We dived into this one with no prior idea of what we are going to witness...The first night in a abandoned school with a bunch of tribal children we slept under a roof full of fireflies not knowing how dangerous it was. We lay there in awe and wonder looking at those green twinkle on the roof...we met people who were way much wiser and intelligent in there humbleness and kindness than the "modern man"...we walked into the Naxal area lured by the greed of learning more about the Munda's...We were shown a spectacle of dance, music and folklores..
The Mahabharata says that the Mundas were driven away from the from east india by the Aryans and they travelled north west crossing Azamgarh,Bundelkhand and Rohtahsgarh and finally landed in the Chhotanagpur platue.
It is marvellous how not so far from the a city that bustles with life activity of urban India, few people still exist who till date live in close proximity with nature. The Mundas worship nature, they derive their food and shelter from nature and most importantly their lives, traditions and customs are deeply inspired and rooted in nature.
The Mundari tribe do have a lot of stories to narrate. Every description and every discussion starts with a story which are then interlaced and entwined with words of poetry, the notes of their music and the steps of their dance this is their way of life.. Music, dance and poetry are the heart and soul of the Munda being.
Now and when we sit and reflect back on our journey we hear the drum beating we feel the thumping of their feet and the swooping of their gamcha, a blur of red and white circling around the tamarind tree and the smiling strong faces of THE MUNDA
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