I landed in Semiliguda of Koraput, India in November 2004 for the second time. Unlike the first time when it was a short trip with MSc classmates, this was a longer one- for my PhD. I worked with four communities- the Kondh, Poraja, Gadaba and Bonda, documenting their biocultural diversity. My work was rooted in grounded theory, so there was no hypothesis at hand to begin with. I simply followed the Disharis- knowledgeable elders of the community and let my work take its own course- that was the suggestion from my PhD supervisor too. It was a two year long research project, supported by IRDWSI- Semiliguda.

Half way through my work, I realized that something was missing in my study. Something, that was well known in the community, something mysterious that controlled the community's' way of living and the way they related themselves with their ecosystem, something that was everywhere, but nowhere to be seen.

December 2005, the last month of my field work. I realized that it was the calendars! The calendar keepers (Disharis) were the custodians of this knowledge and it was this element that guided the community's way of living. My last minute attempt to document the calendars weren't successful, although i did come across many knowledgeable elders who could read the stars and constellations.

I returned to Madras Christian College and managed to submit my thesis after another 3 years of work. The calendar was still missing in the thesis. From 2005 to 2010, I walked around with the calendar in my head. I knew it was there, yet couldn't prove that it is the quintessential element. Finally, i decided to write an article on it. I began, without knowing where to start and how to proceed. I began to gather literature, hoping to substantiate my claim. There were many studies on calendars, but very few dealt on their relationship with the ecosystem. In the meantime, a few quality articles from Australian researchers on Aboriginal calendars began appearing. Australian Government too, had started emphasizing the importance of Indigenous calendars. These developments inspired me further. However, my idea was still  at the nascent stage. But by mid-2012, I had managed to gather evidences about how the calendars of Aztec, Maya and other civilizations enabled them to manage their ecosystem.

By 2012, I had also moved to Miri, Sarawak for research. I had rented a room in Mrs. Wong's house along with few others (She was an interesting landlord). Among my housemates was an young lad from West Malaysia who was hunting for a job. He had a pretty girlfriend who visited him everyday. I admired this young couple a lot. Yet, I never bothered to talk to them other than the occasional pleasantries as I didn't want to intrude into their privacy. Every evening, I used to work inside my room with the door closed, while they walked around in the living room, or were busy cooking his favorite Mee , tossing up the oily noodles and catching it effortlessly in the iron pan. Yet, i resisted the temptation to talk to them.

My first draft on calendars was ready in 2012 itself - I submitted it to a reputed journal. Although I took a long time to write it, my paper didn't take a long time to come back. She came back quickly- with her ego battered and bruised.

 I remember that dull evening. I was sitting in the couch with my hands at the back of my head, and eyes fixed at the false ceiling. After a while, I decided to shelve the idea of calendars- it wasn't worth the salt. I regretted the precious time and effort I had spent on a worthless idea!

Just when I was about to retire to my room, the young lady emerged from the opposite room. I smiled, reluctantly. She smiled back and we talked for a while. Perhaps she guessed that I just had a bad day. After ten minutes of conversation, I realised that I never bothered to ask her name. Out of utter guilt, I introduced myself.

"I am Franco."

"Nice to meet you, Franco!" She smiled. "I am Calendar."

"Calendar?"

"Yes...Calendar!...I know you must be surprised. But that's my name." she shrugged her shoulders and walked back into their room.

A few months later, I was ready with a new draft. I moved out of Mrs. Wong's house in Nov 2012, and haven't met her or the young man thereafter.

Calendar!!!