The Vivid Colours of Tribal Culture

India is a dynamic mix of arts and crafts, where classical melodies blend effortlessly with a hypnotic mosaic of gorgeous paintings, ancient weaves and other handicrafts, divine dance forms, interesting festivals, and brilliant sculptures. This land glistens with vibrancy and vivacity, with ethnic flavours that grow at every turn in each of its states and union territories.
Because of India’s long history, the love tale between her and her culture is timeless. Our country’s indigenous population is just another colourful feather in our country’s highly colourful cultural hat. India’s tribal culture, traditions, and practises pervade practically every facet of Indian culture and civilization. Indian tribal culture has seen a significant blending of cultures within its own people, from the Aryan, Dravidian to the Indo-Tibetan languages. Each tribe has its own different character that distinguishes it from the others.

Despite the push towards modernization in the twenty-first century, the tribal communities of Chhattisgarh have managed to keep their unique identity and continue with their age-old practises among the vast number of tribes that exist across the country. The state is proud of its multi-millennia-old tribal tradition, as well as the music, culture, and craft of the tribal communities, all of which can still be found throughout the state. Chhattisgarh’s tribes are predominantly a primitive race that adheres to all traditional rituals and its typical age-old ritual. The Gonds are Chhattisgarh’s oldest and most prominent tribe.

A Closer Look – The Gonds
The term Gond derives its etymological origin from the Telegu word “Kond,” which means “hill.” This tribe is believed to descended from the Dravidians. The Gonds are thought to have established in Gondwana between the 9th and 13th century AD, according to scholars. The eastern half of Maharashtra’s Vidarbha area, parts of Madhya Pradesh directly north of it, and parts of western Chhattisgarh can be regarded the core region of Gondwana. From the 14th century onwards, Muslim sources describe the establishment of Gond governments in the region, bringing Gond history into sharp perspective. Gond dynasties ruled in four kingdoms in central India during the 16th and mid-18th centuries, when they were at the height of their strength (Garha-Mandla, Deogarh, Chanda, and Kherla).

The Koitures, also known as Gonds, are inextricably linked to nature. Their pantheon encompasses all parts of the natural world. Their music, folk dances, myths and legends, folk tales, customs and rituals all reflect and are intertwined with their deep relationship with nature. Hereditary bards and professional storytellers known as Pardhans keep Gond myths and stories alive. Because all Gond traditions are oral, several different versions of the same stories are told. The social rules of Gond culture, however, are anchored in mythology and the acts of Gond heroes. The Gondi language, more than anything else, gives the many tribal groupings who make up the Gonds a sense of cultural consistency. Despite this, many Gonds are bi- or trilingual, speaking Hindi, Marathi, or Telegu in addition to their native dialect. Some Gond communities have completely abandoned Gondi in favour of the local language or dialect.

In Gond society, music, singing, and dancing have a major part. Gonds are avid dancers, and song and dance are used to commemorate all joyous occasions. Dances honour dramatized retellings of events from Gond mythology in some cases, such as with the Dandari dancers. The Gonds’ classically trained musician caste is the Dhulia. The Gonds’ mythology, myths, and history are passed down through the generations by Pardhan bards. The vast epic that commemorates the origins and accomplishments of the cultural hero Pahandi Kapar Lingal is possibly the most renowned among the Gond mythology.
The Gond tribe observes a number of festivals, such as Dussera, Pola, and Nagpanchami. Some people believe that Hinduism and Gond culture share similar traditions, however there are considerable variations if you observe closely.
The Gonds have a long history of tribal arts and crafts such as pottery, basket-making, body tattooing, and floor painting. The Gond tribe has painted and sculpted art on the walls of caves stretching back over 1400 years, many of which are from the Mesolithic Period. The Gonds believed that looking at beautiful images brought them good fortune. Thus, traditionally, people painted designs, tattoos, and symbols on the floors and walls of their houses. Their artworks also serve as a means of preserving and transmitting historical information and beliefs.
A number of artists are currently raising interest in these traditions through their paintings depicting the Gond way of life. These painters are mostly Gond Pardhans, which is one of the Gond community’s branches. Jangarh Singh Shyam was the first Gond Pardhan painter, and Jangarh Kalam is the name given to the current Gond painting type.

This is an effort to reconstruct the Gond cultural legacy via the artist’s eye, as it depicts various facets of Gond culture, including deities, dancing forms, relationships with nature, myths, legends, and lore.

Cultural Roots
Since the ancient history, the diverse art and cultural forms created by India’s remote tribal people have continued to demonstrate their creative glory. Overall, the tribes of India capture the true and colourful characteristics of India that the rest of the world is familiar with. Since some tribal languages turned into official languages as a result of the tribes, we can safely assume that the civilizations that are called “developed” have their roots in Indian tribal cultures.