Madhumala Chattopadhyay, a Kolkata-born researcher, participated in the first friendly contact ever made with the hostile Sentinelese of the Andamans way back on January 4, 1991

When the Election Commission recently enrolled the long-reclusive Jarawa tribals of Andamans as voters, one particular story lurked in the background. This was about Madhumala Chattopadhyay, a Kolkata-born researcher who participated in the first friendly contact ever made with the hostile Sentinelese of the Andamans way back on January 4, 1991. She later became the first woman anthropologist to make a friendly contact with another set of secluded natives, the Jarawas.

With four (Jarawa, Onges, Shompens and Great Nicobarese) of the five ‘particularly vulnerable tribal groups’ in the Andamans now registered as voters, The Tribune tracked down and spoke to Madhumala about her experiences of meeting people who have long lived in pristine isolation and what the milestone of recruiting the natives as voters meant.

This is indeed a landmark moment in the history of human contact with the primitive tribes. It’s a fine culmination of years of efforts people like us put in to befriend and demystify the indigenous people,” said Madhumala, 63, who retired as a Joint Director in the Ministry of Social Justice.

The anthropologist recalls with pride her forays into the world of Andaman tribes, long perceived as hostile. Her finest memory is of January 4, 1991. “The MV Tarmugli anchored off Allen Point on the south-western part of North Sentinel island in Andamans. On board were 13 Anthropological Survey of India members, including myself. We had been chosen for a mission many had been afraid to undertake given the previous instances of hostilities,” she recalls about her first encounter with the Sentinelese, who remain the most uncontactable people in the world.

The friendly contact involved dropping off coconuts (stocked on MV Tarmugli) into the waters and waiting for the natives to accept them. “I still remember how the Sentinelese men stood ashore for a while, watching cautiously. Before long, they were all in the water collecting their bounty. There was no hostility. Soon, they were accepting coconuts from our hands

Signing Out 

@Arun