Subhadra Khaperde had to discontinue her studies after class 11 and start making beedis to financially support her family. Now she is pursuing a PhD and runs an organisation focusing on education, health and livelihoods of rural women in Dewas district of Madhya Pradesh. Here is her remarkable story in her own words:
I was a child that my parents did not want to have. My parents were poor and they were already struggling to look after my six other siblings who preceded me. My mother wanted to abort me. But destiny wanted something else and I was born. Till the time I was seven years old, we lived at Dargahan in Raipur district in the then undivided state of Madhya Pradesh. Dozens of villages of our area got submerged when the Gangrel Dam was commissioned to provide water to the Bhilai steel plant. We were forced to relocate.
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We came to live in my father’s ancestral village, Jepra, where my parents worked as farm labourers. For the first time in my life, I experienced untouchability there. My mother died when I was in class 7. I couldn’t continue my studies beyond class 11. I started to financially support my family by making beedis. Even that was not enough and soon we had to sell off our brass utensils to buy food. Sometime in 1988, I had a chance meeting with a Gandhian activist, Rajagopal PV. It changed my life.
I joined an organisation called Prayog Sansthaan, and was exposed to issues such as landlessness, bonded labour, class and caste discriminations. I was well and truly on my life-long journey of activism. I was part of a team called Bandhua Mukti Punarwas (Rehabilitation of Bonded Labourers) in Saraipali of Chhattisgarh. Besides convincing landlords, we worked on rehabilitating the labourers. My work took me to places around the state. I met labour leader Shankar Guha Niyogi who was later slain. He was our inspiration.
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Amid all the daily struggles and the activism for equality and justice, I met Rahul Banerjee, a graduate from IIT Kharagpur. We shared similar dreams and ideals. We got married. My husband taught me English and re-introduced me to studies. We were awarded a fellowship from the US-based MacArthur Foundation. I started working on women’s reproductive health and rights in Katkut village. We launched a movement against rampant alcoholism and Rahul got arrested. Our son Ishaan was merely six months old then. More trouble followed. I was arrested too.
The government crackdown did not dent our spirits. I completed my graduation, post-graduation, and M.Phil. I am currently pursuing my PhD. Women and health were the primary subjects I was interested in. I was willing to focus on the area of women rights, along with exploring the dimensions of traditional agriculture. We formed the Mahila Jagat Lihaaz Samiti (Society for Respect for Women and Earth). MAJLIS is a Dalit and Adivasi women collective focusing on education, health and livelihoods to improve the situation of rural women. We also work towards sustainable agriculture, organic farming, soil and water conservation.
We started our work in Pandu Talab village of Dewas, which was the place of our earlier anti-alcohol movement. I bought a patch of farm in 2015 and started growing seeds of various rare varieties. I had always been attracted to tribal traditions, culture and their food choices. Tribes worship nature by offering grains. I thought of creating a place where such traditions and history can be preserved. The place was to also store crops that the community grew.
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I converted my modest home and the small land I owned into a tribal museum. Dedicated to the tribal community, it is no longer my personal property. Here, we grow and sell seeds of millet, wheat, vegetable, pulses and rice. The museum also showcases traditional items of the tribal community, including cooking vessels they normally use. We have to find more such items. The museum is a work in progress. The responsibility of the museum now rests with the local Bhil community. I help them as an ordinary worker.
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The lead image at the top shows Subhadra Khaperde and her colleagues at the tribal museum in Pandu Talab village of Dewas. (Photo by Pranay Tripathi)
Reporting and photograph by Pranay Tripathi, an Indore-based upcoming filmmaker and a Rural Media Fellow 2022 at Youth Hub, Village Square.