Boatmakers of Balagarh

Boat builders have been depicted in the terracotta temples of Midnapore, Birbhum and Bankura in Bengal since the 17th and 18th centuries. In one such village, Balagarh, 90 kilometres from Kolkata, deep in the bamboo forest, a dexterous community of boat makers still hammer away at the ancient craft. The rivers keep the craft alive, ensuring employment to hundreds of villagers. Payal Singh Mohanka and Leena Kejriwal pay just tribute to a disappearing community and a rural life that appeared in Tagore’s short fiction, reflecting his position on social concerns.