Within the quiet village of Dhadgaon in Nandurbar, Maharashtra, a transformative motion is taking root. ‘Aadiwasi Janjagruti’ — a grassroots initiative led by 50 passionate neighborhood members — is revolutionising how tribal communities join with governance and the world. By means of charming movies, movies, and documentaries, they’re making a hyperlocal communication community that empowers tribes to handle on a regular basis challenges and interact with the Authorities like by no means earlier than.
The way it all started
The story of Aadiwasi Janjagruti traces again to 2016, when Nitesh Bhardwaj (33), certainly one of its founders, arrived in Dhadgaon for a fellowship programme. On the time, Nitesh was enthusiastic about filmmaking however had no plans for long-term involvement within the village. His reference to the neighborhood started unexpectedly — via a gaggle of keen highschool college students inquisitive about video manufacturing.
With no gear or sources, Nitesh began instructing the scholars find out how to shoot and edit movies utilizing simply his and a good friend’s telephones. Their first undertaking was a easy, zero-budget video, however its influence was profound.
“We uploaded it on YouTube and received 20 subscribers — it felt large for us! For the reason that villagers have been a part of the movie, it was shared and proven broadly,” Nitesh recollects in an interview with The Higher India.
The response to their subsequent video, which highlighted the difficulty of kid labour, was a game-changer. Nitesh realised that they had found a robust device for elevating consciousness and addressing social points. “After that movie, every time we went to a tea stall, the homeowners would shortly cover any youngsters working there. They thought we have been some large pictures who would possibly file a grievance,” Nitesh shares.
That modest starting laid the inspiration for a motion that may go on to empower tribal voices via storytelling and visible media.
Bridging the communication hole with movies
Nitesh was quickly joined by Rakesh Pawara (38) and Arjun Pawara (37), two area people members from Dhadgaon who deeply understood the village’s challenges. Collectively, they started assembling a group of native reporters and employees, all united by a shared imaginative and prescient to create significant change of their neighborhood.
“We have been already doing our half, performing skits and dramas on social points,” shares Rakesh. “However once we began working with Nitesh Bhai, we realised what number of issues have been occurring unsystematically in our space.”
He recollects one instance: “When folks in our village went to get their ration playing cards, they have been typically charged a charge. We later came upon that getting a ration card needs to be free. The individual in cost was tricking them into paying, just because they didn’t know any higher.”
Within the early days, as they have been establishing their presence, a video by Aadiwasi Janjagruti on the Swachh Bharat Mission garnered vital consideration. “The entire village was concerned in making that movie. One way or the other, it reached the Collector’s workplace, and he invited us, asking if he may very well be part of it too,” says Nitesh.
This led to an surprising breakthrough: the villagers now had an open channel of communication with the Collector. “He gave us entry to authorities workplaces and conferences the place we may display screen our movie. He even gifted us a cellular projector, which we used to display screen the films within the villages,” Nitesh provides.
Savi Pawara (32) is an workplace volunteer at Aadiwasi Janjagruti, overseeing screenings and conferences in 5 villages throughout the block. A revered chief, particularly amongst ladies, she is fondly often called Savi Tai and can also be a gifted Pawari actress.
Earlier than every screening, Savi travels to the village two days prematurely. She meets with native leaders — together with the CBO and the Sarpanch — and speaks to different villagers to tell them in regards to the assembly and screening schedule, and to assemble ideas for matters they wish to talk about. “As soon as I return to the workplace, I share all the data with the group, so we will plan accordingly,” she explains.
Savi makes use of her affect to empower the ladies in her neighborhood, serving to them elevate their grievances. For many who really feel too shy to talk up, she steps in on their behalf. “I help ladies who wish to speak in regards to the points they’re going through — whether or not it’s abuse or violence — and I assist them discover their voice,” she additional provides.
“We act as a bridge, taking these points on to the Authorities if want be,” says Nitesh. “A number of these conferences occur within the afternoons, which permit ladies to attend as nicely. This ensures that ladies are usually not ignored of the dialog.”
These screenings have turn out to be a significant device for educating the native inhabitants, giving them a greater understanding of points affecting their each day lives.
The group additionally ensures that the voices of the neighborhood are heard by authorities officers. After each screening, common conferences are carried out the place folks can voice their issues and share ideas. These conferences sort out a wide range of points — together with corruption, abuse, pension points, and dangerous superstition.
Even the kids of those communities, who would’ve in any other case gotten concerned in different actions, are mobilised to work for the betterment of their very own houses.
Turning the marginalised into mainstream
Aadiwasi Janjagruti’s efforts have had a big influence on the neighborhood. By translating authorities insurance policies into the native dialect and utilizing video codecs to clarify them, they’re guaranteeing that the tribal inhabitants shouldn’t be ignored of essential selections that have an effect on their lives.
Throughout COVID, when hyperlocal data grew to become essential, Nitesh and his group labored tirelessly to make sure the neighborhood stayed knowledgeable. “I might take the WHO stories, translate them into Hindi, after which our group members would additional translate them into our native dialect, Pawari. By the point the content material was obtainable in Marathi, we already had the data prepared for our neighborhood,” says Nitesh.
Aadiwasi Janjagruti has efficiently addressed a number of native points, making a tangible distinction in the neighborhood. One such case concerned a girl whose 9 goats died from poisoning. Whereas the loss wasn’t thought of vital sufficient by mainstream information retailers, it devastated her livelihood and affected all the neighborhood.
Aadiwasi Janjagruti raised consciousness in regards to the challenge, bringing it to the eye of native authorities, and the girl in the end obtained compensation.
In one other occasion, the group labored relentlessly to focus on a highway building undertaking that had been stalled for years. Their movies drew consideration to the difficulty, and the highway was lastly accomplished in 2022. The villagers have been so happy with the end result that they determined to call the highway after Aadiwasi Janjagruti.
In Dhadgaon, a bridge undertaking had been caught in limbo for 16 years, affected by corruption and bureaucratic hurdles. Aadiwasi Janjagruti stepped in, making a sequence of movies that introduced consideration to the difficulty and made it a urgent concern. Their efforts paid off when the Authorities sanctioned Rs 45-47 crore for the bridge’s completion.
Whereas awaiting the bridge’s building, the group petitioned for a free boat service to assist villagers cross the river. “We made certain the neighborhood’s inconvenience was addressed within the meantime. Now, a free boat service runs three journeys each day for the villagers till the bridge is accomplished,” shares Rakesh.
What is really exceptional is that one of many group members who tirelessly advocated for the bridge went on to contest elections for the Sarpanch publish — and gained. As we speak, 14 members of Aadiwasi Janjagruti maintain positions in authorities workplaces. With no political affiliations and no monetary backing, these changemakers grew to become a part of the system as a result of the neighborhood recognised their dedication and the influence of their work.
What started as a undertaking centered on 4 to 5 villages has now expanded to cowl over 170. Aadiwasi Janjagruti now has 47 employees, all from tribal communities, who’ve been educated as journalists, reporters, and leaders. The group produces a various vary of content material — movies, skits, brief movies, and documentary-style movies — addressing important points like youngster labour, sanitation (Swachh Bharat), authorities insurance policies, citizen rights, and corruption.
‘We simply wish to be Dhadgaon well-known’
Aadiwasi Janjagruti’s work has not gone unnoticed. In 2022, their group obtained small grants from the Azim Premji Basis, Google Information Initiative, and YouTube India. This funding allowed them to develop their attain and enhance their operations.
Regardless of the popularity, the group stays dedicated to their neighborhood. They don’t aspire to be well-known on a nationwide scale. “We don’t wish to be world-famous, we simply wish to be ‘Dhadgaon well-known’,” says Nitesh. “We wish to sort out the problems right here and ensure our group is robust sufficient to deal with all of it on their very own.”
Their grassroots mannequin is proof that when communities take management of their very own narrative, they’ll result in significant change. Now, the group is concentrated on combating faux information and misinformation within the area — educating folks in regards to the significance of correct data and management roles throughout the Authorities.
They’ve proven that when the folks from the neighborhood work for their very own folks, with deep understanding and empathy for the challenges they face, change is not only doable — it’s inevitable.
“We’re part of the system itself. What the neighborhood thinks, our group thinks the identical manner,” says Nitesh. “We additionally perceive the social and cultural norms of the neighborhood very nicely, which helps us establish the problems that want consideration and decide one of the best ways to handle them.”
Edited by Pranita Bhat, All picture courtesy Aadiwasi Janjagruti
