Tales from Chhattisgarh

Pandey alighted from his bike, turned to us and flashed a sympathetic smile. “Did you spot bear cubs?” he asked, adjusting his Chhattisgarh Forest Department uniform. Our group of four had just found a way back to civilisation after being lost for five hours in the deciduous forests of Singhadhurva. What started as a 15 kilometre trail from Sirpur to the Chanda Dai caves had become a primer on the importance of navigation skills.
“No,” we replied quizzically.

“It’s good you didn’t,” he chuckled. “There are bears there. Panthers too.”

Apart from a herd of grazing chital (spotted deer), langurs and two galloping nilgais — Asia’s largest antelope — we’d just spotted myriad giant termite mounds. For that, we were thankful.
The group had set out earlier that day from Hiuen Tsiang Tourist Resort, the only stay option for tourists in Sirpur, some 83 kilometres from Chhattisgarh’s capital city Raipur. Led by 82-year-old retired Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) archaeologist Dr Arun Kumar Sharma, we were to visit the 15-odd caves that had hosted none another than the Dalai Lama the previous year. Long story short, the sprightly-but-forgetful Sharma literally took us down the wrong path and on a 25 kilometre journey through the wilderness.

Not that we held it against him.

Remains of the Surang Tila

The previous day, Sharma — the man whose decade-long excavations were responsible for turning nondescript Sirpur into an archaeological goldmine — took us on an unforgettable tour of the town’s many great historic sites. There was the majestic Surang Tila temple complex built by Somavanshi ruler Mahashivgupta Balarjuna in 7th century AD. Made fully of limestone, Surang Tila is a Shiva temple that houses shivlings in four colours: white (representing the Brahmin), red (Kshatriya), yellow (Vaishya) and black (Shudra). “This is the highest platform temple in India — over 1.2 metres higher than the Konark temple,” Sharma said. It's also one of the few temples in Sirpur that survived a massive earthquake in the 12th century.

Carvings on the pillars of Surang Tila

But the most noteworthy aspect is that the jointing material used was an Ayurvedic paste consisting of 16 ingredients like acacia, fermented jaggery and linseed. “These ingredients were identified after we sent structural samples for analysis. While cement has an average life of 60 years, this paste withstood the elements for over a millennium,” Sharma pointed out.

Then there was the 1600-year-old Buddha Vihara and the Panchayatana Temple, both within striking distance of each other. The Buddha Vihara has intricate carvings depicting tales from the Panchatantra. One particular engraving — that of a family taking a dog out for a walk — stood out, as did depictions of elephant breeding. “Chhattisgarh was the largest elephant breeding centre not just in India, but the world,” informed Sharma.

The 1600-year-old Buddha Vihar

But the star attraction was the marketplace dating back to the 3rd century BC. Spread over 1.5x1.5 kilometres, this ancient trading hub is the biggest market excavated anywhere in the world. It had sophisticated drainage systems reminiscent of the Indus Valley Civilisation and everything from a 12-bed hospital and Ayurvedic bath/spa to a ‘bank locker’ where people deposited valuables and an underground mahua distillery.
Mahua, a country liquor made from fermented mahua flowers, is a staple for many tribes. “We also have hadiya or rice beer and salfi, an alcoholic drink extracted from salfi trees,” grinned Vijay Kumar Nag, our tour guide. The affable Nag, who accompanied us on our drives from Raipur to Sirpur, regaled us with tales of Baiga healers and witch doctors and local food. And when it came to the latter, he had a checklist. “Chila roti, thetri-khurmi (made from besan), rakhia badi (rakhia fruit and black gram curry), iddhar (steamed ground urad dal and colocasia leaf rolls served with curry). Then there’s chaprah,” he smiled. “A delicious red ant chutney found only in Bastar.”

Remains of the Panchayatana Temple

Our three-day stay in Chhattisgarh for the Sirpur Dance and Music Festival 2015 was limited to Raipur and Sirpur. The state has the country’s largest concentration of tribal groups — 34 in all, of which six are primitive. Unfortunately, most of the untouched countryside, including pockets like Bastar, Surguja, Jashpur and Dantewada lie smack in the middle of the dreaded Red Corridor.
Hopefully, the time will soon come when these regions will be known more for their tribal heritage than the Maoist insurgency. Until then, I’ll be holding on to my memories and counting down the days to when I can once again visit the Land of the Fabled 36 Forts.