MANGALURU: In India’s prolonged battle for freedom against the British Raj, history is rife with fearless characters whose contributions have been eulogised, but India, throughout her embattled past, had also fallen in the hands of wicked rulers like the Portuguese. Here, history has been unfair and captured only fragments of their indomitable struggle that was significant in shaping India’s history.
In an effort to undo the wrong, Tiya Chatterji, a Delhi-based author, who is at present working with the Indian Navy in its History division as a researcher, has come up with a documentary on Rani Abbakka, who is considered the first woman freedom fighter of India. Chatterji’s approach to record the life of Rani Abbakka is unconventional -- through the prism of maritime history of India, when it was a country of seafarers engaged in lucrative overseas trade which resulted in a cultural amalgamation.
With a prodigious body of work, maritime history, especially maritime studies, has, however, failed to garner interest and appreciation. Tiya came to Mangaluru two years ago to pursue maritime research and started working on the English documentary. She says that heritage in India, both tangible and intangible, are extensive yet the dark clouds of apathy and lack of appreciation threaten their existence.
“A handful of researchers in the maritime domain like myself, cannot be tasked with the preservation of our heritage, and hence, I believe in the power of dissemination of knowledge. Sharing information, based on identifying our target audience can help instill the idea of ‘shared heritage’ and appreciation which will facilitate preservation via the layperson, a significant stakeholder in safe guarding our heritage,” she says.
Initially, she had decided to write a book but later came up with a documentary. Rather than books about the colossus of history, the public now are enthralled by documentaries based on their lives. From renowned filmmaker Satyajit Ray who had made documentaries on Rabindranath Tagore to ‘Summer of Souls’ which won an Academy Award this year for shining a light on an epic event that celebrated Black history, culture, and fashion in the summer of 1969, the audiovisual medium of portraying history has become more powerful over the years.
Chatterji’s documentary is based on research, oral history and interviews of professors. Rani Abbakka of Ullal, Mangaluru ruled during the 16th century. The thriving small port of Ullal had trade links with the Arabs and Persians and also a governance that deemed everyone equal. Until now, she was a forgotten hero but the documentary is set to change it. During research, Chatterji derived information primarily from Portuguese and Italian sources and a few in Kannada.
Tiya found scattered references in a few blogs and articles which have muddled versions of Abbakka’s story. “All these variables combined with my frequent travels in Dakshina Kannada inspired me to take up this independent research project. However, our existing conventional methods of purely academic books, research papers, and conferences remain exclusive to the scholars and professionals of the domain, and unpopular among the masses.
Hence, innovative ways to spread awareness about maritime heritage and history, which not only caters to its preservation but also presents an opportunity for interested students to pursue their careers,” she says. She opines that although commendable regional efforts are undertaken for her commemoration, her story remains largely untold. “To orient ourselves back to the era of the undaunted queen, I had to navigate through literature, oral traditions, and historical remains, and also interact with scholars to piece together the history of the queen.
The idea was to rediscover the history of the brave queen and build the narrative based on oral traditions and historical remains. This will also help in their documentation and preservation. The findings are showcased via a documentary, catering to a wider audience. This is also an attempt to give the queen the place she deserves in our history books.
The research aims at highlighting the importance of intangible cultural heritage in reconstructing history since we are always obsessed with tangible history and do not consider oral history as a primary source. It also shows how the biased nature of historical records that relegates small rulers and towns.” The shoot was completed last November and the screening of the 95-minute-long documentary titled ‘Rani Abbakka - The Indomitable Spirit of Tulunadu’ was organised by Young Indians in Mangaluru on Saturday in the presence of Mangaluru North MLA Bharath Shetty.