Mapping the Past: Essays on Odishan History, Economy, Culture and Resistance against DominionOr

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In a world obsessively focused on building a better future for humanity, the past may sometimes appear as an irrelevance, even as a burden that needs to be cast off if mankind has to forge ahead. A preoccupation with what happened long ago may be seen as a futile exercise in nostalgia by those who immerse themselves in the present. And, yet, as William Faulkner memorably puts it, the past is not dead; it is not even past. In mysterious and powerful ways it keeps erupting into the present and shapes the future. The way we understand, interpret and narrativise it is sometimes a matter of life and death. No wonder, as the Russian proverb playfully warns us, The past is unpredictable'.

In mapping the past, Dr Das Mohapatra deftly negotiates a contested terrain and explores uncharted spaces. In the process, he makes excitingly new discoveries and illuminates aspects of events we had taken to be all too familiar. Rich insights offered into the history, culture and economy of Odisha provide fresh perspectives on the past and deepen and expand our understanding of ways in which the past impinges on the present and casts its shadow on the future.

Serving as Deputy Director in National Archives of India, Dr. Lalatendu Das Mohapatra has distinguished himself as a professional archivist and as a scholar of international repute. As an archivist, he was associated with the selection and acquisition of many valuable records of government of India. He was also the founder director of Bhubaneswar branch of National Archives of India, where he acquired about one lakh government and private records and many rare books. He has many research publications and seminar papers to his credit. Some of his notable publications include Commerce in Orissa, 1600-1800, John Beames and Orissa, Alita Odishara Naubanijya and Fakirmohan Tarka Bitarka (co-edited) with Krushna Chandra Pradhan).

The essays in this anthology cover a wide range of aspects of Odishan history in which my interest grew between 1996 and 2018 during my stint as head of office, National Archives of India's Records Centre, Bhubaneswar. Two essays 'Maritime Traditions of Odisha' and 'Textile Industry in Odisha' are extensions of my original research on maritime history of pre modern Odisha, whereas the others were written for seminars, projects and journals. Though I do not claim to have made any new discoveries in all these essays, I have endeavoured to revisit each subject in the light of fresh materials and new paradigms.

I take this opportunity to express my sincere thanks to friends and well-wishers who have constantly encouraged me. I have immensely benefited from discussions with them on many aspects of history, culture, literature, economy and protest movements. They include Prof. G.N. Dash, Prof. Hermann Kulke, late Dr. Lotika Varadrajan, Dr. Nivedita Mohanty, Mr. Debendra Kumar Dash, Dr. Kailash Chandra Dash and late Prof Biswamoy Pati. I am also thankful to Prof Jatin Nayak, Prof. Harbans Mukhia and Dr. Mahendra Kumar Mishra for their valuable comments on some of the articles. I feel specially indebted to Prof. Ishita Banerjee Dube for writing a foreword to the book.

I also gratefully acknowledge the help I have received from the staff of Odisha State Archives and my colleagues from National Archives of India. Last but not the least, without the initiative of Mr. Virendra Tiwari of Shivalik Publications this book would not have seen the light of day.

It is with a sense of privilege, pleasure and excitement that I write these words to introduce Mapping the Past, a new collection of essays by Dr. Lalatendu Das Mohapatra. Dr. Das Mohapatra (Lalat for me) has been an esteemed friend, colleague and co conspirator for the past three decades in our joint and separate forays, as students of history, into the rich and textured pasts and the present of Odisha. An acclaimed archivist, Dr. Das Mohapatra has combined his professional skills with the intellectual curiosity of an avid researcher with agility to offer us insightful publications.

Mapping the Past bears testimony to Dr. Das Mohapatra's aptitude in charting terrains known and unknown to offer glimpses of political, socio-cultural, economic and ecological events and processes, as well as of the life, thoughts and activities of eminent leaders and scholars of Odisha over the past several centuries. The multiple pathways of his adventure present us with rare and precious facts about the diverse perceptions of Puri, Jagannath and Odisha in Persian accounts and distinct purposes of visiting Odisha on the part of Sultans such and Firoz Shah Tughlaq or iconoclasts such as "Raktabahu"; the important presence of Odisha in India's coastal and maritime trade; the vibrancy of Odisha's textile industry during Mughal rule; the significant link between the devaluation of cowry currency in the early years of East India Company's rule and the Paik rebellion; and the plight of Puri during the famine of 1866 and its important ramifications. Alongside, we are regaled with details of two relatively unexplored uprisings of the Bhuiyans in Keonjhar in the second half of the 19th century where Fakirmohan Senapati, the father of Odia prose literature played an unenvious role as the administrator, and in which the methods of resistance of "tribals" anticipated Gandhian methods; the fierce argument and discord between Rajendra Lal Mitra and John Beames over the nature, richness and "validity" of Odia as an independent language; the vital yet little known importance of Madhusudan Das's mother, grandmother and great grandmother in shaping the character, thoughts and ideals of this multitalented "Maker of Modern Odisha"; the remarkable energy invested by Gopabandhu Das and the Satyabadi group in converting the Utkal Union Conference from a struggle to unify different Odia speaking tracts in one province to a struggle for political independence from colonial rule. The essay on Rajani Kanta Das and his important contribution to the merger of the princely state of Kalahandi with Odisha reveals not just Dr. Das Mohapatra's passion for research but his great capacity as a leading archivist and Director of the Eastern Zone Records Centre of the National Archives of India in Bhubaneswar in acquiring useful documents to enrich the Archive.

Dr. Das Mohapatra's well-researched and suggestive essays present us with multiple, plural and plush pasts, and induce us to draw upon the rich clues he offers to set out on our own journeys. 1 congratulate Dr. Das Mohapatra and invite all readers to dig into this valuable volume.

Book's Contents and Sample Pages