Three women in bright clothes and a man carrying large bundle of leaves
Culture & tradition,  Monday walks,  Nepal

A walk in a Tharu village

The Tharu are a people of the forest. They have lived for centuries in the lowlands of southern Nepal and northern India. Often persecuted, they have now been recognised by the Nepali government as an official nationality. But their lives are still not easy.

In the past in Nepal the Tharu were forced to become bonded labourers, living and working on a landowner’s land as quasi slaves. This system was only fully abolished around twenty years ago. They have also been prevented from owning land, or had what land they did own taken from them. When Chitwan National Park was established any villages that lay within its boundaries were demolished. According to Wikipedia:

‘Nepalese soldiers destroyed the villages located inside the national park, burned down houses, and beat the people who tried to plough their fields. Some threatened Tharu people at gun point to leave.’

It seems from what we learned while staying in another national park, Bardia, that the government is at last trying to make reparation. They have, as I said, recognised the Tharu as a separate ethnic group. And they have been given land on which to live and grow crops. But it’s still a tough life for most.

Cycle rickshaw with flags and large horn
Election canvassing Nepali style

The lodge we stayed at in Bardia, Tiger Tops, was established in 1988 at the request of the then government, to help open up tourism for what was and is still one the poorest regions of the country. They have a range of community projects including supporting education for local children and village clinics, making it just the sort of place we like to stay.  

Join me on a walk through a local Tharu village to see something of life in this area, linked to Jo’s Monday Walks of course.

Betahani Village

This village is situated not far from the gates of Tiger Tops. We went to visit one afternoon with one of the lodge guides, Vishna. We took a jeep to a turning off the main highway, from where we started our stroll through the village.

Small earth patches and adobe houses among tall trees
Rice fields after the harvest, and typical houses
Small earth patches green fields among tall trees
Rice fields between the houses
Dusty track passing a small house and leading towards tall trees
The main track through the village
Meet the locals

The people here were friendly, though some seemed shy. Many were happy to be photographed when asked, and to demonstrate the work they were doing. One woman was stripping branches for firewood with a rather intimidating machete. Another was using banana leaves to fold into little baskets to be used to hold offerings at the family shrine. And one, whom Vishna clearly knew well, was happy to show off her new t-shirt with a photo of her with her son on the front and with her husband and son on the back.

The children, while obviously used to foreign visitors, still showed genuine curiosity about us, following us and trying out a few words of English: hello, what’s your name?

Small boy outside an adobe house
Young child outside his home

One little girl from a more remote rural area, who was visiting family in the village, had, we discovered, never seen white people before and was shyly fascinated. I asked if I could take a photo. The family agreed, but made sure her hair was tidied and her face washed beforehand!

Man, woman and small girl by a water pump
A quick wash before the photo session
Couple with small girl
Posing for the strange visitors!

Visiting

At one house we were invited to enjoy a cup of tea. I don’t like tea and was also cautious about the water used to wash the cups so declined, but Chris accepted and came to no harm! The lady was friendly and, via Vishna as translator, told us something about their lifestyle.

This was clearly one of the more affluent homes, solidly built over three stories. But like all houses here they had an external kitchen or rather two; one is for food preparation while the other houses the oven so that its heat is kept separate from where they work. She was slightly horrified at the notion of having a kitchen indoors, with all the attendant smells and heat. To be honest I was similarly horrified that they kept two macaques as pets, chained to small ‘houses’ on the front wall. But I kept quiet; we were guests after all.

Monkey on a wall with a chain
Chained macaque

Another house looked much grander than most. Vishna explained that the owner worked abroad, earning good money which he sent home to his family. Many poorer Nepali men in particular go abroad to find work. They can make good money but it’s not without its hardships and even risks. A recent BBC news item featured Tharu men who had gone to work on the stadiums for the World Cup in Qatar and suffered life-changing injuries or, in one case, died in an accident there.

The wealth, or lack of it, of each household can easily be determined by the building materials used. Mud and straw for the poorest homes, hand-made bricks for the better-off and concrete for the handful of rich.

Three storey house painted in bright colours
Small adobe house with wood smoke, washing drying and surrounding trees
One of the simplest houses
Towards the buffer zone

At the far end of the village the houses started to thin. Eventually we turned on to a path through the buffer zone that lies between inhabited areas and the national park. There people are allowed to graze animals and can take fallen trees for firewood. But they can’t fell any trees, cut off branches or cut grass for fodder or roof-making.

Two women in bright clothes, a man carrying large bundle of leaves, and woman and child on a motor scooter
Pausing for a chat on the main track through the village
Large bundle of twigs and leaves with man's legs visible below
Carrying leaves gathered for animal fodder
Three boys on a simple cart pulled by bullocks
Local boys with bullock cart

The path through the buffer zone was uneven and not very interesting, with no wildlife nor views. I found it hot and tiring and was glad to reach the end where we rejoined the highway. We stopped for a bottle of water at a local shop and Vishna called a tuktuk to take us back to the lodge, which was a fun and cooling way to end the walk.

I visited Betahani in November 2022

30 Comments

  • rkrontheroad

    It always amazes me how many pockets of indigenous culture still thrive, with their own languages and customs. Having lived in Guatemala for three years, I realize it’s a constant struggle between maintaining their lifestyle and encroachment by, and often prejudice against, the prevailing culture. The headstrap use is familiar from Guatemala villages bringing goods to market and hauling wood as well.

    • Sarah Wilkie

      I think living in the west we’re used to a more homogenised population, yet even here we have the communities of relatively recent arrivals who keep many of their own traditions alive. The difference in places like Nepal and Guatemala is that they’ve managed to do so for centuries rather than decades. And of course that these cultures are indigenous 🙂

  • Amy

    Thank you for the Tharu village Sarah! It’s truly an adventure, wise to drink water carefully. Glad your husband was okay. Good to know they value their trees.

    • Sarah Wilkie

      Thanks Amy 🙂 I think the value they put on the trees is more for their role in separating the village from the wildlife and creating the right environment for the latter. There are tigers in those forests (we saw footprints but no tigers)!

  • kiangablog

    A great blog. I am passionate about Timor Leste and have visited there twice in recent years. We have a local friendship group that supports the village of Venilale high in the hills. It is a privilege to visit there and to understand the challenges the people face. Lynn

    • Sarah Wilkie

      Thank you for reading and commenting Lynn 🙂 That inter-community relationship with the people of Venilale sounds very special. Such a valuable way of building understanding!

      • kiangablog

        Thanks Sarah. It is a partnership arrangement, so it is not handouts but grass roots community development where we provide a hand up. Can’t wait to visit again and see how things are progressing.

  • thehungrytravellers.blog

    Terrific window on another world, Sarah. It’s good that these people’s rights and heritage are at last being respected. It was quite the opposite in northern Thailand where, as tourism creeps slowly northwards, the Thai Government are simply taking land off the Karen tribes and forcing them further into the mountains. Your people shots in this post are so good, capturing moments and characters.

    • Sarah Wilkie

      Thank you – this is the look at how more ordinary people live that I promised you a while back I think? I wouldn’t want to suggest the Tharu have it easy, I suspect there’s still some degree of discrimination, but at least their lot has improved quite a bit. I’ve heard about the plight of the Karen, it’s really appalling. I’d like to visit northern Thailand but I’d be worried that it could be at least indirectly supporting the annexation of their traditional lands for tourism.

  • margaret21

    A marvellous peek at an ethnic group I’ve -unsurprisingly I suppose – never heard of. What tough lives – though it seems that finally they don’t have persecution to deal with.

    • Sarah Wilkie

      I’d never heard of them either until planning this trip! Yes, it’s a tough life for sure. And while they don’t have official state persecution to deal with I suspect they still face prejudice from some.

  • lisaonthebeach

    Wow, how fascinating! I just love seeing and learning about how other people, cultures, and countries live. I really enjoyed this, thank you Sarah! I would also enjoy seeing the lodge you stayed in. 🙂

  • restlessjo

    It’s not a life you can easily imagine yourself living, is it, Sarah? It certainly doesn’t appeal to me. I wonder why they were victimised- belief or religious differences? Thanks for the link, hon. I’ll have a Christmas walk up next week and that will be it till the New Year.

  • Mike and Kellye Hefner

    Mothers will be mothers! I had to smile at the mother having to make her child more presentable before you took her picture. It is so fascinating to learn about and see other cultures. You’ve done a marvelous job of that in this post.

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