Paper short abstract:

The politics of representation staged by indigenous people aim at suggesting particular representations of culture, sociality and sometimes territory.I shall question how theAdivasi in Jharkhand and in Orissa succeed in staging different politics which are able to adress gthe State while articulating political rights.

Paper long abstract:

The Santal stage different versions of authentic "adivasi culture through different kinds of practices and performances. The practices concern the reinvention of Adivasi pasts through litterature and commemorations, invention of a script and religious movements. The Santal have sustained their identity by promoting the return to the sacred grove, a movement which articulates religious ideas, indigenous knowledge and environmental politics. These performances aim at breaking the imbalances and biases in post-colonial historiography, or more generally in cultural representation by outsiders.Are the Adivasis able to adress the state while articulating their political rights?