Why do adivasi societies defend themselves so desperately against the state? What is it that sparks so much protest and conflict in India’s adivasi regions? These are some of the questions this book seeks to answer. The first part shows how the Bhils of western Madhya Pradesh were affected by colonialism, the perceptions and notions that shaped colonial policy, its effects on material life and politics, how bhil groups adapted to these developments—and resisted them. A social history cast as narrative—a narrative of blindness and rancour, resistance and change—it charts the emergence of an unjust and oppressive social orde