Homes Of Katara: A Photo Story

by Shounak Saha | Sep 22, 2024

*This photo story is by two fellows Shounak Saha and Samim Gayen. Basis their first visit to Katara village as part of their fellowship induction training program in Udaipur. The edits are done by Anupama Pain, from the fellowship team

In the suburbs of Udaipur, Rajasthan, the village of Katara is home to many. In this village, socio-economic customs has created several stories. Each house and its occupants have a unique story to tell, reflecting the collective experiences of the community.

A traditional wooden green colored door — ***Doors like these adorn many a homes here***

A lane flanked with rows of houses on either sides - to the left are houses with old construction, to the right are spanky new ones! — In this picture the difference is clear – the old houses (to the left) are rusted and struggle to expand because of land shortage but the new houses are prospering at the edge of village (to the right)

A middle aged man looking straight at the camera, smiling

Ex – CBI officer Jai Singh Sisodia (image on the left) explained how the government passivity has pushed the people of Katara to be self sufficient, out of no choice, in terms of their own community development. He takes prides to say that the abolishment of scheduled caste and Muslim people from Katara has cleared the hurdles of various development activities for the village.

But the water problems still persist. According to Mr. Sisodia, the government water board had started the supply line construction. But after drilling the rods, the project was stalled, causing the main roads to be filled with potholes.

A middle aged man looking straight at the camera. There is a house and car in the backdrop.

Ex – SBI Bank manager Manish Sutar (left) has a story to tell of how the village’s development is acting out. In late 90s the “Karigar” people of the village started migrating to other states to do construction work. After gathering some money, they started doing business of marble – selling slates as well as tile fitting work. They left their homes in pursuit of this occupation – single male migration is rampant here to destinations like Ahmedabad, Bombay and Bangalore.

Mr. Sutar continues to tell us about the farms that they have left behind them. This has given rise to barren lands around the village. Over time, as land titles became murky and rightful owners had migrated out, cultivable land got reduced to being grazing land or lying barren. Leopard attacks in the farms are also not unheard in this area, causing them to remain so. In image, him in one such patch of land.

A man in a farmland with dense outgrowth

Poster of Shravan Kumar carrying his old parents in a scale, balanced across his shoulder — Poster of Shravan Kumar like this one could be found in front of multiple homes of the village. The belief is that families are eager to welcomes sons in their families who will be as dutiful towards elders.

Over time, the village population (in terms of number of families as people started getting married) grew. Being a peri urban settlement now, there is not much space though to expand. The richer ones are selling their houses in the centre of the village and moving to the outside. This also explains the row of new constructions one sees there. Land being sparse, this reflects in the construction of the houses. Higher rather than wider as can be seen in the image here. Over time, this has also led to the rise of nuclear families in Katara. This is a case of how housing influenced social behaviour.

A newly constructed colourful 2 storey house with a boundary wall that has a traditional Rajputana mural of a wedding procession.

One can also find trees of various kinds throughout the village. Apart from the Bougenvillas, Lantana and the usual domestic flowering plants, banana and bamboo plantation were also spotted. It was interesting to note how the wealthy families had adorned their homes with cedar trees.