Bhubaneswar
Come Phalguna, some of Odisha’s villages metaphorically pull up their drawbridges. But it’s not a battle they are preparing for by isolating themselves — it’s a festival!
The Dongria Kondh tribals of villages like Nuagaon and Garbikiya in Kandhamal district celebrate the popular Podha festival in February-March with new clothes and generous quantities of Salap Rasa (drink prepared from the juice drawn from the Salap tree). However, outsiders are a big no-no during the seven-day affair.
The presence of outsider or trespasser is considered ‘ominous’. So, the peripheries of villages like Garbikiya are tightly sealed to shield the exuberance and exhilaration of the festive days against disturbing intrusions.
Before the main event, the sacrifice, youth clad in ‘gamchchas’ and the ladies draped in colourful saris can be seen dancing and enjoying Kui songs. Kui is the dialect of the Dongria Kondh tribe. The Dongria Kondh tribals believe buffalo sacrifice ensures bumper crops, good health and protection against natural disaster
An auspicious day and time are fixed for a ‘Podha’ (buffalo breed) to be sacrificed. The Dehuri (pujari) observes some rituals to satisfy Penu, the earth goddess, before the sacrifice.
“When the rites and rituals are wrapped up, the sacrifice is chopped into pieces to be distributed among the devotees. Then everybody cooks and savours the pieces as ‘prasad’,” Akhaya Kumar Karna, the president of Zilla Paramparika Lok Kalakar Sangha, tells The Indian Tribal.
