The Divine Warrior of Damin-Ko: Kanu’s Leadership in the Santal Revolt Against Colonial and Feudal Oppression

Abstract

This research article is focused on the life, vision, and instinct of revolution in Kanu, one of the central characters who had left an indelible mark during the course of the historic Santal Rebellion that boiled over in 1855–56. Informed by the archival and oral accounts, this paper attempts to reconstruct the experience of socio-economic oppression that the Santal community underwent during British colonialism; the exploitative relations of moneylenders as well as landlords; and highlight an extraordinary resistance waged by Kanu and his brothers. This article captures the strategic mobilization, spiritual leadership, and martyrdom of Kanu, an enumeration of facts unattuned to virtue-perception but stalwarts in their own right against the colonial exploitation in India.