Wonderful Community " The Tharu Schedule Tribe of West Champaran" Bihar ...

A Short Documentary on the Tharu Tribe on the Occasion of " World Tribal Day " (9th August)

Wonderful Community " The Tharu Schedule Tribe of West Champaran" Bihar Bharat


It is now an undeniable fact that the Tharus are the original inhabitants of the terai and have been living there since time immemorial. The terai is a vast alluvial land lying at the foot of the Himalayas bordering densely populated Gangetic plain of the south.The Tharus live in different areas of West Champaran district of Bihar (India) and all these areas are contiguous to Nepal terai. It is worth mentioning that there is a considerable population of the Tharus in Nepal and in the some of the adjoining districts of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

In West Champaran, the Tharus live in areas extending over 800 sqare miles on the Northern border bounded on the Northeast and West by Nepal and on the South by the Tribeni or Done canal. This area is widely known as Tharuhat. Irony is that the Tharus of Nainital and other districts of Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh are Schedule Tribe availing themselves of all the facilities and concessions including reservation but the brethren of the same community living in West Champaran districts of Bihar remained deprived of the these benefits for over almost more than five decades. They were not scheduled in the list of Indian Constitution and subsequently became vulnerable to outsiders' encroachment. Most of them have now become landless after alienated from their own land. Their story is the story of the highest form of exploitation,oppression and suppression. After long drawn -out peaceful but persistent struggle they have now been included in the list of Scheduled Tribes since 2003.But the big question is - whatever damage has been done, can it be undone?


The Tharus are generally very simple,very innocent and very straightforward people. They are a peace-loving community and remain away from all kinds of disputes or fights. They are very honest people who possess the quality of tolerance. Enviousness and jealousy are not part of their personality. Being impressed with the simplicity and innocence of the Tharus Prof(Dr) Rabindra Nath Ojha(R.N.Ojha), a well known scholar has written a heart-touching , soul-stirring personal essay on one of his Tharu students , Ramnarayan in his book " Shivam Sundaram". The Tharus do not hesitate giving alms to the beggars even though, they may not be in a position to give. This exhibits the humanitarian aspect of their personality which is hardly to be found in the so called highly educated civilized people of the big cities. It is quite astonishing that despite backwardness , there is hardly any beggar found in the whole of Tharuhat. A Tharu shudders at the sight of a Tharu beggar.
Besides relationship by blood and marriage the Tharus have devised an other strong form of relationship by which two persons may enter into a sacred bond of friendship. Such ties of friendship are more enduring than those of marriage and blood.As described by Sri Shankar Mahto of Bakhari Bazaar , himself a Tharu and well-known social activist of the Tharuhat" We the Tharus believe that a relationship of a friend is the most sacred and binding of all earthly ties. Therefore a friend in our community enjoys a higher and more esteemed position than our kith and kin." A popular saying confirms this fact:
"MIT NA CHHODAI CHAHE CHHODAI SAGA BHAI." Meaning thereby that one may leave one's brother but not one's friend.


The simplicity, honesty and innocence have now become the weakest, the most vulnerable point of their personality. In the eyes of outsiders the Tharus are big fools, uncultured and junglee. Meat and daru (liquor) have been another weakness of the Tharus and provided another vulnerable point for the outsiders or Bajis to exploit and fleece them to the maximum. Almost all the big farms of the Tharuhat have cropped up after occupying the land of the Tharus through various unfair means by the non-Tharus.


The naked game of exploitation of this simple and peace-loving tribe (now Schedule Tribe since 2003 ) continues unabated . For how many more years they will continue to be suppressed, oppressed, downgraded and humiliated?

PhD Thesis ( JNU New Delhi )
Topic : " Pattern of Social Change among the Tharus of West Champaran in Bihar "
Guide : Prof Avijit Pathak , Centre for the Study of Social System (CSSS)
School of Social Sciences (SSS) , JNU New Delhi
The Complete Thesis is available on Internet courtesy Shodh Ganga .

A Short Documentary on the Tharu Tribe on the Occasion of " World Tribal Day " (9th August)
Script , Voice , Stills : Dr Ajay Kumar Ojha
Edited & Produced by : Dr Ajay Kumar Ojha

(Produced on Mobile)