of murder, extortion and kidnapping. "To be honest, I did not like her.”

So at first, there were only 10 students who went to Roy’s class, much against their wishes. "But slowly, they began to open up. And soon, we had more than 40 inmates in our class," says Roy.

"They had their doubts, but Mrs Roy’s love and affection overcame such obstacles,” says Sharma. Of course, it took time. “When I came to know that a lady has come to teach us dance, I thought it was gimmick of another of those fame-hungry social workers, to whom we were actually untouchables. And when they asked me to sign up for the class, I told Ma that gundas do not wear ghungroos,” laughs Akkara. “But my outlook changed when I saw her interact with the prisoners, touching them while teaching as if they were like any other.”

Roy now takes classes separately for men and women, at least three times a week. "The segregation between the genders is very strict. Male and female prisoners are not allowed to interact in the jail," she explains.

Initially, Roy didn’t have any huge plans, such as of trying to integrate them into the mainstream of society. Her classes were more like constructive recreation. Little did she imagine that her instruction would gradually become the road to peace for the troubled souls. "We are born with rhythm and beat; a life without these would lead to destruction. By interacting with these men and women, I realized that somehow they had lost the rhythm of life, and that perhaps it could be re-established through music and dance,” reasons Roy.

Jail in the Indian context entails indescribable mental agony. About 70 per cent of the inmates are just awaiting trial. “That means you are putting a person behind bars without knowing if he or she is guilty,” says Sharma. In order to transform them, they should be engaged in some kind of constructive activity, believes the jail authority. And what could be better than music and dance?

The dance classes worked wonders for the prisoners of Alipore Central Jail. Besides putting up small shows within the premises, they were invited to participate in the Uday Shankar Dance Festival 2007 at the prestigious Ravindra Sadan auditorium. "It was perhaps for the first time in the world that prisoners came out in the open and presented such a recital. They performed so well that the audience gave a standing ovation and, overwhelmed, most of the prisoners ended up in tears," recalls the force behind all this.

After this, there was no looking back. In the last five years, they have done more than 35 shows all over the country. And the revenue generated from these events is donated to the West Bengal Prisoners Welfare Fund. The inmates not only chose a completely different way of life, but also became devoted music lovers, says Sharma happily.

What is of utmost importance is that none of those people, who underwent dance therapy, have committed any crime. “And they never will,” adds Sharma in a matter-of-fact tone. Sharma says that he is not merely hypothesizing, and that it’s his conviction based on his entire career as a prison authority.

Roy too feels strongly about it. "They wouldn’t do anything that would embarrass me. Many times they had opportunities to flee, but none did so,” she says.

Roy’s devotion and hard work paid her rich dividends too. Within a few days of her classes, she became “Ma’ from “Madam”. "I cannot describe in words what have I gained from them. Their unconditional love cannot be compared with any treasure in this world,” she says, her eyes moistening.

So strong became the bonding that the teacher couldn’t afford to miss a class. If she did, she had to face grumpy faces the next day! On her part, she played the role of a mother, full of affection but also scolding them whenever necessary. “If they made mistakes deliberately, missed a class or were lazy, I would tell them off,” Roy smiles.

Thanks to her guidance, the prisoners turned into veritable stars. Their first performance of “Balmiki Prativa” outside the wall in 2007 was not only a huge success, but also a life-changing experience for them. "After the show, most of them were crying, as if they were reborn,” says Roy.

Sanjoy Patra sums it all up. "We have realized that the only thing that overcomes hard luck is hard work and love for others. If Ma had come into my life earlier, it would have been a completely different story."