Indeevar, who had penned this famous song, hailed from Baruasagar in Jhansi district of Bundelkhand. Was Bundelkhand famous as the land of warriors, the great Rani Laxmi Bai, national poet Maithili Sharan Gupt or Bundelkhand, or was it known for its abject conditions of poverty, social unrest, high rates of migration and recently being in the news for suicide bids by farmers?

At times I wonder if Bundelkhand is just land of problems or is it a land of opportunities. What are generally highlighted are its weaknesses, scarcities and cravings. Such thoughts were hovering in my mind while I listened to the song. This piece is my effort to put forth on paper my personal five years of understanding of Bundelkhand apropos to my 25-year-young institution, Development Alternatives and the even younger TARAgram.

It has been over three years since I met one of the most powerful women in Bundelkhand. Gomti Devi is a rarity amongst the common women. She is one of the most prominent workers among the cluster of women’s Self Help Group who led the struggle to set up a livestock-based livelihood centre known as Ram Raja Gaushala near Orchha in Tikamgarh district of Madhya Pradesh. The centre is one of its kind, being owned, managed and operated by a cluster of women SHGs and supported by the State Government.

One day at the Gaushala, I asked Gomti Devi, ‘What do you think is the biggest resource in Bundelkhand?’

‘Its people’, she promptly answered, ‘but they need to be constructively guided and directed. People, after consistent effort, do get together for a common vision, but then suffer because the vision gradually starts fading. One needs to ensure that the members of the group are often reminded of the vision and mission that had initially brought them together.

Gomti: Do you understand, Babu?

Gomti: Because, first they are guided by their perceptions, beliefs and personal priorities. You need to work together with them to understand their correct perceptions and challenge the wrong ones and gradually build trust in the people. Then they will listen to you.

Gomti: People need evidence before they change their perceptions and beliefs. You need to create evidences, not just one but many, and expose people to them so that they start believing what you feel and say. This is how we build trust. This is what a leader should do. You know you also need to accept their priorities and work with them in order to find solutions.

Gomti: Obviously. You should not lose patience. Anger is a form of emotion, like love. If properly channeled, anger can prove to be a wonderful stimulus to trigger revolutions that our Bundelkhand as also our country demands in plenty.

Gomti: To me, there is only one problem. The word Khand in Bundelkhand. Sunne se lagat hai kachu toot gao (when you hear the word khand, it feels as if something has broken off). The solution lies in the word akhand.

It is not a question whether Gomti was right or wrong. The issue is much deeper and calls for introspection by each one of us. Complex problems may not always have simple solutions, but simplicity in thinking may result in complex solutions that are simple. Rigidity on what but flexibility on how is what people and their institutions need to practice. Indeevar further wrote q