Diversity In The Workplace
Table of Contents Title: Page no.
Introduction …................................................................... 5-6
Background ….................................................................... 7-8
Areas of Research ……………………………………………………………. 9-12
Hypothesis ….................................................................. 13
Methodology …................................................................. 14
Primary Data presentation & Analysis ............................ 14-27
Secondary Data presentation & Analysis ............................ …show more content…
28-31
Limitations …................................................................. 32
Recommendations …................................................................. 33
Conclusion …................................................................. 34
References …................................................................. 35-37
Appendix …................................................................. 38 Introduction
The population of our country is a big collection of a diverse series of ethnic people coming from different cultures and origin and finally wearing the identity of “Bangali”. These different cultural people each brought their own heir-loom of art and traditions passed on to them by their ancestors. One of these heir-loom arts is the art of snake charming. This art has been performed in our country from the very birth of this country even before that. The art of snake charming was once considered a great source of entertainment in our country. In the earlier ages of our country’s enhancement, the art of snake charming occupied a honorable position in terms of art and ethnic cultures. The group of snake charmers was rehabilitated in our country and was given the opportunity to nurture their heir-loom art. People used to appreciate and support this art and participated in the snake charmers’ shows with their soul in it. The snake charmers were considered top class artists and their performances were one of the best sources of entertainment for that time. As time went by, new forms of entertainment were introduced and they gradually began to replace the old forms of enjoyment. Today, when a person can watch a movie in three-dimensional graphical vision, he possibly has attraction for watching a charmer play tricks with his snake. As a result, once a great form of art has fallen from its grace, and in these present days it’s only clinging to the very concept of survival. We now only spot the snake charmers performing with their snakes on a busy street under the sun with barely any audience and almost zero appreciation. Apart from all the delusions, there still people present on this day, who hold a soft corner for this art. People who embraced this art in their early ages and later on forgot to appreciate it in course of time, still encounter a second thought in case of abandoning this art for good. Along with the older generation, the new generation has also a taste for the old arts and enthusiastic for re-structuring them in their own way. This is all about my research, although people are developing in a great manner every day and adapting new forms of entertainment sources, they still want to re-shape the old sources, which in case of snake of charming, the idea of my re-search simply is that people still want this art not just only survive but also to flourish along the way.
A charmer performing surrounded by a huge crowd in a village near Sonargaon
Background
Snake charming is the practice of pretending to hypnotize a snake by playing an instrument called “pungi”. A typical performance may also include handling the snakes or performing other seemingly dangerous acts, as well as other street performance staples, like juggling and sleight of hand. The practice is most common in India, though other Asian nations such as Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Malaysia are also home to performers, as are the North African countries of Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia. (www.wikipedia.org) A snake charmer trying to manipulate the snake with music Snake-Charmers dwelling in Bangladesh are small numbered and have been pushed to a corner of the country where they have created a small colony of their own. Undermining the current situation where our country and its people have discovered the potential of the country’s diverse population and trying to bring the different people more close to each other, the snake-charmers are yet to blend in with this concept. Many reasons fueling this phenomenon, are the diminishing glory of the very art of snake-charming, some peoples’ negative perception towards this group, negligence of the associated authorities, limited privileges or in some cases under-stated rights and so on. My re-search paper is all about the current condition of this art and also the current view of people towards this art.
Did people really abandon this art? Or the art itself lost its touch in course of time and if the art were to re-store to its classic form, will there be people who would embrace it as they did before? People who are afraid of snakes for own personal reason, are they reluctant to this form of art? What is their perception about it? There could also be a reason for this art to lose its priority is the poor condition of the ethnic colony of snake charmers. How do people fell about them? Do they feel anything at all? If people agreed that there are still chances for this art to reconcile, then comes the question, what are the possible ways to do so? There could be multiple ways to help out these ill-treated ethnic people and their and their degrading heir-loom art. I intend to find answers to such questions through my research work. The primary data will be collected by interviewing and passing questionnaires to the general citizens of Dhaka city. To further clarify matters, I will take help from a wide range of interesting secondary sources. They mostly include the related materials published in the books, internet, newspapers, magazines, journals, reports, motion pictures and even in a song. By integrating my primary and secondary data, I hope to give conclusive evidence to support my …show more content…
hypothesis. In brief, the hypothesis I am aiming to prove in this research is that, the art of Snake-Charming could be elevated up to such a level where it will be cherished by all. As I go along with my research, I intend to put some light on the possible ways of developing this art into a professional level entertainment. I also want to bring out peoples’ perception these days towards this ethnic group. In addition, I also want to point out that, by helping these snake-charmers, we can eliminate a large portion of their everyday struggles for survival. Areas of re-search
Through the research paper I intend to do my research about the following areas:
Introduction to the Art:
a) What is Snake-Charming?
b) How did it originate?
c) Who are the people involved with this art?
d) Where did they come from? Snake-Charming is an ancient art of performing with a poisonous snake by mesmerizing it with the help of a particular musical instrument called “pungi”. This ancient art has been passed on from generations to generations as an heir-loom art. The people involved in this activity, are called The Snake-Charmers and belong to a small ethnic colony of their own. According to Reuters (December 1, 2000) the earliest evidence for snake charming comes from Ancient Egyptian sources. Charmers there mainly acted as magicians and healers, as literate and high-status men, part of their studies involved learning the various types of snake, the gods to whom they were sacred, and how to treat those who were bitten by the reptiles. Entertainment was also part of their repertoire, and they knew how to handle the animals and charm them for their patrons. Snake charming as it exists today probably originated in India. Hinduism has long held serpents to be sacred; the animals are believed to be related to the Nagas, and many gods are pictured under the protection of the cobra. Indians thus considered snake charmers to be holy men who were influenced by the god. A part of this snake-charmers’ tribe; originating from the Indian sub-continent, has been residing in Bangladesh mostly in Ghuradia,Savar, from the very beginning when the division of the sub-continent took place. Snake-Charming; a Fallen Art: In the earlier states, the art of snake charming used to hold an honorable position in the region of arts. Snake Charmers were considered to be the top class artists of the society. They used to receive invitations from kingdoms and villages, used to receive request for putting on a show from British Lords to local land-lords. Whenever a charmer visited a certain village, the whole village used to greet them, used to make staying arrangements for them and treat them to large feasts. A snake charmer in the past used to perform with a snake surrounded by a large crowd of people with their enthusiasm at the fullest. In January 11, 2006, Enricho noted that the earliest documented use of snake charming was in Ancient Egypt. There, a rearing cobra with its hood spread wide was a symbol of royalty. At a time when less than ten percent of the population could read and write, snake charmers were high-status, literate men, who served as both healers and magicians. They learned about the various types of snake, what snakes were sacred to which gods, and how to treat people who were bitten by snakes. They were also entertainers, who knew how to charm the reptiles for their customers. Today, snake charmers are still active in Egypt and other North African countries, as well as India, Bangladesh and other Asian countries. Many of them can be found on street corners, performing primarily for tourists. Others wander from town to town, performing in smaller villages during market days and festivals. So to conclude, it can be said that, the art of snake charming is desperately struggling just to exist in this modern world of arts.
A beacon of Hope Still Remains:
The art of snake charming is desperately seeking approval of the modern age people who once abandoned this art. Sure we have developed way too much from our previous phase but we definitely cannot deny those things that define who we were once. Among all the modern city dwellers there are many people who were raised in the small towns and villages and there they spotted snakes and enjoyed a snake charmer’s performance in the circus. Taking a trip down the memory lane, all these people still rejoice the old form of arts that were available at that time. These people possess a soft corner for the art of snake charming and they sure want preserve it for the next generation to experience the things that they once did. So, a small light is still flickering in the dark alleyways of the future of snake charming.
How the ethnic group of Charmers is Live :
Bangladesh has an estimated 500,000 snake charmers, who rove all over the country and live in riverboats. Locally they are called Bede. There are three types of sub-professions within the Bedes. The groups are ‘Shapure’, ‘Sowdagar’ and ‘Misisganni’. The group that is most heard is the Shapure. Some of these Shapures make their living by catching and selling snakes. Other Shapure train their snakes some tricks so that they can become entertainers. The Shapures put these trained snakes into little baskets, hoist the baskets on top of their heads, and travel from place to place looking for people interested in their show. When a Shapure find a crowd place he opens up his basket and starts performing. Besides making the snake perform, sometimes they will sell medicinal herbs. Shapures basically avoid performing at well-educated or higher income neighborhoods, poor people are the ideal audience for snake charmers. There are different instruments that Shapure’s use in their performances, such as sticks, beenas or flutes and various plants and trees. Only snakes such as the cobra, which can open up their hoods are the stars of the show. A german photographer john Bolt is enjoying a show
How the art could be replenished:
Today there are countless facilities available for nurturing any form of arts in its own region. The art of Snake Charming could be enhanced given the proper opportunity to the people involved with it. The fallen art can be re-stored with help of Government, Private Investors, and Social Activists and last but not the least, the appreciation of the general people. An artist’s art is of no value if it’s not appreciated by anyone. The first foremost thing that can help this art to live is a positive attitude towards the art itself. If there are still people remains, who warmly enjoys a snake charmer’s performance, this art and its artist are sure to find inspiration to re-inaugurate their activities to satisfy their loyal supporters and also to attract the modern age people to this heritage of our country.
Hypothesis
The Art of Snake-Charming could be re-stored to its classic form which would be considered as a professional level entertainment. I hope that people would come up with new ideas for improving the current situation of this art. I expect that people of today’s world would eagerly pay a visit to the respective places for enjoying an enriched performance of the snake-charmers. I would like to show that, there can be an end to the sufferings of these small numbered individuals if we appreciate their art and come forward to inspire and encourage them, and thus help them to reach up to that level where they will not have to rely on the idea of putting up a desperate street performance.
A Snake Charmer and his family performing in a village
Re-search Methodology For my primary research, I conducted a survey of a representative sampling of the general public in Dhaka and interviewed people who actually lived through the time, when a graceful art gradually fell to such a depth where it is shown pity now a days. To the end I designed a questionnaire with different types of questions so as to get a range of useful data which helped me to answer my research questions. For my secondary research, I used the resources of our north south university library and archive section as well as the public library of Dhaka University. I found some books and television shows on adaptation of Snake-Charmers in Bangladesh, etc. I also browsed the internet and used standard search engines like Google. As I looked up on the internet, I came across multiple websites featuring the current issues of the Snake-Charmers residing in Bangladesh. As for accumulating my secondary data, I used those web-sites to gain a little more access to the data-pool. Primary Data presentation & Analysis For the collection of my primary data, I gave out questionnaires that were to be filled up by North South University (NSU) students and mostly some general citizens of Dhaka. I received filled up questionnaires from a total of 41 respondents, of which 24 were male respondents and the remaining 17 were female. The students belonged to the age group of 20-25, while other respondents were age ranged from 14 to 32 & above. Most the student respondents were all from different departments existing in NSU. In my survey, I asked a total of 6 questions were multiple choices, 6 were yes/no questions. The answers are explained and displayed in the charts below. Question 1: How do you view snakes?
Description: The above graph displays that 58% (23) respondent view snakes as deadly, 16% (6) view them as scary, 5% (2) think are phobic of snakes and only 10% (4) people find snakes as fascinating creatures, the rest of the 11 % (6) respondents have no particular opinion about snakes.
Analysis:
From the above graphical set-up we can clearly come to this conclusion that the majority of the respondents had a negative perception about snakes, only a few had a positive idea of this creature
Question 2: Have you ever had any experience with snakes?
Description:
In the graph presented above 43% respondent stated that they had spotted a zoo while visiting the zoo, 4% were actually bitten by one, 2% saw a snake while camping, 28% said they never saw a snake and the rest 23% respondents mentioned different places where they have spotted a snake.
Analysis: We can come to this conclusion that the majority of the respondents have encountered a snake in their lives at least once. Compared to them, a few results were negative. It can also be that snakes are quite common creatures in our country and its easy to encounter one in some particular places. Question 3: Have you ever seen a snake-charmer’s performance?
Description: In this graph, 23% respondents stated that they had watched a snake charmer’s performance and the rest 67% replied that they had never such experience of watch a snake charmer perform
Analysis:
This illustrated that the majority of the respondent almost more than one the half of the respondent cannot recall of ever watching a snake charmer’s performance, not even once. This here proves that the once a great form of art is now on it’s to perish for good.
Question 4: If yes, then where have you experienced it?
Description: Here in this graph, among the 41 respondents 57% encountered a snake charmers performance on a street, 13% on Television, 4% watched a charmer perform in a circus, 11% spotted a snake charmer performing in their own neighborhood and the rest 15% mentioned several other place.
Analysis: As the majority of the respondents, almost more than a half experienced a snake charmers performance on streets, it proves again that the art of snake charming has fallen from its grace and remains only as desperate street amusement.
Question 5: If there were a snake-charmer’s show arranged in your neighbor-hood, would you go there?
Description:
In this graph we can see that 61 % respondent agreed that they would prefer to go if there were a snake charmers performance arranged nearby, 29% denied that they will not participate and the rest 10 % stated that they might change their mind about .
Analysis: This particular graph shows overwhelming results in favor of the hypothesis where 61% people expressed their eagerness to be on a snake charmers performance. It simply shows that there still many admirer of this ethnic art present in the modern days.
Question 6: Would you actually pay to get a ticket?
Description:
We can see in this graph that, rather than for free if the audiences would have to pay for watching the show, 56% respondents agreed that they would pay to buy ticket, 27 % said that they will not pay for the ticket, 7% respondent gave more of a positive response by stating that paying for a ticket will not stop them from going and the rest 6% were unsure about spending money
Analysis This graph again proves that there are people who still hold a soft corner in their heart for this art as the majority of the respondents expressed that they would even spend money to enjoy a good show.
Question 7: Would you prefer to watch this show in a bit more luxurious way rather than a mere street performance?
Description: In the graph presented above, 38 % respondent said that they would like to see the snake charmers’ show with a better arrangement, 33% disagreed that they still will not think about going, 12 % stated that they will go anyway despite of the quality of the management and the rest17 % were still unsure about going.
Analysis: This graph shows that majority of the respondents clearly wanted the development of this ethnic art and they wanted to have some better arrangements at a snake charmers show. This particular graph strongly favors the hypothesis stated earlier. If a snake charmers show were arranged in the hotel Sonargaon instead of the streets of karwan-bazar, this graph shows that the number of audience for the show will not disappoint the organizer or the sponsor. Question 8: Do you think snake-charmers in our country, are treated in a good way?
Description:
In this graph 67% respondents stated that they agreed upon this idea that the ethnic group of snake charmers is not treated well enough in our country and the rest 33% respondents disagreed with them.
Analysis:
This particular graph shows that the majority of the respondents clearly stated that they were aware of the ill treatments that are received by the snake charmers in our country.
Question 9: Do you think it be of any good, if people opened up a little bit more to these snake-charmers?
Description:
Above in this graph, 79% of the respondents stated that the idea of general people becoming more welcoming to the group of charmers is favorable for them and the rest 21 % thinks the idea is of no good.
Analysis:
Here we can see that the majority of the respondents are talking in favor of the snake charmers. A positive attitude like this is a primary and most crucial element for the development of this ancient art.
Question 10: Do you think it would attract more tourists if the snake-charmer’s shows were a bit more organized?
Description: This graph tells us that 83% respondents are sure that better organized shows with proper modification would work as an attraction for the tourists in our country, 13% respondents do not think the same way and 4% are stuck in the middle of “yes’ & “No” which shows uncertainty.
Analysis: This particular graph is out of the topic, however it too shows the bright side containing benefits we can get by helping the snake charmers nourish their heir-loom art and from the graph we can see that majority of the respondents supports the idea as well.
Question 11: Do you think, in any possible ways it would be beneficial to the snake-charmers, if they were provided with more facilities to nurture their art?
Description: In this graph 64% respondents voted that the Government’s help can play a big role in re-inaugurating the art of snake charming, the 29% respondents do not seem to be satisfied with this thought and the rest 7 % shows
uncertainty.
Analysis:
As the majority approves of Government’s help in this sector, the government itself should come up with effective plans for helping out.
Question 12: What could you think of doing to help in strengthening this art?
Description: In this particular vote the respondents pointed out the possible ways for directing the work of development of the art of snake charming. It shows that 28% voted for Help from the Govt., 32% voted for investment made by private companies, 27% voted for Initiatives taken by the Activists whereas the rest 13% respondents suggested several various ideas.
Analysis:
Undermining the response of the survey respondents, it can be seen that general people almost equally believe that Govt., Private Companies and Social Activists, any of these sources can come out and help, thus can save this art from drowning into see of modern mediocrity.
Secondary Data Presentation & Analysis
My secondary sources were mainly consisted of Books, Newspaper article, Films, T.V. Programs, YouTube Uploads, news Reports. Etc. I could barely find any hard copy of the books or the other materials, but did not stop from extracting the required data. An interesting news report on the CNN Travels channel was about a man named Mohammad Shafikul Islam. This man is no ordinary Bangladeshi villager. He 's the king of the snake catchers. For centuries his family and the members of his clan, of which he is the official leader, have been catching snakes in homes in nearby villages and cities using just their bare hands. Now, 46-year-old Mohammad is using his skills to stage shows at top hotels for tourists and officials, and rents his snakes out to film studios and theater groups. King cobras cost around US$10 and the smaller snakes around US$5 each. He charges up to US$500 for his snake-charming shows. Renowned as a master of his craft, he’s in high demand. This article for a change; shows that there still demands for snake charming in our country and it is actually adding a load of foreign currency to our economy which we can increase in course of time with proper nourishment of the art of snake charming. Mohammad Shafikul Islam is no ordinary Bangladeshi villager. He 's the king of the snake catchers. Among the two books that I found on the internet, one was quite helpful for my re-search. This book titled “The Snake Charmer”, Written by Mr. Sanjay Nigam, tells the story of Sonalal, a middle-age snake charmer making a living with his been pipe and his beloved cobra, Raju. Despite his great skills, Sonalal 's drinking and womanizing seem to have marked him for a life of insignificance. But that all changes one remarkable afternoon when he produces music so beautiful he is certain the gods must be listening. In a moment that will change his life forever, Raju bites Sonalal, and Sonalal bites back, destroying the one creature who loves him. The Snake Charmer traces Sonalal 's bumpy journey through brief celebrity, profound remorse, and a quest for answers to unanswerable questions of love, life, and art. The story of Sonalal portrays a snake charmer and his unbound affection for his pet snake which is very real in the world of Snake-Charmers A newspaper article from “The New Work Times” on a review of a book called “The Snake Charmer A Life and Death in Pursuit of Knowledge” also served as core re-source for my secondary re-search. In this review the reviewer talks about James’s reckless way of handling snakes through his expedition and also tries to relate a story of a person called Slowinski getting bitten by a snake with the ones described in the book by James from his own personal experience. In a nutshell, the article talks about how snakes should not be handled with such little cautious-ness and if done, what price might have to be paid as a consequence.
A news report on BD News24 reported that, Fisheries minister Abdul Latif Biswas told bdnews24.com on Sunday that, Bangladesh, like the neighboring countries, will be farming snakes under the project to collect large quantities of venom for sale abroad.
He added that the project would also create employment opportunities for snake-charmers and other related poor people. Ministry officials said that India, Thailand and China earn large amount of foreign currency through venom exports and that they had several government and private-run venom production facilities.
Another very interesting book titled “Secrets of the Snake Charmer” by John C. Murphy provided me with the insight on Humen and Snakes having an intimate and ancient relationship that often revolved around either love or hate. Snakes can be seen as gods, spiritual messengers, symbols of fertility, and guardians of resources in virtually all cultures. But to those that fear them, snakes are seen as venomous creatures that cannot be trusted. In Secrets of the Snake Charmer, John Murphy, a research associate of the Division of Amphibians and Reptiles in the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, provides an in-depth, twenty-first century look at snakes utilizing the published research of other herpetologists as well as his own personal experiences and speculations. Murphy covers a wide range of topics such as the adaptability of snakes, the ways in which evolution has tinkered with snakes during the last 160 million years, and the impact snakes have on the ecological communities they live in. While sharing ideas about the origin of snakes, rattlesnake rattles, and spitting in cobras, Murphy presents an innovative portrayal of snakes that proves they co-evolve with their prey, predators, and parasites in order to fulfill a significant and novel role in the web of life. One unusual secondary material was a video uploaded on the YouTube. This video Showed Five young British men taking on the challenge of a lifetime - to spend four months travelling the world, taking on some of the most deadly creatures and hostile places on the planet. The lads ' penultimate challenge is going to be one of the most deadly, as they have come to Bangladesh to learn to catch venomous snakes. Master snake king Shoporaj Dholu has just six days to train them up and keep them alive. This video covers the actual footage of catching snakes and training with them how it’s exactly done in the real life of charmers. My second major sources were the websites. All the pictures and photo comment I have used throughout the research paper were collected from website. Among the other secondary resources, there was this very intriguing resource which was a Bengali Film directed in Bangladesh by the name “Nagpurnima”. The story of the movie featured The Kalnagini (female black cobra) who targeted a pet bird of a child for her dinner. The baby girl hits the snake with a stick for taking her bird. This movie was entirely fictious; however it covered the real life struggle of snake charmers and gives us a bird’s eye view into lives of these ethnic people. Some other web based resources were news report on B.B.C News covering the news of the Bangladesh health ministry declaring that the ministry was planning to give new training to traditional healers and snake charmers. The article also presented some statistical data of people dying every year from snake bites in our country. I also had personal communication with one of my high-school teachers named Mr. Javed Hasan who was working as a Professor of Chemistry at The Monach University in Malaysia. His informations helped me to understand the economic benefit of Snakes & their poison. It was the first time I came to know that one milligram venom from a Cobra was worth 70,000 BDT!! After having a conversation with him it became clear that snakes are a part of our vast natural resources and by preserving them our country is sure to reap rewards in the future with full power on the economic sector. A member of staff demonstrates to tourists how to extract venom from a King Cobra at the snake farm at the Queen Saovabha Memorial Institute in Bangkok, Thailand Last but not the least, most of the faculty senior students and friends’ suggestions were most valuable to me. Because they had intense knowledge about the matter and they showed me how to think rationally rather than emotionally. They pulled me to the right track.
Limitations There is nothing absolute flawless in the world. Everything must have some limitations. Similarly, I too have faced several short-comings in conducting my research. I have not been able to gather primary data from ample respondent. My survey consisted of only 41 respondents which is not a good number for conducting a research. Different age, profession, religion, race, economic class respondent would help to enrich my survey. Moreover most of them were students who do not have sufficient knowledge about snake charming or hadn’t even encountered a snake charmer in their lives. Thus, my insufficient data pool was not adequate to provide the concrete base required to prove or refute my hypothesis. I also struggled with finding secondary sources related to my topic. However, they were fairly helpful. My questionnaire design was not perfect. Without pilot survey it came out very biased questionnaire by which a research cannot be done actually. Some of the answers were overlapping and some of the questions were not understood properly by my respondents. The main obstacle I faced while doing this project is- I could not talk personally with any of the Snake Charmers, the real people who are involved with this act and also my number one source for information. Finally, time constraints have led to the decline of the quality of the report. Because if I had much time I could have done it like a real research.
Recommendation
I think a research on my topic could be done in a better way if data can be collected from different kinds of respondent as mentioned earlier. A larger number of respondents can also offer more accurate results. Searching out additional secondary sources, related to increasing number of the Art of Snake Charming in Bangladesh., can help readers to understand the topic more clearly. This will assist in improved integration of the primary and secondary data, to provide the concrete evidence required to prove or refute the hypothesis. Planning out the research project and timing each task can support completion of the report without facing time constraints. Lastly, a better and carefully planned out questionnaire can assist greatly in acquiring more accurate results and get a valuable research paper. A group of Charmers in Netrokona that goes by the name of 'Shorpo-kumar"
Conclusion
To conclude this entire report, I would like to state that there is no way we can deny the art of snake charming being a part of our culture and heritage.in course of time this art has rusted almost to the core but yet has a little time to completely perish from our country. Die hard snake charmers are still carrying out the tradition passed onto them by their ancestors from generations to generations. For this triumph they are facing sufferings every single day of their lives. Starting from scarcity of food and shelter, to the negligence from the people and the Govt., these people are struggling for just blend in the crowd and nurture their art which is the only relic left by their predecessors. In this modern day when we can have any sort of entertainment with little effort we have forgotten the days of our past, the days when all the small things used to matter, a child used to stay up all night excited about the circus fleet coming to the village the next day. Although we got caught up in the present, many of us still clings to the memory of the past, and they try to pursue the rest to rejoice those golden days. In my re-search I came across many people who used to enjoy a snake charmer’s show at their hometowns in their childhood. They still have an urge to go for such a show given the proper chance. Many people who have not experienced the raw art of snake charming in life, also wants the opportunity to do so. As for an art, as long as there admires present to cherish the art, it can never get lost in the sea of modern mediocrity. This also applies for the ethnic art of snake charming, as there is still a soft corner for it in the hearts of the majority. So we should make the best use of this opportunity and all come together to save and re-store this dying art.
References
I. Books
Nigam, S. (1999). The Snake Charmer. Washington DC: Penguin Books (Original work published in 1998)
Greene, H. W. (June 17, 1977). Snakes: The Evolution of Mystery in Nature (A Director 's Circle Book of the Associates of the University of California Press). New York: Fontana Paperback
James, J. ( July 12, 2008). The Snake Charmer :A Life and Death in Pursuit of Knowledge. Washington DC: Hyperion
Murphy, J. C. (1996). Secrets of the Snake Charmer. Washington DC: Penguin Books
II. Television Program
Saxena, N. (Executive Producer). (2009, 20 September). Snake Charmer of India [Television Broadcast]. India:DD National
III. Motion Picture
Parvez, M. (Director & Producer).(1983).Nagpurnima. Dhaka:Parvez films & Lazer Vision
IV. YouTube Upload
B.B.C (Uploader & Subscriber). (2009, October 1). King Cobra Catcher - Tough Guy or Chicken - BBC Three. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6dSn7Q-SLQ
V. News Reports
Dummet, M.(2009, August 9). Bangladesh targets snake charmers. Dhaka:B.B.C News. Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8192051.stm
Bennet, M.(2011, May 6). The Snake Man of Bangladesh. Dhaka: CNN Travel. Retrieved from http://travel.cnn.com/explorations/life/snake-man-bangladesh-645411
Karim, M. (2007, December 27). Bangladesh Government Plans to Export Snake Venom. BD News24. Retrieved from http://squamates.blogspot.com/2010/12/bangladesh-government-plans-to-export.html
Dolasia, M. (July 4, 2009). The Dying Art Of Snake Charming. DOGO News. Retrieved from http://www.dogonews.com/2009/7/4/the-dying-art-of-snake-charming
VI. Newspapers
McNeil Jr. D. G. (2008, July 13). Once Bitten [Review of the book The Snake Charmer
A Life and Death in Pursuit of Knowledge, by J. James]. Sunday Book Review, The New Work Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/13/books/review/McNeil-t.html?_r=0
Tylor, N. N. (July 25, 209). Snake Charming: A Dying Art. The Times of India. Retrieved from http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2009-07-25/kanpur/28166785_1_snake-charmers-tradition-herb
VII. Personal Communication
1. Hasan, personal communication, November 5, 2013.
VIII. Electronic Sources
Snake Charmer. Retrieved from http://www.porjotok.com.bd/en/interest/life-style/item/157-snake-charmer.html
Bangladesh charmer catches 3,500 cobras. Top Secret Animal Attack Files. Retrieved from http://igorilla.com/gorilla/animal/2002/cobras_bangladesh.html
The Truth behind Snake-Charming. Oracle Think Quest. Retrieved from http://library.thinkquest.org/C007974/2_6sch.htm
Nestler, E. (February 11, 2006). Snake Charming - From Ancient Egypt to Today. Ezine Articles. Retrieved from http://ezinearticles.com/?Snake-Charming---From-Ancient-Egypt-to-Today&id=128911
Introduction …................................................................... 5-6
Background ….................................................................... 7-8
Areas of Research ……………………………………………………………. 9-12
Hypothesis ….................................................................. 13
Methodology …................................................................. 14
Primary Data presentation & Analysis ............................ 14-27
Secondary Data presentation & Analysis ............................ …show more content…
28-31
Limitations …................................................................. 32
Recommendations …................................................................. 33
Conclusion …................................................................. 34
References …................................................................. 35-37
Appendix …................................................................. 38 Introduction
The population of our country is a big collection of a diverse series of ethnic people coming from different cultures and origin and finally wearing the identity of “Bangali”. These different cultural people each brought their own heir-loom of art and traditions passed on to them by their ancestors. One of these heir-loom arts is the art of snake charming. This art has been performed in our country from the very birth of this country even before that. The art of snake charming was once considered a great source of entertainment in our country. In the earlier ages of our country’s enhancement, the art of snake charming occupied a honorable position in terms of art and ethnic cultures. The group of snake charmers was rehabilitated in our country and was given the opportunity to nurture their heir-loom art. People used to appreciate and support this art and participated in the snake charmers’ shows with their soul in it. The snake charmers were considered top class artists and their performances were one of the best sources of entertainment for that time. As time went by, new forms of entertainment were introduced and they gradually began to replace the old forms of enjoyment. Today, when a person can watch a movie in three-dimensional graphical vision, he possibly has attraction for watching a charmer play tricks with his snake. As a result, once a great form of art has fallen from its grace, and in these present days it’s only clinging to the very concept of survival. We now only spot the snake charmers performing with their snakes on a busy street under the sun with barely any audience and almost zero appreciation. Apart from all the delusions, there still people present on this day, who hold a soft corner for this art. People who embraced this art in their early ages and later on forgot to appreciate it in course of time, still encounter a second thought in case of abandoning this art for good. Along with the older generation, the new generation has also a taste for the old arts and enthusiastic for re-structuring them in their own way. This is all about my research, although people are developing in a great manner every day and adapting new forms of entertainment sources, they still want to re-shape the old sources, which in case of snake of charming, the idea of my re-search simply is that people still want this art not just only survive but also to flourish along the way.
A charmer performing surrounded by a huge crowd in a village near Sonargaon
Background
Snake charming is the practice of pretending to hypnotize a snake by playing an instrument called “pungi”. A typical performance may also include handling the snakes or performing other seemingly dangerous acts, as well as other street performance staples, like juggling and sleight of hand. The practice is most common in India, though other Asian nations such as Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Malaysia are also home to performers, as are the North African countries of Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia. (www.wikipedia.org) A snake charmer trying to manipulate the snake with music Snake-Charmers dwelling in Bangladesh are small numbered and have been pushed to a corner of the country where they have created a small colony of their own. Undermining the current situation where our country and its people have discovered the potential of the country’s diverse population and trying to bring the different people more close to each other, the snake-charmers are yet to blend in with this concept. Many reasons fueling this phenomenon, are the diminishing glory of the very art of snake-charming, some peoples’ negative perception towards this group, negligence of the associated authorities, limited privileges or in some cases under-stated rights and so on. My re-search paper is all about the current condition of this art and also the current view of people towards this art.
Did people really abandon this art? Or the art itself lost its touch in course of time and if the art were to re-store to its classic form, will there be people who would embrace it as they did before? People who are afraid of snakes for own personal reason, are they reluctant to this form of art? What is their perception about it? There could also be a reason for this art to lose its priority is the poor condition of the ethnic colony of snake charmers. How do people fell about them? Do they feel anything at all? If people agreed that there are still chances for this art to reconcile, then comes the question, what are the possible ways to do so? There could be multiple ways to help out these ill-treated ethnic people and their and their degrading heir-loom art. I intend to find answers to such questions through my research work. The primary data will be collected by interviewing and passing questionnaires to the general citizens of Dhaka city. To further clarify matters, I will take help from a wide range of interesting secondary sources. They mostly include the related materials published in the books, internet, newspapers, magazines, journals, reports, motion pictures and even in a song. By integrating my primary and secondary data, I hope to give conclusive evidence to support my …show more content…
hypothesis. In brief, the hypothesis I am aiming to prove in this research is that, the art of Snake-Charming could be elevated up to such a level where it will be cherished by all. As I go along with my research, I intend to put some light on the possible ways of developing this art into a professional level entertainment. I also want to bring out peoples’ perception these days towards this ethnic group. In addition, I also want to point out that, by helping these snake-charmers, we can eliminate a large portion of their everyday struggles for survival. Areas of re-search
Through the research paper I intend to do my research about the following areas:
Introduction to the Art:
a) What is Snake-Charming?
b) How did it originate?
c) Who are the people involved with this art?
d) Where did they come from? Snake-Charming is an ancient art of performing with a poisonous snake by mesmerizing it with the help of a particular musical instrument called “pungi”. This ancient art has been passed on from generations to generations as an heir-loom art. The people involved in this activity, are called The Snake-Charmers and belong to a small ethnic colony of their own. According to Reuters (December 1, 2000) the earliest evidence for snake charming comes from Ancient Egyptian sources. Charmers there mainly acted as magicians and healers, as literate and high-status men, part of their studies involved learning the various types of snake, the gods to whom they were sacred, and how to treat those who were bitten by the reptiles. Entertainment was also part of their repertoire, and they knew how to handle the animals and charm them for their patrons. Snake charming as it exists today probably originated in India. Hinduism has long held serpents to be sacred; the animals are believed to be related to the Nagas, and many gods are pictured under the protection of the cobra. Indians thus considered snake charmers to be holy men who were influenced by the god. A part of this snake-charmers’ tribe; originating from the Indian sub-continent, has been residing in Bangladesh mostly in Ghuradia,Savar, from the very beginning when the division of the sub-continent took place. Snake-Charming; a Fallen Art: In the earlier states, the art of snake charming used to hold an honorable position in the region of arts. Snake Charmers were considered to be the top class artists of the society. They used to receive invitations from kingdoms and villages, used to receive request for putting on a show from British Lords to local land-lords. Whenever a charmer visited a certain village, the whole village used to greet them, used to make staying arrangements for them and treat them to large feasts. A snake charmer in the past used to perform with a snake surrounded by a large crowd of people with their enthusiasm at the fullest. In January 11, 2006, Enricho noted that the earliest documented use of snake charming was in Ancient Egypt. There, a rearing cobra with its hood spread wide was a symbol of royalty. At a time when less than ten percent of the population could read and write, snake charmers were high-status, literate men, who served as both healers and magicians. They learned about the various types of snake, what snakes were sacred to which gods, and how to treat people who were bitten by snakes. They were also entertainers, who knew how to charm the reptiles for their customers. Today, snake charmers are still active in Egypt and other North African countries, as well as India, Bangladesh and other Asian countries. Many of them can be found on street corners, performing primarily for tourists. Others wander from town to town, performing in smaller villages during market days and festivals. So to conclude, it can be said that, the art of snake charming is desperately struggling just to exist in this modern world of arts.
A beacon of Hope Still Remains:
The art of snake charming is desperately seeking approval of the modern age people who once abandoned this art. Sure we have developed way too much from our previous phase but we definitely cannot deny those things that define who we were once. Among all the modern city dwellers there are many people who were raised in the small towns and villages and there they spotted snakes and enjoyed a snake charmer’s performance in the circus. Taking a trip down the memory lane, all these people still rejoice the old form of arts that were available at that time. These people possess a soft corner for the art of snake charming and they sure want preserve it for the next generation to experience the things that they once did. So, a small light is still flickering in the dark alleyways of the future of snake charming.
How the ethnic group of Charmers is Live :
Bangladesh has an estimated 500,000 snake charmers, who rove all over the country and live in riverboats. Locally they are called Bede. There are three types of sub-professions within the Bedes. The groups are ‘Shapure’, ‘Sowdagar’ and ‘Misisganni’. The group that is most heard is the Shapure. Some of these Shapures make their living by catching and selling snakes. Other Shapure train their snakes some tricks so that they can become entertainers. The Shapures put these trained snakes into little baskets, hoist the baskets on top of their heads, and travel from place to place looking for people interested in their show. When a Shapure find a crowd place he opens up his basket and starts performing. Besides making the snake perform, sometimes they will sell medicinal herbs. Shapures basically avoid performing at well-educated or higher income neighborhoods, poor people are the ideal audience for snake charmers. There are different instruments that Shapure’s use in their performances, such as sticks, beenas or flutes and various plants and trees. Only snakes such as the cobra, which can open up their hoods are the stars of the show. A german photographer john Bolt is enjoying a show
How the art could be replenished:
Today there are countless facilities available for nurturing any form of arts in its own region. The art of Snake Charming could be enhanced given the proper opportunity to the people involved with it. The fallen art can be re-stored with help of Government, Private Investors, and Social Activists and last but not the least, the appreciation of the general people. An artist’s art is of no value if it’s not appreciated by anyone. The first foremost thing that can help this art to live is a positive attitude towards the art itself. If there are still people remains, who warmly enjoys a snake charmer’s performance, this art and its artist are sure to find inspiration to re-inaugurate their activities to satisfy their loyal supporters and also to attract the modern age people to this heritage of our country.
Hypothesis
The Art of Snake-Charming could be re-stored to its classic form which would be considered as a professional level entertainment. I hope that people would come up with new ideas for improving the current situation of this art. I expect that people of today’s world would eagerly pay a visit to the respective places for enjoying an enriched performance of the snake-charmers. I would like to show that, there can be an end to the sufferings of these small numbered individuals if we appreciate their art and come forward to inspire and encourage them, and thus help them to reach up to that level where they will not have to rely on the idea of putting up a desperate street performance.
A Snake Charmer and his family performing in a village
Re-search Methodology For my primary research, I conducted a survey of a representative sampling of the general public in Dhaka and interviewed people who actually lived through the time, when a graceful art gradually fell to such a depth where it is shown pity now a days. To the end I designed a questionnaire with different types of questions so as to get a range of useful data which helped me to answer my research questions. For my secondary research, I used the resources of our north south university library and archive section as well as the public library of Dhaka University. I found some books and television shows on adaptation of Snake-Charmers in Bangladesh, etc. I also browsed the internet and used standard search engines like Google. As I looked up on the internet, I came across multiple websites featuring the current issues of the Snake-Charmers residing in Bangladesh. As for accumulating my secondary data, I used those web-sites to gain a little more access to the data-pool. Primary Data presentation & Analysis For the collection of my primary data, I gave out questionnaires that were to be filled up by North South University (NSU) students and mostly some general citizens of Dhaka. I received filled up questionnaires from a total of 41 respondents, of which 24 were male respondents and the remaining 17 were female. The students belonged to the age group of 20-25, while other respondents were age ranged from 14 to 32 & above. Most the student respondents were all from different departments existing in NSU. In my survey, I asked a total of 6 questions were multiple choices, 6 were yes/no questions. The answers are explained and displayed in the charts below. Question 1: How do you view snakes?
Description: The above graph displays that 58% (23) respondent view snakes as deadly, 16% (6) view them as scary, 5% (2) think are phobic of snakes and only 10% (4) people find snakes as fascinating creatures, the rest of the 11 % (6) respondents have no particular opinion about snakes.
Analysis:
From the above graphical set-up we can clearly come to this conclusion that the majority of the respondents had a negative perception about snakes, only a few had a positive idea of this creature
Question 2: Have you ever had any experience with snakes?
Description:
In the graph presented above 43% respondent stated that they had spotted a zoo while visiting the zoo, 4% were actually bitten by one, 2% saw a snake while camping, 28% said they never saw a snake and the rest 23% respondents mentioned different places where they have spotted a snake.
Analysis: We can come to this conclusion that the majority of the respondents have encountered a snake in their lives at least once. Compared to them, a few results were negative. It can also be that snakes are quite common creatures in our country and its easy to encounter one in some particular places. Question 3: Have you ever seen a snake-charmer’s performance?
Description: In this graph, 23% respondents stated that they had watched a snake charmer’s performance and the rest 67% replied that they had never such experience of watch a snake charmer perform
Analysis:
This illustrated that the majority of the respondent almost more than one the half of the respondent cannot recall of ever watching a snake charmer’s performance, not even once. This here proves that the once a great form of art is now on it’s to perish for good.
Question 4: If yes, then where have you experienced it?
Description: Here in this graph, among the 41 respondents 57% encountered a snake charmers performance on a street, 13% on Television, 4% watched a charmer perform in a circus, 11% spotted a snake charmer performing in their own neighborhood and the rest 15% mentioned several other place.
Analysis: As the majority of the respondents, almost more than a half experienced a snake charmers performance on streets, it proves again that the art of snake charming has fallen from its grace and remains only as desperate street amusement.
Question 5: If there were a snake-charmer’s show arranged in your neighbor-hood, would you go there?
Description:
In this graph we can see that 61 % respondent agreed that they would prefer to go if there were a snake charmers performance arranged nearby, 29% denied that they will not participate and the rest 10 % stated that they might change their mind about .
Analysis: This particular graph shows overwhelming results in favor of the hypothesis where 61% people expressed their eagerness to be on a snake charmers performance. It simply shows that there still many admirer of this ethnic art present in the modern days.
Question 6: Would you actually pay to get a ticket?
Description:
We can see in this graph that, rather than for free if the audiences would have to pay for watching the show, 56% respondents agreed that they would pay to buy ticket, 27 % said that they will not pay for the ticket, 7% respondent gave more of a positive response by stating that paying for a ticket will not stop them from going and the rest 6% were unsure about spending money
Analysis This graph again proves that there are people who still hold a soft corner in their heart for this art as the majority of the respondents expressed that they would even spend money to enjoy a good show.
Question 7: Would you prefer to watch this show in a bit more luxurious way rather than a mere street performance?
Description: In the graph presented above, 38 % respondent said that they would like to see the snake charmers’ show with a better arrangement, 33% disagreed that they still will not think about going, 12 % stated that they will go anyway despite of the quality of the management and the rest17 % were still unsure about going.
Analysis: This graph shows that majority of the respondents clearly wanted the development of this ethnic art and they wanted to have some better arrangements at a snake charmers show. This particular graph strongly favors the hypothesis stated earlier. If a snake charmers show were arranged in the hotel Sonargaon instead of the streets of karwan-bazar, this graph shows that the number of audience for the show will not disappoint the organizer or the sponsor. Question 8: Do you think snake-charmers in our country, are treated in a good way?
Description:
In this graph 67% respondents stated that they agreed upon this idea that the ethnic group of snake charmers is not treated well enough in our country and the rest 33% respondents disagreed with them.
Analysis:
This particular graph shows that the majority of the respondents clearly stated that they were aware of the ill treatments that are received by the snake charmers in our country.
Question 9: Do you think it be of any good, if people opened up a little bit more to these snake-charmers?
Description:
Above in this graph, 79% of the respondents stated that the idea of general people becoming more welcoming to the group of charmers is favorable for them and the rest 21 % thinks the idea is of no good.
Analysis:
Here we can see that the majority of the respondents are talking in favor of the snake charmers. A positive attitude like this is a primary and most crucial element for the development of this ancient art.
Question 10: Do you think it would attract more tourists if the snake-charmer’s shows were a bit more organized?
Description: This graph tells us that 83% respondents are sure that better organized shows with proper modification would work as an attraction for the tourists in our country, 13% respondents do not think the same way and 4% are stuck in the middle of “yes’ & “No” which shows uncertainty.
Analysis: This particular graph is out of the topic, however it too shows the bright side containing benefits we can get by helping the snake charmers nourish their heir-loom art and from the graph we can see that majority of the respondents supports the idea as well.
Question 11: Do you think, in any possible ways it would be beneficial to the snake-charmers, if they were provided with more facilities to nurture their art?
Description: In this graph 64% respondents voted that the Government’s help can play a big role in re-inaugurating the art of snake charming, the 29% respondents do not seem to be satisfied with this thought and the rest 7 % shows
uncertainty.
Analysis:
As the majority approves of Government’s help in this sector, the government itself should come up with effective plans for helping out.
Question 12: What could you think of doing to help in strengthening this art?
Description: In this particular vote the respondents pointed out the possible ways for directing the work of development of the art of snake charming. It shows that 28% voted for Help from the Govt., 32% voted for investment made by private companies, 27% voted for Initiatives taken by the Activists whereas the rest 13% respondents suggested several various ideas.
Analysis:
Undermining the response of the survey respondents, it can be seen that general people almost equally believe that Govt., Private Companies and Social Activists, any of these sources can come out and help, thus can save this art from drowning into see of modern mediocrity.
Secondary Data Presentation & Analysis
My secondary sources were mainly consisted of Books, Newspaper article, Films, T.V. Programs, YouTube Uploads, news Reports. Etc. I could barely find any hard copy of the books or the other materials, but did not stop from extracting the required data. An interesting news report on the CNN Travels channel was about a man named Mohammad Shafikul Islam. This man is no ordinary Bangladeshi villager. He 's the king of the snake catchers. For centuries his family and the members of his clan, of which he is the official leader, have been catching snakes in homes in nearby villages and cities using just their bare hands. Now, 46-year-old Mohammad is using his skills to stage shows at top hotels for tourists and officials, and rents his snakes out to film studios and theater groups. King cobras cost around US$10 and the smaller snakes around US$5 each. He charges up to US$500 for his snake-charming shows. Renowned as a master of his craft, he’s in high demand. This article for a change; shows that there still demands for snake charming in our country and it is actually adding a load of foreign currency to our economy which we can increase in course of time with proper nourishment of the art of snake charming. Mohammad Shafikul Islam is no ordinary Bangladeshi villager. He 's the king of the snake catchers. Among the two books that I found on the internet, one was quite helpful for my re-search. This book titled “The Snake Charmer”, Written by Mr. Sanjay Nigam, tells the story of Sonalal, a middle-age snake charmer making a living with his been pipe and his beloved cobra, Raju. Despite his great skills, Sonalal 's drinking and womanizing seem to have marked him for a life of insignificance. But that all changes one remarkable afternoon when he produces music so beautiful he is certain the gods must be listening. In a moment that will change his life forever, Raju bites Sonalal, and Sonalal bites back, destroying the one creature who loves him. The Snake Charmer traces Sonalal 's bumpy journey through brief celebrity, profound remorse, and a quest for answers to unanswerable questions of love, life, and art. The story of Sonalal portrays a snake charmer and his unbound affection for his pet snake which is very real in the world of Snake-Charmers A newspaper article from “The New Work Times” on a review of a book called “The Snake Charmer A Life and Death in Pursuit of Knowledge” also served as core re-source for my secondary re-search. In this review the reviewer talks about James’s reckless way of handling snakes through his expedition and also tries to relate a story of a person called Slowinski getting bitten by a snake with the ones described in the book by James from his own personal experience. In a nutshell, the article talks about how snakes should not be handled with such little cautious-ness and if done, what price might have to be paid as a consequence.
A news report on BD News24 reported that, Fisheries minister Abdul Latif Biswas told bdnews24.com on Sunday that, Bangladesh, like the neighboring countries, will be farming snakes under the project to collect large quantities of venom for sale abroad.
He added that the project would also create employment opportunities for snake-charmers and other related poor people. Ministry officials said that India, Thailand and China earn large amount of foreign currency through venom exports and that they had several government and private-run venom production facilities.
Another very interesting book titled “Secrets of the Snake Charmer” by John C. Murphy provided me with the insight on Humen and Snakes having an intimate and ancient relationship that often revolved around either love or hate. Snakes can be seen as gods, spiritual messengers, symbols of fertility, and guardians of resources in virtually all cultures. But to those that fear them, snakes are seen as venomous creatures that cannot be trusted. In Secrets of the Snake Charmer, John Murphy, a research associate of the Division of Amphibians and Reptiles in the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, provides an in-depth, twenty-first century look at snakes utilizing the published research of other herpetologists as well as his own personal experiences and speculations. Murphy covers a wide range of topics such as the adaptability of snakes, the ways in which evolution has tinkered with snakes during the last 160 million years, and the impact snakes have on the ecological communities they live in. While sharing ideas about the origin of snakes, rattlesnake rattles, and spitting in cobras, Murphy presents an innovative portrayal of snakes that proves they co-evolve with their prey, predators, and parasites in order to fulfill a significant and novel role in the web of life. One unusual secondary material was a video uploaded on the YouTube. This video Showed Five young British men taking on the challenge of a lifetime - to spend four months travelling the world, taking on some of the most deadly creatures and hostile places on the planet. The lads ' penultimate challenge is going to be one of the most deadly, as they have come to Bangladesh to learn to catch venomous snakes. Master snake king Shoporaj Dholu has just six days to train them up and keep them alive. This video covers the actual footage of catching snakes and training with them how it’s exactly done in the real life of charmers. My second major sources were the websites. All the pictures and photo comment I have used throughout the research paper were collected from website. Among the other secondary resources, there was this very intriguing resource which was a Bengali Film directed in Bangladesh by the name “Nagpurnima”. The story of the movie featured The Kalnagini (female black cobra) who targeted a pet bird of a child for her dinner. The baby girl hits the snake with a stick for taking her bird. This movie was entirely fictious; however it covered the real life struggle of snake charmers and gives us a bird’s eye view into lives of these ethnic people. Some other web based resources were news report on B.B.C News covering the news of the Bangladesh health ministry declaring that the ministry was planning to give new training to traditional healers and snake charmers. The article also presented some statistical data of people dying every year from snake bites in our country. I also had personal communication with one of my high-school teachers named Mr. Javed Hasan who was working as a Professor of Chemistry at The Monach University in Malaysia. His informations helped me to understand the economic benefit of Snakes & their poison. It was the first time I came to know that one milligram venom from a Cobra was worth 70,000 BDT!! After having a conversation with him it became clear that snakes are a part of our vast natural resources and by preserving them our country is sure to reap rewards in the future with full power on the economic sector. A member of staff demonstrates to tourists how to extract venom from a King Cobra at the snake farm at the Queen Saovabha Memorial Institute in Bangkok, Thailand Last but not the least, most of the faculty senior students and friends’ suggestions were most valuable to me. Because they had intense knowledge about the matter and they showed me how to think rationally rather than emotionally. They pulled me to the right track.
Limitations There is nothing absolute flawless in the world. Everything must have some limitations. Similarly, I too have faced several short-comings in conducting my research. I have not been able to gather primary data from ample respondent. My survey consisted of only 41 respondents which is not a good number for conducting a research. Different age, profession, religion, race, economic class respondent would help to enrich my survey. Moreover most of them were students who do not have sufficient knowledge about snake charming or hadn’t even encountered a snake charmer in their lives. Thus, my insufficient data pool was not adequate to provide the concrete base required to prove or refute my hypothesis. I also struggled with finding secondary sources related to my topic. However, they were fairly helpful. My questionnaire design was not perfect. Without pilot survey it came out very biased questionnaire by which a research cannot be done actually. Some of the answers were overlapping and some of the questions were not understood properly by my respondents. The main obstacle I faced while doing this project is- I could not talk personally with any of the Snake Charmers, the real people who are involved with this act and also my number one source for information. Finally, time constraints have led to the decline of the quality of the report. Because if I had much time I could have done it like a real research.
Recommendation
I think a research on my topic could be done in a better way if data can be collected from different kinds of respondent as mentioned earlier. A larger number of respondents can also offer more accurate results. Searching out additional secondary sources, related to increasing number of the Art of Snake Charming in Bangladesh., can help readers to understand the topic more clearly. This will assist in improved integration of the primary and secondary data, to provide the concrete evidence required to prove or refute the hypothesis. Planning out the research project and timing each task can support completion of the report without facing time constraints. Lastly, a better and carefully planned out questionnaire can assist greatly in acquiring more accurate results and get a valuable research paper. A group of Charmers in Netrokona that goes by the name of 'Shorpo-kumar"
Conclusion
To conclude this entire report, I would like to state that there is no way we can deny the art of snake charming being a part of our culture and heritage.in course of time this art has rusted almost to the core but yet has a little time to completely perish from our country. Die hard snake charmers are still carrying out the tradition passed onto them by their ancestors from generations to generations. For this triumph they are facing sufferings every single day of their lives. Starting from scarcity of food and shelter, to the negligence from the people and the Govt., these people are struggling for just blend in the crowd and nurture their art which is the only relic left by their predecessors. In this modern day when we can have any sort of entertainment with little effort we have forgotten the days of our past, the days when all the small things used to matter, a child used to stay up all night excited about the circus fleet coming to the village the next day. Although we got caught up in the present, many of us still clings to the memory of the past, and they try to pursue the rest to rejoice those golden days. In my re-search I came across many people who used to enjoy a snake charmer’s show at their hometowns in their childhood. They still have an urge to go for such a show given the proper chance. Many people who have not experienced the raw art of snake charming in life, also wants the opportunity to do so. As for an art, as long as there admires present to cherish the art, it can never get lost in the sea of modern mediocrity. This also applies for the ethnic art of snake charming, as there is still a soft corner for it in the hearts of the majority. So we should make the best use of this opportunity and all come together to save and re-store this dying art.
References
I. Books
Nigam, S. (1999). The Snake Charmer. Washington DC: Penguin Books (Original work published in 1998)
Greene, H. W. (June 17, 1977). Snakes: The Evolution of Mystery in Nature (A Director 's Circle Book of the Associates of the University of California Press). New York: Fontana Paperback
James, J. ( July 12, 2008). The Snake Charmer :A Life and Death in Pursuit of Knowledge. Washington DC: Hyperion
Murphy, J. C. (1996). Secrets of the Snake Charmer. Washington DC: Penguin Books
II. Television Program
Saxena, N. (Executive Producer). (2009, 20 September). Snake Charmer of India [Television Broadcast]. India:DD National
III. Motion Picture
Parvez, M. (Director & Producer).(1983).Nagpurnima. Dhaka:Parvez films & Lazer Vision
IV. YouTube Upload
B.B.C (Uploader & Subscriber). (2009, October 1). King Cobra Catcher - Tough Guy or Chicken - BBC Three. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6dSn7Q-SLQ
V. News Reports
Dummet, M.(2009, August 9). Bangladesh targets snake charmers. Dhaka:B.B.C News. Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8192051.stm
Bennet, M.(2011, May 6). The Snake Man of Bangladesh. Dhaka: CNN Travel. Retrieved from http://travel.cnn.com/explorations/life/snake-man-bangladesh-645411
Karim, M. (2007, December 27). Bangladesh Government Plans to Export Snake Venom. BD News24. Retrieved from http://squamates.blogspot.com/2010/12/bangladesh-government-plans-to-export.html
Dolasia, M. (July 4, 2009). The Dying Art Of Snake Charming. DOGO News. Retrieved from http://www.dogonews.com/2009/7/4/the-dying-art-of-snake-charming
VI. Newspapers
McNeil Jr. D. G. (2008, July 13). Once Bitten [Review of the book The Snake Charmer
A Life and Death in Pursuit of Knowledge, by J. James]. Sunday Book Review, The New Work Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/13/books/review/McNeil-t.html?_r=0
Tylor, N. N. (July 25, 209). Snake Charming: A Dying Art. The Times of India. Retrieved from http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2009-07-25/kanpur/28166785_1_snake-charmers-tradition-herb
VII. Personal Communication
1. Hasan, personal communication, November 5, 2013.
VIII. Electronic Sources
Snake Charmer. Retrieved from http://www.porjotok.com.bd/en/interest/life-style/item/157-snake-charmer.html
Bangladesh charmer catches 3,500 cobras. Top Secret Animal Attack Files. Retrieved from http://igorilla.com/gorilla/animal/2002/cobras_bangladesh.html
The Truth behind Snake-Charming. Oracle Think Quest. Retrieved from http://library.thinkquest.org/C007974/2_6sch.htm
Nestler, E. (February 11, 2006). Snake Charming - From Ancient Egypt to Today. Ezine Articles. Retrieved from http://ezinearticles.com/?Snake-Charming---From-Ancient-Egypt-to-Today&id=128911