SAVAGING THE CIVILISED

In 2018, a Christian evangelist from the US travelled to the North Sentinel Island in the Andamans in an attempt to introduce a tribe, with a civilisation older than Christianity, to Jesus. Author Sujit Saraf weaves a tale around this incident rich with many ironies.

- RIYA YADAV

THE Andaman and Nicobar Islands have been a fortress for the Sentinelese and Jarawa tribes for over 60,000 years. Settled in the thick forests of the Sentinel Island, away from the bustling human colony, the Sentinelese are renowned for avoiding any contact with outsiders. Five years ago, an American evangelical Christian missionary was killed by them after illegally travelling to the North Sentinel Island in an attempt to introduce the tribe to Christianity. Author Sujit Saraf weaves a tale around this 2018 incident and breathes life into the untold stories of the tribe in his new novel, Island (Speaking Tiger).

Nirmal Chandra Mattoo, an acknowledged expert on the tribes of the islands, is Saraf's protagonist. Mattoo runs a souvenir shop selling fake 'tribal artifacts' until an American missionary comes to him seeking his help to visit North Sentinel Island, hoping to bring the Sentinelese to Jesus. Mattoo, who agrees to help, gets embroiled in a bleak turn of events thereafter, setting the tone of the book.

In a chat with TMS, Saraf, who runs Naatak, an Indian theatre company in America, and is the author of The Peacock Throne, which was shortlisted for the Encore Prize in London, talks about Island and how it gives a glimpse into the simple life of the Andamans, the people, its politics while examining the life of those who live on the margins. Excerpts from the conversation:

How did the Sentinelese spark your interest to write the book?