Exposure of Indian tribals to education has been a rarity. Even after education, the caste-ridden mainstream system has continued to question tribal identities and push them to the far end of the social periphery.
In this radio program, we talk to Smera Marcia Toppo, and her father Melvyn Probir Toppo, belonging to the Oraon tribe of Central India, and second and third generation in their family to receive formal education respectively. With this program, we came to know about the tribal history and culture of the Oraons, the struggles of being a first-generation tribal student in an urban Indian city and what it is like to lead a mainstream urban life with a tribal background in India.
Producer: Hritam Mukherjee from St. Xavier's College, Kolkata
Voices: Smera Marcia Toppo and Melvyn Probir Toppo
Music: "Whispers" by Ziibiwan, used with permission
"Burn Your Village to the Ground" by A Tribe Called Red. Used with permission.