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

Gudalur’s Vidyodaya School and outreach programme: A success story with Adivasi history, culture and songs integrated into its curriculum – Tamil Nadu

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Deep within the Gudalur valley, bounded by the Mudumalai, Wyanad and Bandipur tiger reserves, the Viswa Bharati Vidyodaya Trust has developed a school which is attracting the neglected children of Adivasi tribes into primary education “What use is your education to us? It will only take away our children. Your schools talk about changing the … Read more

Depicting the shooting competition that concludes the Santals’ Sohrai or Harvest Festival celebrated in early January: A large mural created by village artists to express their cultural identity – West Bengal

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Sohrai – The first day The most important festival of the Santals is called Sohrai. It is the Harvest Festival celebrated after the rice harvest in early January. The celebrations stretch over several days. The first day is Um hiloah. Every family contributes half a kilo of rice, a young chicken, salt, turmeric powder, potatoes, … Read more

Books illustrated by Gond artists “known for their knowledge and celebration of trees”: Inviting young children to read, count and live together

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One, Two, Tree! by Anuskha Ravishankar (text); Durga Bai (art); Sirish Rao This visually stunning read-aloud book invites young children to count the improbable number of animals that clamber up an ever-expanding tree. It has been illustrated with art from the Gond tribal tradition of central India–known for its deep affection, knowledge, and celebration of … Read more

Education and health care for Bhil communities affected by drought, debt, illiteracy and early marriage: A school mobilizes teachers and experts from medical and engineering fields – Maharashtra

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Ranjana Diggikar, Times of India, Nov 7, 2013 | To read the full article, click here >> AURANGABAD: In a bid to reach out to tribal children in the region, some community organizations and NGOs started Bal Anand Jeevan Shala (BAJS) last month, where 22 bhil-adivasi children from Manyad River basin forest area of Vaijapur taluka in the … Read more

The Dasai Parab festival celebrated by the Santals in October: A large mural created by village artists to express their cultural identity – West Bengal

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Dasai The Dasai Parab, celebrated in October, goes back to a period in history when the Santals had to defend themselves and hide their identity behind masks. During the festival not much of this martial spirit is left. The men dance with peacock feathers adorning their turbans. Some even dress up as women or wear … Read more