THE UNSUNG HEROES

NOTE: This story is based on the lives of Komaram Bheem and Alluri Sitarama Raju respectively. It is based on Author's fiction. It is loosely based on real-life incidents and historical references.

06 JULY 2022:

BHIMAVARAM, ANDHRA PRADESH:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled a 30-foot-tall bronze statue of Alluri Sitharama Raju at Bhimavaram in Andhra Pradesh as the year-long celebrations of the freedom fighter's 125th birth anniversary began on Monday.

The government has said that as part of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, it is "committed to giving due recognition to the contribution of freedom fighters and making people across the country aware of them. Heroes like Raju and Komaram Bheem are an example of the spirit of One India, great India." The Prime Minister noted that the history of the freedom struggle went beyond just a few years, few areas, or a few people- it is "a symbol of the strength of our diversity, culture and of our unity as a nation."

He spoke of the government's efforts geared towards the upliftment of tribal communities, and how over 3,000 Van Dhan Vikas Kendras and around 50,000 Van Gana self-help groups are connecting tribal products and art with modern opportunities.

V.V. Sanjay Deshmukh is an college student from Osmania University and also a story writer, who is keen to know about the Indian History, which his friend Sai Adhithya have deemed to be false and fabricated story by bigwig politicians. Yet, he believed them as the real history of India. However, as he investigated more about the 1990 Kashmir genocide and the hidden truths behind this during the recent times, he believes this true and henceforth meets the Union Culture Minister G.K.Reddy at the celebration session where Modi have arrived with several other ministers from Andhra Pradesh. Sai Adhithya accompanied V.V.Sanjay to the celebration session of G.K.Reddy.

After speaking to the security, he eventually meets him. He shows his college ID card and said: "Sir. I have actually came here to know about the real history behind Alluri Sitharama Raju and Komaram Bheem."

G.K.Reddy holds his hands for a second and said: "I am glad that youngsters like you are keen to know about our unsung heroes Sanjay. It's a golden opportunity to celebrate the unsung, unknown and underappreciated in a structured manner." Pausing for a second, he further quoted saying: "You know? The last month, Home Minister Amit Shah had named Raju, along with Ramji Gaur and Komaram Bheem as prominent leaders who stood against the Nizams."

Now Sanjay asked: "Sir. Who is Alluri Sitarama Raju and Komaram Bheem? How did they fought against our enemies?"

Smiling for a while, G.K.Reddy replied: "Alluri Sitarama Raju- the hero of the forests."

FEW YEARS AGO:

PANDRANGI, VISHAKAPATNAM DISTRICT:

1897:

Raju was born in 1897 in a village called Pandrangi, which now falls in the Vishakapatnam district. His father, a photographer died of Cholera at an early age, leaving his mother in penury. Raju's education was disrupted because of lack of money. He is said to have studied in Rajahmundry and Ramachandrapuram, among other places. When he was 18 years old, he left his life and moved to tribal areas.

The exploitation of the tribals by the British- done via stringent laws on forest lands that threatened their cultivation rights, forced labour, and facilitated money extraction in the form of rent, indirect taxes- moved Raju to fight on their behalf. At a very young age, Raju channeled the discontent of the hill people in Ganjam, Vishakapatnam, and Godavari into a highly effective guerrilla resistance against the British. Colonial rule threatened the tribal's traditional shifting cultivation, as the government sought to secure forest lands. The Forest Act of 1882 banned the collection of minor forest produce such as roots and leaves, and tribal people were forced into labour for the colonial government.

While the tribals were subjected to exploitation by muttadars, village headmen commissioned by the colonial government to extract rent, the new laws and systems threatened their way of life itself. Strong anti-government sentiment, shared by the muttadars who were aggrieved by the curtailment of their powers by the British, exploded into armed resistance in August 1922. Several hundred tribals led by Raju attacked the Chintapalle, Krishnadevipeta and Rajavommangi police station in the Godavari agency.

The Rampa or Manyam Rebellion continued in the form of a guerrilla war until May 1924, when Raju, the charismatic "Manyam Veerudu(Hero of Jungle)", was finally captured and executued.

PRESENT:

At present, G.K.Reddy said to V.V.Sanjay that: "Raju had an aura among tribals. They believed he was an incarnation of god. Several of them for decades refused to believe that he died."

"Sir. If you don't take this wrong, I have a question." Sanjay said to which, G.K.Reddy said: "No problem."

"As shown in RRR written and directed by S.S.Rajamouli, was Komaram Bheem and Alluri Sitarama Raju friends in real?" Hearing this, Sai Adhithya and the political workers laughed uncontrollably. While, G.K.Reddy remains calm and said: "No my boy. Cinema is just a fiction. Rajamouli sir loves to read Ramayana and Mahabharata. If you see the film, you could understand the character's connection with the epic book's characters such as Lord Rama and Bheem, who never met each other. Hence, the duo were not friends in real life."

After drinking honey juice, G.K.Reddy continued to tell Sanjay: "Young boy. You know? Charisma among those in the land of Telugu is such that many groups- Kshatriyas, the places where he studied, and the tribals- all try to claim him as theirs." He added, "He is an emotion."

Meanwhile, PM Modi felicitated Raju's nephew, Alluri Srirama Raju, and the son of the revolutionary's close lieutenant Mallu Dora and Bodi Dora.

FEW DAYS LATER:

A few days later, Telakapalli Ravi is asked about the BJP's decision to honor Komaram Bheem and Alluri Sitarama Raju, to which he replied: "The region they chose- Bhimavaram, in the Godavari district- has a concentrated population of upper-caste communities, especially Kshatriyas. Electorally, they may not be in large numbers, but they're a very influential community." In a bypoll in the state last year, the BJP's vote share increased to 15% from 0.5%. When being asked in further about BJP's strategic decision, Ravi replied: "The BJP used to hold three seats in the past in this region, mostly in the Godavari districts belt. So, choosing a historically significant place related to Alluri Sitarama Raju, that also has a significant Kshatriya population was a strategic decision."

He also pointed out how the BJP, focused on it's "Mission South", could not leave out sister-state Andhra Pradesh after holding it's National Executive meeting in neighbouring Telangana last week.

"The BJP has no goodwill in Andhra Pradesh because of the Centre denying it 'special status' after bifurcation, but they always keep saying how the party is serious about the state. So, if they held such a crucial meeting in Telangana and did not take Andhra into consideration, especially when they claim to have a 'Mission South', it would have sent out a wrong message." Ravi said to the Print when they asked: "Whether BJP is holding goodwill in Andhra state?"

Meanwhile, Sanjay is even more curious to know about "The Unsung Heroes- Komaram Bheem and Alluri Sitarama Raju." Henceforth, he once again met G.K.Reddy after seeking his permissions from his office manager. Going inside his house, he asked him: "Sir. Did the government gave in to a long pending demand of the tribals?"

"Yes. In April this year, the Y.S.Jagan Mohan Reddy government gave in to a long-pending demand of the tribals and as part of a district reorganization exercise, named a district after Alluri Sitarama Raju." G.K.Reddy said. Pausing for a while, V.V.Sanjay asked about Komaram Bheem and pointed out, "Whether RRR showed true about Komaram Bheem!"

Pausing for a while, G.K.Reddy gives V.V.Sanjay a thesis depicting the life of Gond Tribes and Komaram Bheem. He asked him to read and realize the untold histories of India. Going back to his hostel room, he starts to read about Komaram Bheem.

FEW YEARS AGO:

1920:

SANKEPALLI, ASIFABAD:

HYERABAD STATE, BRITISH INDIA:

Komaram Bheem was born in Sankepalli, near Asifabad in Hyderabad state, British India to a family in the Gondi tribal community. He is generally considered to have been born on 22 October 1901, although some consider it to be in 1900. Bheem grew up in the tribal populated forests within the traditional kingdoms of Chanda and Ballalpur, isolated from the rest of the world and received no formal education. He kept moving from place to place throughout his life as the Gondi people were becoming increasingly victimized by exploitation from zamindars and businessmen, and through extortion by the forest police.

During the 1900's, there was expansion of mining activities and strengthening of state authority in the Gondi region, regulations were introduced and enforced which hampered the subsistence activities of the Gondis. Zamindars were granted lands in their regions and they imposed taxes on Gondi podu farming activities, non-compliance often resulting in severe arbitration including forced amputations. Gondis began migrating out of their traditional villages, the situation led to occasional retaliations and protestations. Bheem's father was killed by forest officials in one such incident.

Following the death of his father, Bheem and his family moved out to Sankepalli to Sardapur near Karimnagar. The Gonds who had migrated to Sardapur settled in barren land owned by the zamindar Laxman Rao, they began subsistence farming on the land and subsequently became a target for tax extraction.

In a confrontation in October 1920, Bheem killed a senior official of the Nizamate, Siddiquesaab who was sent by Rao to enforce confiscation of crops during the time of harvest. To escape capture, he ran away on foot to the city of Chanda with his friend Kondal. The two were granted refuge by local publisher Vitoba who operated a printing press and distribution network across the regional railways for an anti-British, anti-Nizamate magazine. Bheem learned to speak and read English, Hindi and Urdu during time working with Vitoba.

One day, Bheem's friend Kondal rushed faster to the house and urged him to pack everything. Puzzled, Bheem asked Kondal: "Why?"

"Try to understand Bheem. Vitoba got arrested." Hearing this, Bheem was shocked. However, he has no time to chatter. He was forced to run away by Kondal. With Kondal, Bheem ran away to a tea plantation in Assam with an acquaintance at the Manchiryal railway station. He worked in the plantations for four and a half years. While doing so he became involved in labour union activities and was eventually arrested for such. Bheem escaped jail within four days, boarded a goods train and returned to Bailharshah in the Nizamate.

Bheem had heard of Ramji Gond in his childhood, so he decided to initiate his own struggle for the rights of the Adivasis on his return to the Nizamate. Bheem moved to Kakanghat with famiy and started working for Lacchu Patel who was the head of a village called Devadam. Leveraging his experience in Assam, he helped Patel in a land litigation against the Asifabad estate which made him well known in the nearby villages and in return he was granted permission by Patel to marry.

Since according to Patel, "Life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced." Bheem met Som Bai during a journey. She took him to the interior of the Gond lands, where he realized her helping and generous nature. A few months later, he proposed his love to Som Bai through poem:

"Som. I saw that you were perfect, and so I loved you,

Then I saw that you were not perfect and I loved you even more,

I need you like a heart needs a beat,

If I had a flower for every time I thought of you…I could walk through my garden forever." Som expressed her gratitude over Bheem. Going near to him, she said: "Bheem. Take my hand, take my whole life too. For I can't help falling in love with you." They both hugged and shared a kiss.

Bheem married her and moved to Bhabejhari in the interior of the Gond lands and settled down to cultivate a piece of land. During the time of harvest, he was again approached by forest officials who tried to forced him to leave arguing that the land belonged to the state.

Bheem then tried to lobby the Nizam directly and sought to present the grievances of the Adivasis before him but he received no response.

Bheem then decided to engage in armed revolution. But, Som fears for his life. To console and motivate her, Bheem coined the slogan of freedom, symbolizing a sentiment against encroachment and exploitation. In future, it has been adopted by Adivasi movements as a call to action. He is also closely associated with the movement for Telangana statehood. Bheem sings the slogan to Som:

"Know your worth,

Embrace your humanity,

Embrace the feeling of wonder,

Release yourself,

Accept responsibility,

Dream big,

Rely on yourself,

Earn it,

Be bold,

Feel pride,

Keep the faith,

Believe in yourself,

Face the sun." The sun that he depicted was "Britishers" who said: "The sun never sets." Som said to Bheem: "Bheem. Achieve greatness. I hope for nothing. I fear nothing. I am free. Start your journey against the evils." He formed a clandestine association with the banned Communist Party of India, and started mobilizing the Adivasi population at Jodeghat, eventually calling a council of tribal leaders from the twelve traditional districts of Ankusapur, Bhabejhari, Bhimangundi, Chalbaridi, Jodeghat, Kallegaon, Koshaguda, Linepatter, Narsapur, Patnapur, Shivaguda and Tokennavada. The council decided to form a guerilla army to protect their lands.

Bheem also proposed they declare themselves an independent Gond kingdom. Some see this as a predecessor to more recent attempts to form an autonomous Gondwana. The council was followed by an uprising in the Gondi region which began in 1928. The forces mobilized to attack the zamindars in Babejhari and Jodeghat.

In response, the Nizam recognized Bheem as leader of the Gond rebels and sent the collector at Asifabad to negotiate with him, offering assurances of land grants to the Gonds.

Bheem rejected the initial offer stating that they sought justice and instead demanded regional autonomy for the Gonds, eviction of the forest officials and zamindars, and the release of all Gond prisoners in the penal system of Hyderabad state. The demands were rejected and the conflict continued as a low intensity guerilla campaign over the following decade.

Bheem directly commanded 300 men under him and operated out of Jodeghat. He is said to have coined the slogan Jal, Jangal, Zameen(Water, Forest and Land) during this period. Bheem's whereabouts were eventually discovered by Kurdu Patel and he was killed in an encounter with armed policeman led by the talukdar of Afisabad, Abdul Sattar. Fifteen others were killed in the encounter. The date of his death is disputed, it's officially recognized to have occurred in October 1940 but Gondi people commemorate it on 8 April 1940.

PRESENT:

Upon finishing the thesis about Komaram Bheem, tears flew from Sanjay's eyes. Now, he stepped inside the room of Adhithya to whom he asked: "Your viewpoints were correct da. We have to know more about our India's past history. Youngsters like us should dig them deep. Several political masterminds have suppressed lots of truth."

Adhithya smiled and said: "Komaram Bheem was lionized as a symbol of the Gond rebellion following his death and over the years, was eulogized into Adivasi and Telugu folk songs. But, for Subash Chandra Bose, who played a crucial role in India's independence. Did he get any credits? Do our students know him except a few? Because we are reading cooked-up historical incidents."

"So, what is the justice in the end?" As Sanjay V.V asked, Sai Adhithya replied: "Delayed Justice is denied justice. But, for everything, there's a natural law of karma that vindictive people, who go out of their way to hurt others, will end up broke and alone. What's your point of view about Alluri Sitarama Raju and Komaram Bheem, Sanjay?"

Sanjay replied stating that: "Subash Chandra Bose, Komaram Bheem and Alluri Sitarama Raju are the unsung heroes of our Indian Nation da Adhithya."

Sanjay and Adhithya part ways in their respective room. Since, the time is already 7:45 PM and the warden may scold them for talking.

EPILOGUE:

Bheem has been deified among the animistic Gond Adivasi community through the worship of Bheemal Pen. His death anniversary is commemorated by the Gonds every year on Aswayuja Powrnami, where an event is organized at Jodeghat, the place of his death and his center of operations during the rebellion. His aides Bhadu master and Maru master are considered to have been instrumental in lionising him following his death, in order to motivate demoralised combatants.

Following the death of Bheem, the Hyderabad State employed the Austrian ethnologist Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf to study the causes of the rebellion. Haimendorf's work enabled the enactment of the Hyderabad Tribal Areas Regulation 1356 Fasli in 1946. Haimendorf remarked at the time that "rebellions of aboriginal tribesmen against the authority of the government are among the most tragic conflicts between ruler and ruled" and that "it is always a hopeless struggle of the weak against the strong, the illiterate and uninformed against the organised power of a sophisticated system." The rebellion itself persisted for years after Bheem's death till it merged with the Telangana Rebellion, a peasants uprising led by the communists against the Nizamate.

Bheem's legacy was largely ignored in the mainstream beyond the folk culture of the impoverished Adivasis of central eastern India and the Telangana movement in Andhra Pradesh. His marginalised status in Indian mainstream history contrasted with his idolisation as a revolutionary figure among Adivasis, for whom he became an exemplification of their own marginalised and exploited status in India even after independence. The slogan of Jal, Jangal, Zameen, symbolising a sentiment against encroachment and exploitation, has been adopted by Adivasi communities, particularly the Gonds for their social and political struggles, including as a war cry in the Naxalite–Maoist insurgency.

In the 21st century, with growing support and prominence of the demand for the new state of Telangana, the legacy of Bheem was brought back into the spotlight and was featured in more mainstream political discourse and rhetoric. In 2011, the Andhra Pradesh government announced the construction of a dam and reservoir named Sri Komaram Bheem Project and the installation of a statue at Tank Bund Road in the city of Hyderabad. Following the establishment of the Telangana state in 2014, the state government allocated ₹25 crore (equivalent to ₹34 crore or US$4.5 million in 2020) for the construction of a Komaram Bheem museum for tribal history at Jodeghat and a memorial at Jodeghat hill rock. The museum and memorial were inaugurated in 2016, and in the same year the Adilabad district was reorganised, part of it carved out as the Komaram Bheem district. The location near Jodeghat has become a major tourism destination in Telangana.

The heroic efforts of young Alluri in fighting an all-out war without any state powers, against one of the most powerful empires have been recognised by all. The British Government grudgingly acknowledged him as a powerful tactician of the Guerrilla warfare which lasted for nearly two years, the fact that they had to spend over ₹40 lakhs in those days to defeat him speaks for itself. Historian David Arnold in his book 'The Rebellious Hillmen: The Gudem-Rampa rising 1839-1924', noted that because of his name, the tribals would evoke the image of 'Rama' in Alluri, a honorary which despite being a religious man he never asked for. The Independent Indian Government released a postal stamp in his honour at the village of Mogallu, considered by many to be his birthplace. The Government of Andhra Pradesh, besides building memorials at places associated with his life, granted a political pension to his surviving brother. Mahatma Gandhi paid his tribute to Alluri's life, saying, "Though I do not approve of his armed rebellion, I pay my homage to his bravery and sacrifice." Jawaharlal Nehru commented that, "Raju was one of those few heroes that could be counted on fingers." Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose noted that Alluri was fierce in his determination, and his unparalleled courage and sacrifice for people will ensure him a place in history. In 2022, the Government of Andhra Pradesh carved out a new district named after Alluri from the erstwhile Visakhapatnam district, with Paderu as its headquarters.