PARI GSP Team

Namita Waikar

Samyukta Shastri

Photos and Video

Sharmila Joshi

Editor and Series Editor

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For the birth anniversary of Babasaheb Ambedkar on April 14, and as a part of PARI’s Grindmill Songs Project, this month we will feature couplets on Dr. Ambedkar and caste issues. In the first of this series, Radhabai Borhade of Savargaon sings five ovi on Buddha, Bhimrao, dhamma, sangha and Ramabai
 
 
 
 
 Exactly 21 years separate the audio and video clips featured here. The
 
 ovi
 
 that Radha Borhade sings were recorded on April 2, 1996.  Coincidentally on the same date, April 2 this year, we visited her again and filmed her while singing.
 
 Radhabai, now around 70, could not remember the songs she sang two decades ago, but the melodies came back to her when we recited a few couplets. She was sure she would remember more if she read the transcripts of her songs from 1996, and says she will then sing them all again. (She had learned to read and write at an adult literacy class in the village).

In 1997, Radhabai lived in Bhim Nagar
 
 basti
 
 of Majalgaon village. She now lives in Savargaon village in the same
 
 taluka
 
 in Beed district, and runs a small grocery shop. She has four daughters; all of them are married.
 In Majalgaon, she lived with her husband Khandu Borhade. They worked as agricultural labourers; Radhabai’s task was to do the weeding. At times, she would winnow or clean grain in the Mondha market, sometimes she worked as a cleaner and sweeper in the larger village houses.
 
 But as she and her husband aged, work became scarce. So, 12 years ago, they moved to Savargaon to live with Khandu’s brother and his family, and set up a small grocery shop. Both the brothers have since died and Radhabai lives with her sister-in-law and her son, Rajubai and Madhukar.
 
 Bhim Nagar hamlet in Majalgaon, a
 
 taluka
 
 village, has a predominantly Dalit population. For the Grindmill Songs Project, it has been a wellspring of
 
 ovi
 
 about Babasaheb Ambedkar, the revered national leader and statesman, voice of the oppressed and the marginalised, and architect of India’s Constitution. To observe his birth anniversary on April 14, PARI will feature grindmill songs about Dr. Ambedkar and caste issues throughout this month.

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In the first of this series, Radha Borhade sings five couplets, each on a different theme. The first
 
 ovi
 
 is dedicated to Lord Buddha, who, the song tells us, brought Buddhism into this world for the welfare of Dalits, to help them remove the stigma of untouchability.
 The second
 
 ovi
 
 is for Bhimrao Ambedkar, who inspired Dalits and guided them in ways to counter caste-based oppression.
 
 The third couplet is dedicated to the Buddhist religion and way of life. The singer tells us that this
 
 dhamma
 
 (religion or dharma) will protect and safeguard the world.
 
 In the fourth verse, the singer pays homage to the
 
 sangha
 
 , the community of Buddhist monks. She vows to follow the principles of
 
 panchsheel
 
 , the five basic elements of good conduct that can prevent causing harm to others.
 
 Radha Borhade dedicates the fifth
 
 ovi
 
 to Ramabai Ambedkar. She worships  Bhimrao Ambedkar’s wife, and says she was a revered mother who lived among the Dalits.

My first song is for Lord Buddha  He brought Buddha dhamma for the welfare of DalitsMy second song is to Baba Bhimraya  A diamond is born of Dalit lineageMy third song pays homage to the dhamma  The great Buddha dhamma will safeguard the worldI shall offer my fourth song to the sangha  I shall follow the principles of panchsheelMy fifth verse is to worship Ramabai  Respected,  blessed mother, who lived among us

Performer/Singer:
 
 Radha Borhade
 
 
 Village: MajalgaonHamlet: Bhim NagarTaluka: MajalgaonDistrict: BeedGender: FemaleChildren: 4 daughtersCaste: Nav Bauddha (Neo Buddhist)Date: These details were recorded on April 2, 1996 Poster: Aditya Dipankar, Shreya Katyayini and Sinchita Maji

Songs of gratitude, chants of celebration

ಶರಣು ನಿಮಗೆ ಶರಣು, ನಮ್ಮ ಮಂತ್ರ ಪಠಣ ನೀವು

কৃতজ্ঞতার গান, উদযাপনের মন্ত্র

बाबासाहेब की स्मृतियों का जश्न मनाते लोकगीत

धन्यतेची गाणी, उत्सवाचा जागर

Majalgaon

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Songs of gratitude, chants of celebration

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