Mélange of tribal art

Pics by M.S. Apuurva

Ethnic groups or indigenous peoples of each region around the world, be it the tribals of Western Ghats or that of Amazon forests, have deep-rooted cultures quite distinct from each other and from the urbanites. Similar to their customs, their intangible culture which includes songs, music and handicrafts, dresses and gods too differ. Their expressions, devotions and beliefs are manifest in their art works each of which tell a unique story by itself.
India is host to hundreds of tribes. Though most tribals have been rehabilitated and live in cities forgetting their native culture and adopting the urban one, there are some tribes who refuse to move out of their habitats and continue to nurture their traditions by teaching them to the younger generations and by strictly following them.
Many NGOs and the government departments are trying to protect these traditions and giving them an exposure by conducting workshops, exhibitions etc. Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya (IGRMS) or the Museum of Mankind, under the Union Ministry of Culture, is one such institution which is striving to bring tribal talents to mainstream society.
The Southern Regional Centre of the IGRMS at Wellington House on Irwin Road in Mysore, is doing its part since about 12 years in bringing the tribal artisans and providing them a platform.

As part of this year's International Day of World's Indigenous Peoples (Aug.9), one such workshop has begun in Wellington House since Aug.2 with the participation of about 16 artistes from 10 different States. The workshop will end on Aug.11. The theme of the Day, "Indigenous designs: Celebrating stories and cultures, crafting our own future," is being celebrated through this Anantha Yatre-2. The workshop on traditional knowledge systems will also include a three-day cultural programme by tribals from Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Andhra, Kerala, Nagaland, tripura, Uttarkhand, Gujarat, Assam etc. on Aug.9, 10 and 11 from 4 pm onwards.
When we visited the venue, artisans were bent over their paintings, riveted to the art to bring perfection.
Tribal paintings
Mandana painting: Paintings by tribals differ in every aspect including the choice of colour, designs and stories. Rajasthan's Omprakash Meena, belonging to Meena tribe, one of the oldest tribal communities, is at Wellington House to create a beautiful Mandana painting. A type of rangoli, the drawing is mainly done by people Malwa, Nimar and Tanwarghar regions on walls and floors of their huts. It is now being done on canvases. To form the base, they smear a paste of red clay and cow dung. The drawings done in white colour in chalk depict images of animals, plants, birds, decorative designs with dots and dashes etc. One of their favourite inspiration is the peacock painted in a variety of styles and shapes. All women of Meena tribe learn this art to beautify their homes.

Lacquerware

Pithora: One of the earliest cave paintings of India dating back to thousands of years, Pithora paintings are prevalent in Rathwa community who live in Gujarat borders and Madhya Pradesh. The Bhils and Bhilala tribes paint the pictures of the lifestyle of the tribals with horses, camels and cattle dominating the pictures. Hunting, ploughing, cooking, drawing water from the well and other acts of domestic life are depicted with bright red, green, yellow colours. The 57-year-old artist Mansingh Thanji from Gujarat's Baroda district says every house in his Malaja village has this traditional wall painting. In the workshop, he has painted gods and stories of animals. One of the paintings of another artist Ramesh Bharia depicts a mongoose, after fighting with a snake, eating a herb for its injuries.
Apart from story-telling, one meaning attached to Pithora is an idea of a map drawn to show the difficult and dangerous terrain of their area and guide the traders. These paintings are also considered sacred and are painted on the walls of the main hall of homes after consulting with local tantriks. The painters are called Lakhadas and completion of a painting is accompanied by singing and dancing. The name is said to have derived from Pithora Baba, the reigning deity of the region.
Colours used in traditional wall painting are derived by mixing plant pigments with milk or liquor obtained from mahua tree. The base is a mixture of cow dung, mud and chalk powder.
The art of Chumbeni Kikon from Nagaland has brought alive the Naga warriors with their typical
Naga painting: Chumbeni Kikon from Nagaland's Kyong tribe has brought alive Naga warriors with their typical attire including dao (sword used both for head-hunting and cutting crops), spear, hornbill feather as embellishment on head gear made of boar's hair etc. She says the tribals never kill a hornbill as they believe that if a male hornbill is killed, the female and their young ones will die of hunger as the male is the food provider for them, indicating the love for wildlife and enivorment concern among the indigenous people. Chumbeni also says in earlier days when head-hunting was prevalent, the hairs of the women who were killed were worn by the hunters from behind as a matter of prestige. She claims there are 17 different Naga warrior tribes including Kyong Naga, Ao, Sumi and Konyak.
Korieng: Rangsel Rongneisong from Manipur's Koireng tribe, who is a skilled Korieng artist, says his art work depicts the day-to-day activities of the tribals including dancing, playing musical instruments, cooking like drums and an indigenous bagpipe, hunting deer etc., apart from preparing a drink by fermenting rice.
Kabui: The art work of Kabui tribe in Manipur includes traditional motifs picturing Kabui rituals during festivals, sun, moon, stars, rainbow etc. A half-drawn art of Gaisingduan Gangmei indicated a moonlight romance between a girl and a boy of the tribe in the midst of nature, showing the approval of natural elements.
The tribal art, mostly in still-life, had a balance and symmetry yet seemingly unsymmetrical which appeals to the creative eye at a second glance with the immense creative imagination of a people who live in forests and are largely uneducated, and thus unswayed by outer world.

Other tribal art work: A walk on the lawn of the Wellington House in pattering rain brought us to artisans engaged in wood work, clay models, embroidery and pottery.
It was a delight to see two aged women from Andhra Pradesh engaged in creating lacquerware delicately on glowing coal. K. Ammalu and K. Sundaramma are adept in melting lacquer, the sealing wax obtained from certain trees, and coating them on wood artifact, creating a variety of designs with thin strips of lacquer directly melting them over the artifact and then delicately forming designs with the help of pin and comb etc.
Dongcha Kom from Manipur is here to demonstrate their style of handloom weaving. Dongcha, who belongs to Kom tribe, says it requires more than a week to weave a three-metre long cloth and the embroidery is very difficult as each line has to be measured before stitching.
R. Chikkasiddaiah from Kollegal, who is creating bamboo artifacts, says he was left in the lurch after the sugar factory he was working in closed down in 2006. With no other option, he took to his ancestral art after receiving training in bamboo art work at the 'Bidiru Siri' workshop and was encouraged by the then Hunsur DCF Vijaykumar. Then he started making various artifacts using bamboo. Today, this 55-year-old artisan from Medar tribe is good at making pen stand, puja basket, flower vase, lamp shades, bouquets, pen holders, hair clips etc.



Other artisans at the workshop include Ram Kumar Shyam and Santhosh Parasathe from Madhya Pradesh engaged in wood work, Rajeshwari and Babyamma from Ooty creating terracotta artifacts, Bujjiamma and Mangamma who do Lambadi art on clothes etc.
IGRMS Southern Regional Centre In-charge Officer J. Vijay Mohan says all the works of the tribals participating in the workshop will be displayed at Wellington House on August 9. The public can also visit the workshop from 10.30 am to 5.30 pm.
The melange of art work and artifacts leave the visitor enchanted in a world of colours and nativeness which bring to mind the value of indigenous culture and tradition and the necessity of protecting it.