Crafts & visual arts

“During our biggest festival ‘Sorhai’ there were decoration on the walls with flower designs, bird and animal figures. I saw my mother and sister drawing red and blue lines on the walls by climbing on the bamboo ladder. [C]enturies-old traditional knowledge and art of building low-cost-no-cost mud-houses and the related skills and crafts, like wall paintings die out.” – Boro Baski in “Is ‘brick house’ the only sign of development?” (translated from an article in Bengali Anandabazar Patrika, 21 July 2019)
https://indiantribalheritage.org/?p=29829

Appropriate education for Adivasi children: The Vidyodaya School model at Gudalur – Tamil Nadu

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The Viswa Bharati Vidyodaya Trust (VBVT) is a community-based organisation working with the Bettakurumba, Kattunayakan, Mullakurumba, and Paniya Adivasi communities in the Nilgiris since 1995, reimagining education as a path to dignity, identity and possibility. All four communities are recognised by the Government of India as Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs), reflecting both the depth … Read more

Learn more about tribal communities in West Bengal

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Learn more about tribal communities in Gujarat

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Video | Marriage customs of the Santals: A large mural created by village artists to express their cultural identity – West Bengal

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Marriage Reception A Santal marriage takes five days and involves various, often complex, rituals. On the day of the Gidi-chumara (Marriage Reception) the women arrive to bless the bride and groom with grass and grains of rice which are kept in a basket. The high wooden turmeric crusher called akhur (on the right) indicates that … Read more

Video | “A living testimony of one’s love for nature, culture, tradition, history and posterity”: The Ever Living Museum at Mawshabuit (Shillong) – Meghalaya

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The Ever Living Museum at Mawshbuit, located a stone’s throw away from Shillong, Meghalaya, is well known for its collection of the region’s natural and cultural heritage including crafts and fossils dating back decades and some, even centuries ago. But how many amongst us would know about the person behind this magnificent Museum that perfectly … Read more