Upon reaching the local bus stand at Ishwardi, an upazila of Pabna district in Rajshahi division, it takes 15 minutes by rickshaw to get to the Hospital Railway Colony and New Railway Colony of Fateh Mohammedpur suburb where the greater part of the of the Telugu community lives.
These people impress one as laidback in their colourful attire, rich with vibrant cries and laughter. Passing, one can see that most of the buildings are red brick, essentially one-storey structures and most dating back to the early 1940’s.
On arrival we were warmly greeted and welcomed in one of their homes in a tin-shed house with a big living area where they all gathered, mostly smiling and astonished faces of almost all ages to find out our purpose. Bright saris and lehangas hung from the clotheslines. We were offered steel plates bearing sweets made of brown and white sesame seed mashed with patali gur (jaggery).
The Telugu originate from South Indian Dravidians and they speak their own language. Many originate from Andhra Pradesh and today the most significant Telugu populations are in the neighbouring states of Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Chhattishgra. According to the elders of the community, almost 50 members migrated in the first phase and later more than 200 members followed due to economical crisis from Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Chhattishgra, some parts of Jharkhand and Kharagpur region of West Bengal in India during the British period (between 1942 and 1945) and a large number of them have been living in Ishwardi and the rest in Dhaka, Bangladesh till now.
Their religions range from Hinduism, Islam, Christianity and Buddhism. Puja, Eid and Buddha Purnima are their prime celebrations and festivals. They are one of the most prehistoric ethnic groups found in India, existing prior to the writing of the Vedas and mentioned in the Ramayana and Mahabharata epics. They are also the largest of the Dravidian groups by population and Telugu, which falls in the central Dravidian language group, which is the most spoken of the Dravidian languages and the third most commonly spoken language in India after Hindi and Bengali. They are today spread throughout India and abroad but the state of Andra Pradesh is stated as their homeland.
One of the senior members of the community at Ishwardi, Nadupuru Demudu (64) says the different sects or branches in the Telugu race are Kapolo (royal blood or Kapu), Malolo (Malla), Shaklolo, Shraslolo, and Matlolo. ‘Only three of the sects – Kapolo, Malolo and Shaklolo are inhabiting in Bangladesh,’ he says.
There are almost 22 Malolo families, two Kapolo and one Shaklolo family amounting to almost 400 people living at Ishwardi. Most of them work as sweepers. ‘Almost 3.5 lakh Telegus live in Bangladesh with heavy concentration in and around the suburbs of Rajdhani Supermarket, Gopibagh Railgate, Mohammedpur, Gabtoli, Syedabad, Mirpur Pongu Hospital College Gate, Gulistan in Dhaka city and in Pakshi, Bheramara, Khalishpur and Sylhet. Almost entire generations living here were born in independent Bangladesh. Most of them try to visit their original homeland once in two years,’ he added.
Nadupuru’s mother, at nearly 100 years is one of the oldest members of the community. Chinnamma had great difficulty coming inside the living area. She spoke in Telugu while Deoramma translated.
‘I was only a young girl carrying a child of five months when I first came here from India. That was after the Hindu-Muslim separation and most probably during 1945 and I still remember the train fare – only four rupees. My husband was working in the railway and he was transferred here in the railway office mainly due to the economical crisis that we were facing there.’
Deoramma and K Losmi (50) then talked about few of their dresses and special dishes, which although blended with the Bengali cooking style, still has certain hints of originality, which they cherish while dining.
One of their common items is the karya pata soup as alternative of our daal (pulses) while other original dishes are Sambaru or shambar as they call. That is followed by other items which they called ambli, simbri, and goddo.
Their dresses are very colourful and have an innate aura of cheerfulness – males wear uttareeyam, jubba (kurta), pancha (dhoti) and lungi while the women wear cheera (sari), parikini, and langa oni (half sari) which comes in bright shades.
Most Hindu Telugu people in Ishwardi get married between the months March and April, following the marriage date of Rama and Sita. It is auspicious to start wedding ceremonies after that date.
Nadupuru and J Ganga Raju (45) said most Telugu residents in Ishwardi are uneducated and they are facing plenty of problems finding jobs. Ganga said they have acquired a small piece of land to build a temple for the community but since their income serves almost hand-to-mouth; they cannot yet complete the construction of their shrine. ‘If we want to make the younger generation following religious beliefs and not go astray, we need to build this temple as early as possible, show them the right path. It would be great if we could get assistance from Dhaka.
These people impress one as laidback in their colourful attire, rich with vibrant cries and laughter. Passing, one can see that most of the buildings are red brick, essentially one-storey structures and most dating back to the early 1940’s.
On arrival we were warmly greeted and welcomed in one of their homes in a tin-shed house with a big living area where they all gathered, mostly smiling and astonished faces of almost all ages to find out our purpose. Bright saris and lehangas hung from the clotheslines. We were offered steel plates bearing sweets made of brown and white sesame seed mashed with patali gur (jaggery).
The Telugu originate from South Indian Dravidians and they speak their own language. Many originate from Andhra Pradesh and today the most significant Telugu populations are in the neighbouring states of Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Chhattishgra. According to the elders of the community, almost 50 members migrated in the first phase and later more than 200 members followed due to economical crisis from Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Chhattishgra, some parts of Jharkhand and Kharagpur region of West Bengal in India during the British period (between 1942 and 1945) and a large number of them have been living in Ishwardi and the rest in Dhaka, Bangladesh till now.
Their religions range from Hinduism, Islam, Christianity and Buddhism. Puja, Eid and Buddha Purnima are their prime celebrations and festivals. They are one of the most prehistoric ethnic groups found in India, existing prior to the writing of the Vedas and mentioned in the Ramayana and Mahabharata epics. They are also the largest of the Dravidian groups by population and Telugu, which falls in the central Dravidian language group, which is the most spoken of the Dravidian languages and the third most commonly spoken language in India after Hindi and Bengali. They are today spread throughout India and abroad but the state of Andra Pradesh is stated as their homeland.
One of the senior members of the community at Ishwardi, Nadupuru Demudu (64) says the different sects or branches in the Telugu race are Kapolo (royal blood or Kapu), Malolo (Malla), Shaklolo, Shraslolo, and Matlolo. ‘Only three of the sects – Kapolo, Malolo and Shaklolo are inhabiting in Bangladesh,’ he says.
There are almost 22 Malolo families, two Kapolo and one Shaklolo family amounting to almost 400 people living at Ishwardi. Most of them work as sweepers. ‘Almost 3.5 lakh Telegus live in Bangladesh with heavy concentration in and around the suburbs of Rajdhani Supermarket, Gopibagh Railgate, Mohammedpur, Gabtoli, Syedabad, Mirpur Pongu Hospital College Gate, Gulistan in Dhaka city and in Pakshi, Bheramara, Khalishpur and Sylhet. Almost entire generations living here were born in independent Bangladesh. Most of them try to visit their original homeland once in two years,’ he added.
Nadupuru’s mother, at nearly 100 years is one of the oldest members of the community. Chinnamma had great difficulty coming inside the living area. She spoke in Telugu while Deoramma translated.
‘I was only a young girl carrying a child of five months when I first came here from India. That was after the Hindu-Muslim separation and most probably during 1945 and I still remember the train fare – only four rupees. My husband was working in the railway and he was transferred here in the railway office mainly due to the economical crisis that we were facing there.’
Deoramma and K Losmi (50) then talked about few of their dresses and special dishes, which although blended with the Bengali cooking style, still has certain hints of originality, which they cherish while dining.
One of their common items is the karya pata soup as alternative of our daal (pulses) while other original dishes are Sambaru or shambar as they call. That is followed by other items which they called ambli, simbri, and goddo.
Their dresses are very colourful and have an innate aura of cheerfulness – males wear uttareeyam, jubba (kurta), pancha (dhoti) and lungi while the women wear cheera (sari), parikini, and langa oni (half sari) which comes in bright shades.
Most Hindu Telugu people in Ishwardi get married between the months March and April, following the marriage date of Rama and Sita. It is auspicious to start wedding ceremonies after that date.
Nadupuru and J Ganga Raju (45) said most Telugu residents in Ishwardi are uneducated and they are facing plenty of problems finding jobs. Ganga said they have acquired a small piece of land to build a temple for the community but since their income serves almost hand-to-mouth; they cannot yet complete the construction of their shrine. ‘If we want to make the younger generation following religious beliefs and not go astray, we need to build this temple as early as possible, show them the right path. It would be great if we could get assistance from Dhaka.