One fine morning, we, a group of twelve, planned to visit the land of the Royal Bengal tiger, the Sundarbans. As we embarked on this journey on 18th December 2021, we could never envisage the surprises waiting for us. My first impression of this beautiful, tranquil land was how we humans are tampering with Mother Nature in the name of progress and development. Mangroves are being destroyed and we are inviting this destruction with open arms. Sundarbans has opened its doors to storms and cyclones in the name of urbanization. Luxurious resorts are being constructed breaking the peaceful serenity of the dark, deep woods. Sundarbans comprises of 1700square kilometre of waterbody and the rest is ever depleting land area. The slope of the embankment is such that during a cyclone these embankments crumble due to the onslaught of sea water of the nearby coast, turning the sweet waterbody into salty one, leading to the huge destruction of flora and fauna.
The Sundari trees are heading towards extinction due to vast expanse of this salty water. Let me now take you with me on our onward journey. We reached the jetty of the river bank, where we climbed on to the steamer and our thrilling adventure for the next three days began. After a sumptuous breakfast prepared on the streamer by these simple people of Sundarbans, who were our crew as well. I was overwhelmed by the love and affection, the crew showered us with. Lunch and dinner was also prepared on the streamer by them. The aroma of the delicious meal increased our appetite as it hit our nostrils. Fresh fish like Bhetki, Prawns and Crabs were a part of the menu which could give competition to a five star hotel any day. Gosaba was the first spot where our steamer anchored. We climbed out of the steamer and made our way through a market full of local people who had a friendly appearance and a charming smile would light up their faces as we passed. We reached the bungalow of the Scottish lord Hamilton. His contribution to the development of the villages around is undeniable.
Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore accepted his invitation and stayed in Gosaba for two days, 30th and 31st December, 1932. He was impressed to see the unity of the villagers around. But Alas! the bungalow right now is in an unkempt condition. Hope we do our best not to lose our precious heritage. We left Lord Hamilton’s bungalow and started our journey through the backwaters close to the lovely dark and deep forests. What a sight! the vast expanse of serene water and the green woods skirting both sides. Each backwater has a beautiful name- Durgaduwari, Gumor, Dutto etc. Everywhere one can see the tributaries of these backwaters running through the heart of the forest. We spotted so many wild animals and birds with vibrant hues. Wild boar, spotted dear, monkeys greeted us with their presence. Trees like the Garan, Garjan, Hethal, Genhua, Dhundhul and so many unknown ones, waved their branches and nodded their heads, to give us a warm welcome. We came to know the names from the crew in our steamer. We visited a village close to the Larica resort. We observed their struggle for day to day existence.
The people were absolutely honest and simple. The children were lovely. They loved the chocolates which I offered, but before accepting them, they looked towards their parents for permission. We distributed blankets to these villagers under the leadership of our Captain Sri Dhurjuti Prasad Chattopadhyay, a magnanimous soul, who is relentlessly working towards the upliftment of these villagers for whom life is nothing but a perilous journey. As we stood watching the face of these people light up with a heavenly light after receiving the blankets, the western sky lit up with a vibrant red as the sun bid us farewell. It was sight I will never forget for ages, as I stood surrounded by the serene water, the forest and these simple folks. Our steamer headed towards Bali Island, our destination for the night. We had put up at JD camp. A theatrical show was put up in the dining space at our camp, by the people of the villages around to entertain and educate us. It was named “Bon Bibir Pala”. the story centred on Hindu Muslim unity and the story of Dakshin Roy, the ferocious tiger, king of the jungles, who would hunt and kill men who went into the deep forest to collect honey, catch fish and crabs for their livelihood. The tale then talks about the goddess of the wild ‘’Bonobibi”, who relieves the men from their sorrow and how she tames the wild tiger, who finally surrenders himself before her and earns her blessings. Today, the men, both Hindus and Muslims, worship both of them before they venture to go out into the wilderness. Most of the actors had come all the way from a village 12 miles away, as they have immense love and respect for our team leader. This is how they earn their livelihood besides fishing. They are 12 in number. They have collected some costumes, musical instruments and lights.
With minimum facility, they perform so well that one is awestruck seeing their talent. No collar mike, no glycerin, no branded makeup, yet they manage to hold you to your plastic chair for one and a half hours. The token amount and the blankets we gave them, seemed so meagre compared to their talent and hard work. My salute to these talents who bloom in the heart of wild Sundarbans. Next day was the day when we started for the deep forests skirting the back waters. The journey was an adventure into the wild with the green water lapping up the sides of our steamer. The spotted deer drinking water along with the lesser whistling birds was an example of perfect harmony in nature. Wish we humans would learn a lesson. The lazy crocodile basking in the warm sunlight, the playful monkeys, wild boar, open bill storks, black capped kingfisher, black headed ibis, and pheasant tailed jacana, pariah kite, red jungle fowl, doves, grey herons, wood sandpiper, green pigeon, cormorants, common kingfishers, woodpeckers, were a sight for the eyes. The third eye, the lens never stopped. All around every one was busy clicking away to our hearts content. I wish I could post the photographs here. We also weaved our way through an elevated path to the watch tower to see if we could be lucky enough to see his royal highness. But we had to be content with his pug marks only. After all he is the Royal Bengal tiger. Our leader Dhurjuti dada had another surprise up his sleeves for us. As we came back to our camp in the evening, we were asked to collect in the dining hall where Mr. Tapan Das, one of the survivors of tiger attack was waiting for us to narrate his spine- chilling encounter with the man-eater. let me brief you about their livelihood in the Sundarbans if they want to go into the deep forest, or the tributaries of the backwaters, they stay in their hand made boats for three to four days cooking, eating and sleeping in their tiny wooden boats.
The nightmarish dark waters of the tributaries rocking the boat on one hand, the dark deep forest trying to engulf you on the other, and the tiny boat as the only shelter. Tiger on the land, crocodile in the water and the helpless human on the tiny boat. This is no movie. Not the ” life of pie” but the struggle of the men of Sundarbans. One such night, Tapan Das and five other fishermen had taken out their boat to catch fish in the remote tributaries of the backwaters. The second day, the night turned windy and it was drizzling. The little boat was rocking to and fro, though anchored. They were preparing to go to sleep and were unaware of the approaching tiger, which suddenly leapt from behind at Tapan, held him by his head and neck and dragged him into the water. Most of the fishermen climbed out of the boat and ran towards the jungle to save their lives. One of them somehow mustered courage and hit the tiger with the oar. The tiger was taken aback for a second and loosened his hold on Tapan’s head and neck. This helped Tapan to somehow drag himself a little further and turn around. The tiger then hit him with his paw on his right jaw. His jaw burst open and he was bleeding profusely from all his wounds. He was brought to Gosaba hospital after 12 hours in a nearly dead condition. As the entire operation was illegal, he could not ask for government aid. After three operations and a plastic surgery on his jaw, he was back to his former self. But the man’s confidence and his positive attitude is to be admired. He says the incident does not haunt him. One of his nephew is in the hospital, who was recently mauled by a tiger and his chances of survival are thin.
So many men lose their lives in these deep forests and the dark waters, yet life goes on here unpolluted with an alluring simplicity. The royal Bengal tiger lives in regal style in its habitat with all other animals around. As we walked through a nearby village early next morning, we could see the birds’ coo-cooing, the kingfisher in stark concentration looking at the water to catch its prey, the wild flowers in full bloom, the air so pure and pristine. As we started for our return journey, we carried this peace and harmony in our hearts, praying and hoping that man’s never-ending greed will not destroy the untouched beauty
By: MAHUA MALLICK
