Prof. Paul Hockings is the Professor Emeritus of Anthropology at the University of Illinois, USA. He is also the Adjunct Curator of Anthropology at the Field Museum of Natural History and Editor-in-Chief of Visual Anthropology. Prof. Hockings’ has been researching the Nilgiris, particularly the Badagas, since 1962, resulting in a number of authoritative publications including the Encyclopaedia of the Nilgiri Hills. Prof. Hockings’ contribution has paved the way for Nilgiri studies being classified today as Nilgiriology. Prof. Hockings was 80 on February 23rd and was felicitated in Ooty by The Nilgiri Documentation Centre.

Dharmalingam Venugopal of the Nilgiris Documentation Centre has sent us the following text of an e-mail interview he had with Prof. Hockings.

l Why is Nilgiris so fascinating for foreign scholars?

There are several reasons. One is the extreme diversity in such a small area: biological diversity, yes, but also cultural and linguistic diversity. A district of just under 1000 square miles has roughly 17 indigenous groups, plus immigrants from all over South India and a smattering of Europeans too; and speaking a dozen Nilgiri languages plus English, Hindi and the major Dravidian languages.

A second attraction is the scenic beauty of the district, which appeals even to the hard scientist, and always provides a pleasant, healthy environment to be working in.

But perhaps the most attractive feature for scholars, Indian or foreign, is the amount of research work that has already been done here. Nilgiri research in the natural and social sciences stretches back two centuries.

The bibliography of well over 8000 books and articles on Nilgiri topics is unmatched in any other area of South Asia that is of comparable size. This means that no matter what you plan to study there is already a large literature on the subject. That can mean more reading for the serious student, but at the same time it means that he or she does not have to start from scratch in understanding the topic of research. And the range of disciplines for which there is so much literature is itself large: agriculture, anthropology, astronomy, botany, climatology, costume, epidemiology, forestry, geography, geology, history, linguistics, literature, music, plantations, public health, religions, and zoology.

l How significant is Nilgiriology today?

Because of this huge literature, scholars from numerous countries have often chosen to locate their research in the Nilgiris. One remarkable statistic from this district is the fact that its literature includes over 120 Master’s and Doctoral research theses: again, something that is unmatched in quantity in any other small region of South Asia.

l Is the interest in Nilgiris sustained today by the younger generations?

Younger generations of scholars are still interested in working on the Nilgiri, and do so. There is no obvious falling-off in interest in the community. Younger Badagas are sometimes interested in their community’s history, but sometimes not. Those who have migrated to distant parts are often curious readers of the literature on Badagas, as they haven’t received much common lore from their relatives and want to know more about their culture.

l Is the focus of Nilgiri studies changing?

In the natural sciences, all the latest concerns may be read in today’s research literature, especially in the realm of environmentalism. Since the Badaga community have proved themselves to be forward-looking, and have successfully moved into the Indian middle class through their long-standing emphasis on education and a common desire to adopt urban professions, anthropological studies nowadays tend to view this community as a model for self-motivated development. I certainly hold that view.

l Why have you studied the Badagas for half a century?

The main reason for studying the Badagas, from 1962 onwards, was that the neighbouring Toda and Kota communities were known worldwide through the anthropological work of Rivers, Emeneau and Mandelbaum, whereas the largest and economically dominant local community, the Badagas, remained in the shadows. Given that there had always been a complex ritual and economic interchange between these three groups, it seemed imperative that the Badagas’ role in it should be documented in detail. The fact that in the late 20th Century Anthony Walker was doing a comprehensive re-study of the Todas made it all the more useful to examine the Badaga case in detail for the first time.

l How do you see the transformation of Badagas over the period?

I have spelled out this transformation fully in my recent book, So Long a Saga: Four Centuries of Badaga Social History (Manohar, 2013). The major changes started early in the 20th Century when a few Badagas began going to college, a few others started small tea plantations, and potato farming took off as a profitable commercial enterprise. With Badagas taking up positions in law, administration and teaching, their enhanced position in modern society was assured. The control of population growth through the adoption of family planning practices since the 1970s was another equally important factor in their modernisation.

l How long an existence qualifies a people/group to be called natives?

This has never been determined by social scientists, and perhaps cannot because it depends very much on how the group behaves and what attitudes others develop towards them. In this regard I like to draw a contrast between the English and the Parsis. The English have been in England for about 1500 years and everyone, especially they themselves, consider them as natives there. The Parsis have been in Western India for nearly as long as perhaps 1200-1300 years, yet very many would hold they are not Indian natives and they themselves make no attempt to hide their cultural origins in Persia. The English, in contrast, are unaware of their origin in Schleswig-Holstein. So it is more a matter of attitude than of the actual number of years involved.

l How do you define the Badaga society today?

The Badagas do still have a distinctive culture which sets them apart from those of their close neighbours, the Todas, Kotas and immigrant groups from the plains. For an anthropologist two features define Badaga society today: use of the Badaga language, and intermarriage only with other Badagas. Thus there can be little argument about whether some particular individual is a Badaga or not.

l Are Badagas natives/tribes/indigenous community?

The term "tribe" was a useful one, universally used by British administrators in India to describe and census categories of the population that were not embedded in the caste system as Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas or Sudras. Tribes tended to have their own territory, often their own language, their own system of leadership, sometimes a distinctive economic base, and certainly a tribal name. All of this helped distinguish a tribe from a caste. But quite recently anthropologists have been abandoning the use of the word “tribe” in India for the equally ambiguous phrase “indigenous community” – ambiguous, as I have stated, because it is unclear how "native" any particular group is. This, however, is the term I would now use to identify the Badaga community. Two centuries ago Badagas were already telling inquisitive visitors that their ancestors had come from a small block of villages just to the northeast of Nanjangud after the Vijayanagar Empire broke up. There were even a few Badagas in Melkunda in 1603 who spoke to a Jesuit visitor, Fr. Fenicio, in Kannada, and gave their name as Badegas, “northerners”. Since that crucial move Badagas have embedded themselves totally in the larger Nilgiri society, becoming like a tribe among tribes.

The Sullivan Memorial, Kotagiri, which housed the Nilgiris Documentation Centre.

A threat to heritage

Yet another connection with Tamil Nadu’s heritage appears to, literally, be heading for the dustheap. The Nilgiris History Museum and Documentation Centre (NDC) seems to be facing closure.

Thirty years ago, Dharmalingam Venugopal, a Badaga, heard of John Sullivan. He got interested in the man because he was the founder of a beautiful ‘piece of green’ called Ootacamund or Ooty. Venugopal campaigned for nearly two decades to have a memorial for Sullivan established in the Nilgiris. Finally, it happened in Kotagiri in the Nilgiris where Sullivan had set up camp when he first came to the Blue Mountains in 1819. The ruins of that ancient camp house were rebuilt in 2002, thanks to a sustained campaign and to the Collector at the time, Supriya Sahu. But it remained an empty memorial till 2006 when Venugopal took over its running and converted it into a museum and documentation centre, that became a well-known destination in the Nilgiris.

Now, suddenly, the Museum has to wind up and Venugopal has had to shift the valuable collection into a cramped shed nearby, where he will keep it open as a private museum.

There is no clear reason why the District Administration wanted to evict the NDC from the Sullivan Memorial. The usual reasons of ‘mismanagement of funds’, and ‘lack of maintenance’ of the museum have been given. Venugopal denies all allegations. But whatever the truth, what is necessary is to save the heritage building and ensure its proper development as a heritage centre. Will the Administration or any NGO, to whom it may be handed ove, maintain the building in a manner worthy of its significance?

P. Murari, a former IAS officer, once wrote after a visit, “Having served in Tamil Nadu State for over 37 years, it has been my ambition as a senior civil servant to visit the Sullivan Memorial. Sullivan was the discoverer of the Nilgiris. He was also a role model in that he devoted a lot of his energy not only in building up the infrastructure amenities in the district but also ameliorating the lives of the inhabitants including the tribals. My congratulations to Supriya Sahu for having done a great job in creating this evocative and lasting memorial. A truly enjoyable pilgrimage for me and my wife. I understand a project has been submitted for further development of the memorial. I hope that it is sanctioned soon and the Nilgiris Documentation Centre develops into a ‘must see’ place for all visitors to the Nilgiris to get a flavour of the rich cultural history of the district.”

Now that the Documentation Centre has been ousted, its successors have a major responsibility on their hands, a responsibility that can be fulfilled only if there is a commitment to heritage.