Historical representation and understanding of tribal

communities in India

Siddhant Gawahale

Abstract
Tribal groups are famous for their culture and traditions. India is a home to thousands of
tribes that follow different cultures, thus being unique on their own. Their art and culture is
still recognized in the present world including India. The culture of these tribes did undergo
various changes over time. There is difference between the way of living of these tribes, both
before and after the British Rule. Various policies introduced in India also talk about
increasing the recognition of these tribes for protecting their rights and helping them in their
upliftment in the modern world. This research paper discusses the art, culture and history of
the tribes while also talking about the changes in their way of living and the laws enforced to
protect and uplift these tribes for their protection.

Introduction
India is a home to 550 different tribal communities who live in different parts of the country.
All the communities had their unique cultural and art style. They live their lives in a very
different way. These tribal communities in the present world are widely known for their art
and culture that makes into homes of people as painting and photo frames. Some consider the
people of tribe as indigenous people of the country who lack modern positive traits of the
society and illiteracy. There are certain popular tribes such as Bhil Tribes, Kodava Tribes and
Warli tribes who follow different routine and culture in their lives. These tribes presently
require protection of their rights and recognition so that the modern world. For this purpose
several policies were introduced and many changes occurred in the tribes as before and after
the British rule. Article 46 which protects the rights of weaker section provided scope for
protection of these tribes. Even though they are a considered as the indigenous people lacking
modern traits, the tribals have accepted this definition of theirs’ and continue to follow the
same culture and tradition which they have been following since many years.

Review of literature
Shereen Ratnagar (2003) in this article the author tell us about the past history of tribal
community in India how the tribal art and culture in the past is still recognised and still
followed by many tribals community in India over the period of time many tribal community
came to an end but many tribes still follow their art and culture and the arts is till famous in
many part of the world the author also tell us that how the tribal people mostly live in the
hills and their main occupation is agriculture tribal community has very vast history and their
art and culture
Virginius Xaxa (1999) in this paper observed the transformation of tribal people in India how
their culture changed over the period of time how many tribal communities changed their
religion and because of that their culture is also in ending in this research paper it is also
observed that before the British rule the tribal people live away from the society in the
isolation in forest but after the British rule they came to new world and many things starts
changing over the period of time the tribal people have absences of modern society education
and many things and after the independence many tribes change their religion because of that
there is a major transformation was seen in tribal community
Rahul Sen (1992) in this article the author tell us about the tribal policy in India how the
tribal during the British rule is different from the policy which was their enacted after the
independence of India and how more recognition was given to tribal community in India the
rights of tribal people were recognised and more rights were given to tribal people to preserve
their art and culture and to promote their their art article 46 says that state should give propre
care and education to the weaker section of the society with the passage of time many
changes were done in the tribal policy for the upliftment of the tribal community in India and
for their betterment many states has implemented many policy and recognised their rights and
their culture
Virginius Xaxa (1999) in this article the author tells us about Tribes as Indigenous People of
India There is no claim to being the original inhabitants of that region, but a prior claim to the
natural resources is asserted vis-a-vis the outsiders and the dominant caste. The tribal identity
now gives the marginalised peoples self-esteem and pride. Tribes are primarily seen as stages
and types of society they represent a society that lacks positive traits of the modern society
and thus constitutes backward illiterate and backward society with changes in this feature on
accounts of education modern occupation and new technology etc. Defining 'tribe' has
conceptual as well as empirical problems for the academician. But this term of administrative
convenience has now been adopted by the tribals themselves to mean the dispossessed,
deprived people of a region. 

Research Methodology
In India more than 550 tribal community lives they lives in the different part of India many
tribal community has different art and different culture all the tribal community has a very
vast history and over the period of time it changes many changes were seen in the culture of
tribal people and in their art also the tribal has a very vast historical representation they have
given the modern society many art forms dance forms and many more things and to
understand the tribal community in India one has to live in between them and they have to
understand their daily life routine and culture
India was ruled by many kings first by Mughal than British and during this period the historic
representation of tribal changed many changes were seen during this period and no
importance’s was given to this tribes during this period many tribal communities was extinct
but today also historical representation of tribal community still seen in the Indian culture and
the understanding of this tribal community lives in their culture and art only
Bhill tribes
Bhils are popularly known as the bow men of Rajasthan. They are the most widely distributed
tribal groups in India. They forms the largest tribe of the whole South Asia. Bhils are mainly
divided into two main groups the central or pure bills and eastern or Rajput Bhils. The central
Bhils are found in the mountain regions in the Indian states of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra,
Gujrat and Rajasthan. Bhils are also found in the north eastern parts of Tripura. The bhil art is
famous all over the world the Bhil art which was now mostly seen in the region in Rajasthan
and in some part of Madhya Pradesh the bhil art is a historical representation of its tribal
community bhil tribe uses dots to make their story come Alive the tribal community paint
their house wall with their art where they represent their culture in their art they represent
their history Turmeric, flour, vegetables, leaves and oil were used to derive brilliant colours
to make fascinating frescoes on floors and walls, in a language created by the Bhils, to
convey their experiences. With the change of time the artist of bhil tribes started using
brushes and many modern techinches they changed with the change of time a very famous
line of Bhil community is “Everything in our lives revolve around art” there art is also
represented in their clothes also the women wears sari and ghagra choli which is beautiful
decorated with stones and beautiful art work which shows their art the Bhil tribe is second
largest tribe in India and the oldest tribe in India also to understand the Bhil tribe we have to
understand their culture and living
Bhil tribes speaks Bhil language which is an Indio Aryan language and one of the oldest
languages in India Bhil tribes has one of the rich culture in India the dance form which is
known as Ghoomar famous all over the world dance form is performed during the festivals
the baneshwar fair is the main festival celebrated by the Bhil tribal community during this
festival people gather near the som and mahi river worship lord shiva and they perform their
traditional folk dance Ghoomar Bhils are very superstitious people and they worship their
own local deity like khandoba , bhairona and sitalmata also some of them worship
“vaghdev”, the tiger god . The religious practice among them differ-form place to place, they
don’t have any temples of their own although they do have bhagats or gurus who perform all
the religious rites. Bhils also consult badvas the heridatry sorcerers on all the occasions.
When it comes to dispute resolution the institution of village headmen comes into play, as
they strictly follow rules and regulations. Some of these rules are also about marrying in their
own class. Their close relationships are puerely based on love and respect for each other. The
cultural history of bhils is also very dynamic and must of the emphasis was given to dance
and music. Ghomar being one the most famous dance form. Another famous dance form is
Than Gair which is the religious dance drama performed by the men in the month of
Sharavana. Apart form being good dancers they are talented in sculptured work also. Some of
them are beautiful horses, elephants, tigers, deities out of clay.
Kodava tribes
The kodava tribes has a vast historical representation as many people from the tribe played
for international hockey team and many people played for Olympics also and represented
India at international level in the field of hockey Kodava tribe has rich culture and hockey is
part of their hockey is celebrated as a festival among Kodava tribes many teams were formed
and they have a hockey match which the biggest hockey match in India The history of
Kodavas showcases that the people of this tribe have a soldier-like charm of their own for
their ancestors lived the life of warriors staying in jungles and fighting invaders to protect
their community the kodava dance which is know as “umma that” the women of this tribe
perform this dance in a group to the tunes of songs dedicated to Kaveramma the dance
performed by men known as bolak-aat in this dance from they represent their heroism and
gallantry the dance form show their rich history and their journey so far the dance is famous
all over India
The Kodava tribes people are the only people in India who can carry gun without licences as
this their part of their culture they do of their guns and they worship them as they say that
this protect us from all the threat as the guns are part of their culture and because of that
they can carry the gun One of the most popular festivals of Kodavas is ‘Kailapodh’. This
festival honours and worships the weapons carried by Kodavas to understand the tribes one
should know their living and culture
The kodava tribe males wear a thick black ‘Kupya Chale’ and a dagger ‘Peeche Kathi’ which
represents many from of its culture and its history the dress of kodava tribes are like warrior
females have a different take on how they drape their saris. They tuck their pleats at the
back unlike the traditional form of draping the saris across India. The Kodavas also have a
unique marriage ritual. Here, there is no priest who conducts the ceremony but the elders
perform all the activities. The sacred lamp with Lord Cauvery’s picture is considered the only
witness of a Kodava wedding. During a marriage, people of the community assemble to
have a wedding feast. Once the wedding ritual has completed, the attending men and
women folks dance and perform a tradition (Ganga Pooja) to the music played by a band.

Warli tribes
Warli tribes’ indigenous tribes of India they are situated in western India mostly in the
mountains and some part of the coastal regions of Gujarat and Maharashtra they are mostly
known for their art and culture they are also the largest and oldest tribes in India the art form
of warli tribes are famous all over the world the warli paintings are one of the oldest art in the
world it is claimed that the Warli carry on a tradition stretching back to 2500 or 3000
BCE. So the central motive in each ritual painting is the square, known as the "chauk" or
"chaukat", mostly of two types: Devchauk and Lagnachauk. Inside a Devchauk, we
find Palaghat, the mother goddess, symbolizing fertility. Significantly, male gods are unusual
among the Warli and are frequently related to spirits which have taken human shape. The
Warli painting is the cultural intellectual property of the tribal group it is one of the old art
forms in the world but with the chnge of time this art is getting over many people are not
performing the art there is a need to preserve this art and to make popular at the world level
many non profit organizations are doing work to register this art form and now the warli art is
registered under geographical indication under international property right internationally
warli tribes mostly lives in small groups and in villages there mostly occupation is agriculture
and fishing the warli tribes women wear toe-rings and necklaces as their married
The wedding in warli tribes are different and it reflect the modern wedding culture as in warli
tribes the wedding is done with the choice of women and the women is not forced for
wedding against its will in the warli tribes the groom has to pay the “bride price” were it
reverse the dowry it is said that the groom is taking the bride so the groom has to give bride
price which is reverse of dowry the art and culture is also seen in the modern art forms and in
the modern day cultures also the tribes are well known for their art all over the world

Conclusion
The historical representation of tribal community in India is very vast many tribal people has
contributed a lot to Indian culture and many of their arts are recognised all over the world
also the art of this tribal community represents their history and their journey till how they
evolve and how they changed with the passage of time many tribal community has
represented in many ways some tribes through sports some through art some through culture
and many more and to understand this tribal people one should know their living and their
culture and their living and their culture is reflects in today’s modern world also many tribal
people still lives the same and they still follows their own customs and tradition.

Recommendation
The tribal art and culture shows its history and it contributed a lot but many of the art are not
recognised by many people it should be open to the world how they live and how their
culture with the change of time their culture and their art is also as many tribal community
changed their religion and because of that the government should promote their art so that
more people will get to know about their art and culture as the historical representation of this
tribal community reflects in their art as the change of time many laws were made which
affects their customs and their living through which a normal person can understand the tribal
community in India there should be some changes in law so that their historical
representation also remain and many more people will get to know more about the tribal
community in India

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