Historicity of Apathy and Antipathy in Nidhi Dugar Kundalia's "The Marias of Bastar" from "White as Milk and Rice: Stories of India's Isolated Tribes"

The tribals and their history have become the subject of interest at the international level only after the formation of the World Council of Indigenous Peoples in 1972. Our Indian ‘tribes’ are not homogeneous in tradition and culture. It is a pluralistic society where the generalisation of their life style and culture is impossible. The diversity in culture and the distinctiveness of lifestyle of the autochthonous communities necessitate micro study of the respective group to know their specific problems. The present study focuses on the Marias of Bastar, their culture, lifestyle and the threats faced by them in the hands of Maos and exploitation in the hands of capitalists. The Marias of Bastar is a narrative from Kundalia’s collection of stories entitled "White as Milk and Rice: Stories of India’s Isolated Tribes".