For Pune poet and writer Randhir Khare, documenting and translating traditional art forms is not about conserving a pure, untouched form of culture, but rather about taking it forward, participating in its evolution. In Mumbai on Monday, he read out a few poems from his latest collection of translations Flight of Arrows—Selected song-poems of the Bhil to a small group gathered at the Theosophy Hall, near Churchgate station. Reading with his own rhythm, he chanted, sang and sometimes even whispered the songs he had learnt from the Bhil tribals during his time in Jhabua, Madhya Pradesh.

Khare requested the government for three months to study the community’s way of life. On submission of the National Water Commission to eradicate the guinea worm infestation in drinking water, “I learnt their songs, many a time translating off the mark at the risk of being laughed at. But finally, the model that we evolved for the water commission is one that not only involves the community and their songs, but one they take proud ownership of.”

Writing poetry and sketching since the 70s, Khare has crystallised his own way of functioning as a self-confessed reclusive writer and a sociable community worker, ever curious about learning about new customs. Working on Unicef programmes since the ’80s in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Punjab, Maharashtra, and more recently down South in the Nilgiris, with an NGO working for the local Toda tribals, Khare has seen both sides of community welfare-government and non-government.

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