Interview of the week
Meet Rajen Upadhaya, History Lecturer, Namchi
Government College. Known among the media for his article about the bygone days of Sikkim in the Nepali newspaper ‘Samay Dainik’, he
is also a popular blogger.
Ø Tell us about yourself.
I was born on the 3rd
of December 1981 to Mr Krishna Prasad Upadhyay and Mrs Kaushila Devi Upadhyay
at Tareythang village in East Sikkim. I attended my basic education at Manpur
Dongrong Primary School situated at far-flung East Sikkim, thence, run by a
village Committee.
I did my 12th from Ranipool Sr. Secondary School
now known as Brihaspati Parsai Sr. Sec. School. Completed my graduation with
Honours in History from Sikkim Govt. College Tadong in 2002 and accomplished my
M.A. in History and Archaeology from the University of Pune in 2004.
Completed
M.Phil from Madurai Kamaraj University in 2008 and currently pursuing my PhD
from Kumaun University, Nainital, Uttarakhand. The specialization of my
Doctoral research is Peasant Resistance in Sikkim during World Wars.
Ø You are a history lecturer at Namchi Government College,
share your experiences.
I joined Namchi Govt.
College as a young lad of 23. I was immature as compared to my seniors who had
enough experience in this regard. Though, teaching is a profession of my father, therefore, to teach the College student was not a challenging task for me. Yet,
due to my age, it was quite difficult to handle the students who were of an
analogous age.
But, I really had a great time with the students of NBU. I have
been witnessing a change; I must say a substantial change among those students
and the new ones. The former was carefree and blithe whereas, the new ones are
very curious to understand something.
Ø Your interest lies in Sikkim History, any specific reason?
I was a student of Ancient India and I still have a huge love
for this branch of my subject. After my MA I began to study this very subject in
a much broader manner to pursue a PhD. But, as an exigency of time I had to come
to Sikkim to work therefore, I could not continue my studies in Ancient India.
After spending nearly one year here I thought of going through the History of
Sikkim. Initially, I find its history weird but, later on, I got allured
towards it. Well, the specific reason to have my interest in the History of my
state is the sense of belongingness and the sagacity of being a Sikkimese.
Ø Which period of Sikkim History attracts you the most and why?
Sikkimese History has
many concealed and tacit parts. Its ancient part is totally based on mythology
and for a student of History, it is definitely a challenging task to remove
myths from reality. Further, our history is greatly attached to the
people and their tradition. Therefore, I have chosen a period that has
something we called as evidence in strict historical terminology. The
fascinating part of our history for me is the resistance of the peasants against
the tyrannical feudal setup.
My ancestors too belong to this stratum of the
Sikkimese society and I had often listened since my childhood about the
prevalence of Kalo Bhari, Jharlangi, Theki Bethi, Ghar Lauri, Kuruwa, and other
evils. Since those days I had a strong resentment against the feudal system of Sikkim,
which I prefer to call Himalayan Frontier Feudalism. The stipulation for
using this term against Sikkimese feudalism is its distinctiveness and
idiosyncratic nature from other feudal setups prevalent in the Indian plains
and neighbouring country of Nepal.
Ø If you are given an opportunity to meet any of the
personalities of Sikkim History, whom will you choose and why?
Wish I could go back
to their times and meet them. There are many figures of our times of yore that
I am always eager to meet, to name them His Highness Palden Thondup Namgyal,
Her Highness Hope Cooke Namgyal and Mr Lal Bahadur Basnett. The core rationale
for my curiosity to meet them is their absolute love towards Sikkim and
Sikkimese masses. My love for His Highness is always unbroken by the circumstances
he had come across to uphold the sovereignty of his Kingdom. I personally feel
that his loyalty towards the sovereignty of the erstwhile Himalayan Kingdom is
somewhere mistreated after we became a part of the Union.
Ø Sikkim is home to Neolithic tools, how old is it?
There are many views concerning
the accessibility of the Neolithic tools in Sikkim. Very few researchers have
chosen this slice of History for their studies. Scholars like Dr N.R Banerji
and Dr Janaklal Sharma have accomplished a major task regarding the antiquity
of the Neolithic tools they had been able to discover at various sites in
Sikkim. Though their task is ground-breaking in this matter yet, we cannot
ascertain the antiquity of other Neolithic tools until we undertake major
research.
Ø What is our say about the earliest community that set foot on
the land of Sikkim?
It is a common conviction that the Lepchas are
the aboriginals of Sikkim and historians, anthropologists, and sociologists
have various hypotheses to prove their statements correct. From the studies, it
is also evident that the Lepchas are the earliest settlers of Sikkim. But, we
need to understand which part of Sikkim we are talking about.
If we have to
believe in the accounts of Henry Francis Buchannan which talks about the
extension of Sikkimese frontiers till Islampur and Malda of modern West Bengal
in the South and Chumbi valley in the North, in this case, one cannot overrule
the idea of the settlement of other tribes along with the Lepchas in Sikkim. Likewise,
before the Namgyals, Sikkim did not have a defined area, and there is much evidence of the inhabitation of the tribes like Limboos and Magars in the western
part of the present Sikkim.
Hence, it is quite a tough task for a student of Sikkim
History to ascertain the aboriginals of Sikkim in an absolute manner. But, whatever
other assumptions may be, for me, the Lepchas are the original inhabitants of
Sikkim.
Ø Your blog on Sikkim is highly appreciated, how do you see
life as a blogger?
Firstly, I would like to thank you for your appreciation
of my blog. As a research scholar, I had to browse many sites for the
collection of articles and other related stuff. Once I came across your
blog “Proud to be a Sikkimese”,
before that, I was unknown about the blogging world. My brother insisted I write and publish some of my articles on a blog.
His ideas greatly inspired
me as my students were running short of information on Sikkim History due to its
inclusion in their syllabus. Therefore, with a view to providing them little
information about the yesteryears of Sikkim, I began to work on my blog “Sikkim: A Look-Back View”. I feel good
while sharing information on the blog and feel good that it is appreciated.
Ø Sikkim is today known for its tourism sector. How do you see
it in the next twenty years?
The efforts of the
State Government for promoting tourism in Sikkim deserve applause. The government is putting all its efforts to make Sikkim a known name on the map of the world
by adding new avenues to this sector. Yet, as a student of History, I would like
to insist on the Government turn its attention toward preserving the heritage
of the forgotten Kingdom which had a distinct history as compared to its
neighbouring Kingdoms. If that can be done, Sikkim would be able to drag more
tourists which could not only lead to economic prosperity but also gives a
better boulevard for all those foreign scholars who are curious to peep the
past of Sikkim.
Ø Your words of advice to the young Sikkimese generations.
Today’s generation is very much like chalk and
cheese than what we have come across in our teenage. The ingenuity of our
young generation is heavily spoiled by forwarded messages on mobiles and by the cyber-centric way of life. Apart from this, there is another section which can
be regarded as the vulnerable section of our society that has an inclination
toward the consumption of drugs. Hence, my advice to them are to Say no to drugs and
cultivate the habit of studying.