Environment Conservation Or A Convenient Guise For Political Dissent?
Prasad Gawade, a celebrated environmental activist from Konkan, has been organising a series of workshops titled ‘Swadesh’ to encourage people to move back to villages and adopt a natural lifestyle. Or so he says.
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-Shalmali Kunte
“Sorry, we do not want you to be a part of our group anymore. Swadesh will be taking a political stand for Konkan and we don’t believe we can work with you for that”. These harsh words flashed on my mobile screen one fine evening. The manner in which the message was conveyed did take me by surprise but I certainly saw this coming my way.
In August 2024, I happened to attend one of these workshops which are conducted right in the heart of Konkan. Vinit Vichare, a close aide of Prasad and Chinmayee Shinde, a Instagram content creator are in charge of organising and managing these workshops. After going through the ordeal of filling up a detailed Google form and appearing for Vichare’s telephonic interview, it was conveyed to me that I have been selected as a participant. I was rather ecstatic! Prasad’s messaging oozed with genuinity and his videos capturing the essence of Konkan’s natural beauty grabbed both hearts and eyeballs. His voice, often hailed as being extremely soulful by his followers, touched the audience's hearts seamlessly. No wonder he had become an internet sensation. I was truly looking forward to attending the workshop as I have been passionate about Konkan all my life. Little did I know what was in store for me.
On day zero as an icebreaker, Vichare initiated a discussion on a hot favourite topic - ‘Veg vs Nonveg food’. Everyone started chipping in with their opinions, a discussion started taking shape. Suddenly, Prasad intervened and said, “Hunting is an ecological choice. Hunting shouldn't be illegal”. I was a little taken aback. In my head I thought this was a rather irresponsible statement to make in a public forum especially in India where we are putting up a strong fight against illegal hunting and poaching to conserve our wildlife. However, I chose to not react.
Applications for the workshop were invited with the promise of helping participants navigate their journey towards a more sustainable, nature friendly life. However, the reality of the workshop was much different than what was visible on the outside. From day one began a series of activities which included presentations, group discussions and a few hands-on activities in the field. Many of the activities planned for the workshop clearly had a
multi-layered political motivation lying underneath. Throughout the duration of the workshop, many documentaries were shown to the participants, many of which revolved around how the adivasis and natives from different parts of India fought for their ‘liberation’ by putting up a fight against the ‘wicked’ government.
‘Gaon Chhodab Nahi’ - the anthem of Adivasi dissent in India and ‘The Warli Revolt’ - a song popularised by the Aarey protests were played with pomp. During a discussion post watching one of the documentaries, someone said, “The Adivasis are picking up arms out of sheer torment. They are fighting for their liberation. We should not hesitate to follow their footsteps. Naxalites are our heroes”. This outrageous statement received an applause from the organizers. I was aghast.
Malhar Indulkar, a Devrai and Mangrove conservation expert who also runs a homestay called aranyavaat ecostay near Chiplun was invited to address the participants. After a meaningful discussion on his conservation related work, he declared that he will now speak on ideology as it is the crux of everything. “ I do not believe in the idea of nation and nationhood, therefore the question of patriotism does not arise. We stay within the boundaries of a nation only out of convenience”. All of us, including me, absorbed this venom quietly. Not a single voice dared to stand in protest. On the evening of day two, we were conveyed that a session on a very serious topic was on agenda for the evening. Satyajit Chavan, a protestor who was at the forefront in the anti refinery Barsu-Solgaon protests, arrived to address the participants. He delivered a rather overwhelming talk on how the government is exploiting the villagers and how a change of government in the upcoming assembly elections would ‘suddenly’ mean that all problems faced by everyone would disappear. The same Mr. Chavan was arrested during the course of the protests and the first people he met after his release was Mr. Sharad Pawar and Mr. Jitendra Awhad of NCP(SP). This workshop was supposed to be about moving back to the village. Why were politically motivated people being brought in to address the participants? There was no answer to this question.
Throughout the course of the workshop, Prasad emphasised a lot on the indigenous culture of Konkan. “I don’t understand the fuss around Ram Mandir. Ram is being imposed on us” he said. On being nudged a little more he continued, “We are the original inhabitants of Konkan and Goa. We have our own practices. We are not Hindus. Hindutva is being forced upon us” he declared. On being asked about his anticipated entry in politics, Prasad firmly maintained that he is apolitical and he does not support any particular political thought and has no intentions of entering active politics. However, in his content preceding the elections, he was seen making an appeal to the audiences to make a wise choice between parties that are ‘pro environment’ and parties that want to destroy Konkan. His die-hard followers look up to him as a saviour of Konkan but are Prasad’s motivations restricted to that? This question requires further enquiry. I was deftly asked to not be a part of the group probably due to my background and my beliefs. For me, this was a lesson learnt. However, I feel terrible for those countless people who perceive this movement as being solely focused on the environment. Many would not realise that their trust is being used to politically motivate them through the slow poisoning of earthy and soulful content that feels so real. The trust of countless people is at stake. We need to wake up before it's too late.
“Sorry, we do not want you to be a part of our group anymore. Swadesh will be taking a political stand for Konkan and we don’t believe we can work with you for that”. These harsh words flashed on my mobile screen one fine evening. The manner in which the message was conveyed did take me by surprise but I certainly saw this coming my way.
Prasad Gawade, a celebrated environmental activist from Konkan has a dedicated following across Maharashtra. His content on Instagram and YouTube is a hit, especially amongst the youth. Lately he has been organising a series of workshops titled ‘Swadesh’ to encourage people to move back to villages and adopt a natural lifestyle. Or so he says.
On day zero as an icebreaker, Vichare initiated a discussion on a hot favourite topic - ‘Veg vs Nonveg food’. Everyone started chipping in with their opinions, a discussion started taking shape. Suddenly, Prasad intervened and said, “Hunting is an ecological choice. Hunting shouldn't be illegal”. I was a little taken aback. In my head I thought this was a rather irresponsible statement to make in a public forum especially in India where we are putting up a strong fight against illegal hunting and poaching to conserve our wildlife. However, I chose to not react.
Applications for the workshop were invited with the promise of helping participants navigate their journey towards a more sustainable, nature friendly life. However, the reality of the workshop was much different than what was visible on the outside. From day one began a series of activities which included presentations, group discussions and a few hands-on activities in the field. Many of the activities planned for the workshop clearly had a
multi-layered political motivation lying underneath. Throughout the duration of the workshop, many documentaries were shown to the participants, many of which revolved around how the adivasis and natives from different parts of India fought for their ‘liberation’ by putting up a fight against the ‘wicked’ government.
‘Gaon Chhodab Nahi’ - the anthem of Adivasi dissent in India and ‘The Warli Revolt’ - a song popularised by the Aarey protests were played with pomp. During a discussion post watching one of the documentaries, someone said, “The Adivasis are picking up arms out of sheer torment. They are fighting for their liberation. We should not hesitate to follow their footsteps. Naxalites are our heroes”. This outrageous statement received an applause from the organizers. I was aghast.
Malhar Indulkar, a Devrai and Mangrove conservation expert who also runs a homestay called aranyavaat ecostay near Chiplun was invited to address the participants. After a meaningful discussion on his conservation related work, he declared that he will now speak on ideology as it is the crux of everything. “ I do not believe in the idea of nation and nationhood, therefore the question of patriotism does not arise. We stay within the boundaries of a nation only out of convenience”. All of us, including me, absorbed this venom quietly. Not a single voice dared to stand in protest. On the evening of day two, we were conveyed that a session on a very serious topic was on agenda for the evening. Satyajit Chavan, a protestor who was at the forefront in the anti refinery Barsu-Solgaon protests, arrived to address the participants. He delivered a rather overwhelming talk on how the government is exploiting the villagers and how a change of government in the upcoming assembly elections would ‘suddenly’ mean that all problems faced by everyone would disappear. The same Mr. Chavan was arrested during the course of the protests and the first people he met after his release was Mr. Sharad Pawar and Mr. Jitendra Awhad of NCP(SP). This workshop was supposed to be about moving back to the village. Why were politically motivated people being brought in to address the participants? There was no answer to this question.
Throughout the course of the workshop, Prasad emphasised a lot on the indigenous culture of Konkan. “I don’t understand the fuss around Ram Mandir. Ram is being imposed on us” he said. On being nudged a little more he continued, “We are the original inhabitants of Konkan and Goa. We have our own practices. We are not Hindus. Hindutva is being forced upon us” he declared. On being asked about his anticipated entry in politics, Prasad firmly maintained that he is apolitical and he does not support any particular political thought and has no intentions of entering active politics. However, in his content preceding the elections, he was seen making an appeal to the audiences to make a wise choice between parties that are ‘pro environment’ and parties that want to destroy Konkan. His die-hard followers look up to him as a saviour of Konkan but are Prasad’s motivations restricted to that? This question requires further enquiry. I was deftly asked to not be a part of the group probably due to my background and my beliefs. For me, this was a lesson learnt. However, I feel terrible for those countless people who perceive this movement as being solely focused on the environment. Many would not realise that their trust is being used to politically motivate them through the slow poisoning of earthy and soulful content that feels so real. The trust of countless people is at stake. We need to wake up before it's too late.