Malkangiri: Traditions of tribal communities have always caught the fancy of ‘urban people for their distinction and exclusiveness.
The wedding ceremony in tribal Koya community living in this district is one such occasion that generates a lot of interest across all sections of society.
According to the practice, the families of neither the bride nor the groom invite their kin to the function. The news of marriage spreads in the area automatically.
The bride’s family and a few relatives arrive at the groom’s place a day before the marriage. They pick up an open space near groom’s village where they start a song and dance programme. Thousands of men and women of Koya community of nearby areas throng to the place as soon as they hear the beats of drums. All irrespective of age get involved in Dhemsa dance to celebrate the occasion.
On the other hand, the bride and her family members wait under a tree till the sunset. Bride’s friends give her a bridal get up in the evening and she was taken to the groom’s place in a procession. The incomplete song and dance programme resumes again at the groom’s house. It continues whole night following which the groom’s family welcomes the bride and her family into their home.
The tribals of nearby areas return home next morning. Significantly, the people who take part in the wedding ceremony are not treated with a community feast.
However, during the day the party is served Landa, a kind of intoxicant, which is brought in several earthen pots by the bride’s family. It is a sort of drink prepared from the paste of fermented paddy sprouts and served in leaf bowls.
This is said to be the major expense in a Koya marriage.
The tribals also do not need a Brahmin to solemnise the wedding as a quack or at best a priest can complete the ritual with the help of a few grams of rice, a morsel of turmeric and vermillion.
Only a few close relatives are given a feast at the groom’s house at the marriage that continues for three days.
One such wedding was witnessed Tuesday at Matapaka involving Vinayak Madkami of the village who married Lachhmi Padiami, daughter of Kodlimetla , 15 km from the groom’s village.
With the beginning of Dhemsa dance on an open field, small traders were seen putting up their stalls for a brisk business. Several people of Koya community in Chhattisgarh also took part in the programme and were seen dancing in their traditional white attire and holding weapons, a report said.
PNN
