A sea of revellers at Albert Ekka Chowk in Ranchi for Sarhul on Thursday (clockwise from top), former chief minister Arjun Munda plays the nagada at a tribal rally in Sitaramdera in Jamshedpur and a tableau at the capital’s Albert Ekka Chowk pleads with the powers-that-be to let Jharkhand retain its character. Dressed in traditional attire, saal flowers tucked behind their ears, thousands of tribals came to the capital’s most important roundabaout to ring in Sarhul, the festival of spring. As pahans (priests) conducted rites and made monsoon predictions, Sarhul akharas featured tableaux to showcase beauty of tribal life and society which draws inspiration from nature. But the celebrations also had political overtones with akharas bringing tableaux, banners and posters decrying tenancy law amendments and rampant industrialisation in Jharkhand, which they said made tribals strangers in their own land. “Through the tableaux we want to unite tribals to fight corporate and anti-tribal lobbies. Today, Jharkhand is a Fifth Schedule state only in name. In reality, we are exploited,” said convener of Prem Shahi Munda of Jharkhand Adivasi Sangharsh Samiti, at the forefront of the artistic protest. In Jamshedpur, BJP veteran Munda was the star attraction among over 2,000 revellers at a Sarhul rally organised by tribal outfit Sitaramdera Kendriya Sarhul Puja Samiti. 

Pictures by Hardeep Singh and Bhola Prasad