Land, Labour, and Liberation

A familiar tale from the perspective of a woman working in the brick kilns of UP on the harsh realities of landlessness, labour migration, and the enduring dream of owning land in Bundelkhand. At the heart of Bundelkhand’s dreams stretching across India’s Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, 35-year-old Nirmala (name changed upon request) often finds herself reminiscing about her childhood days, standing on a land her family once called their own. Her musings are interrupted by the raw, acrid smell of clay and sweat as her hands skillfully mould bricks, one by one. As a child, Nirmala loved being on the small yet self-sufficient farm. Hailing from a Dalit family, she remembers harvesting crops with her parents, and playing in