Sharan Oraon

Sharan lives in Pavatoli, Ranchi. Till 2009, when he retired, he worked at the local AG office as an accountant. Sharan is one of those rare individuals from Jharkhand who has spent a lifetime not only to learn a local tribal language called Kuduk but also preserve it through music and literature. Sharan’s love for local tribal music began in an unusual way. Growing up in Laputhana he recalls how every evening the sounds of local singers singing and dancing would come from the nearby akhara (playground). As at that time it was not thought respectful to participate in such music and dance activities, Sharan would only listen and try to learn the songs himself. When he passed his 10th class exams, he one day approached his father and asked him permission to attend those evening gatherings. He promised that participating in the musical programmes would not affect his studies. His father agreed, and so began the musical education of Sharan. As he went to college for his MA, LLB he met several students from other districts and tribal areas proudly speaking in their local dialect. It is then that he realised that although he came from a region of Jharkhand that spoke Kuduk, he himself did not know it. He decided to study the language, so much so that now he is known as a scholar, probably the only one, who converses and teaches the language, writes poetry and is trying to preserve the old and traditional Kuduk songs by writing them down. He also goes to schools regularly to teach these traditional songs to students and has taken them for shows across the state.