Badaga Calendar -2013

Third Month – NALLAANI [Mar-Apr]

First Month – KOODALU

Second Month – AALAANI

Like in any other calendar, there are 12 months and each month starts on the 10th of English Calendar month but for a few exceptions due to the fact that the month of Feb has 28/29 days [leap year].

I have attempted to make the Badaga Calendars for 2013 keeping in mind that a Badaga month should start on the 10^th of an English month as far as possible and also to ensure that the number of days in a month is either 30 or 31 days.

Since Badagas consider ‘Sovara’ (Monday) as the most auspicious and ‘holy’ day, they have attached a lot of importance to that day. Generally, no non-vegetarian food is taken on Mondays. This is also the weekly holiday and hence shown on top in red colour. No ‘Hola Gelcha’[field work] is usually done on ‘sovara’s in olden days.

The biggest festival of Badagas is day-specific and not date-specific. That is to say that this festival – HETHE HABBA – always falls on a Monday [after the first Monday of the thirteenth fullmoon]. By the way,full Moon (‘Pournami’ in Tamil) is ‘HUNNAVE’ and New Moon is ‘MUTTU’ in Badaga.

Badaga Months

1)Koodalu, 2)Aalaani 3)Nallaani  4)Aani 5)Aadire  6)Aadi 7)Aavaani  8)Perattaadhi 9)Dhodda Devige 10)Kiru Devige 11)Thai 12)Hemmatti

A book by ARI JAYAPRAKASH – great grandson of Rao Bahadur Ari Gowder

Kuru Genesis

(Paperback)

Rs. 1499 Rs. 1124 (25% Off) Inclusive of taxes

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Dear JP,

Kindly convey my hearty wishes to sisters of our community and others too of course, a very happy “WOMEN’S DAY”. Woman is an incarnations of Shakthi.She is God’s love in action. She looks with her heart and feels with her eyes. A woman is a bank where her family members deposit all their anger, hurt and worries.She is the cement that keeps her family together. HER LOVE LASTS A LIFE TIME.

Woman has Man in her..
Lady has Lad in her..
Madam has Adam in her..
Mrs has Mr in her..
Female has Male in her..
Princess has Prince in her..
Goddess has God in her..

ULTIMATELY MAN AND WOMAN ARE INTEGRAL PART OF EACH OTHER OF COURSE.

Woman symbolises dignity on Earth.She is the compendium of colossal endurance. She stands as an embodiment of virtue, repository of immaculate kindness and fountain head of gentility and generosity.

HAPPY WOMEN’S DAY TO THE GREAT WOMEN OF OUR NATION…!

  Kethorai Rajma

When you mention ‘Badaga’, the immediate thing that comes to mind, is a small but unique community of people, living in the Nilgiri Hills, popularly known as the Blue Mountains, in South India. Undoubtedly, they are one of the original hill tribes like the Todas, Kothas or Kurumas. But the shear development in many social [and  specially educational] fields by the Badagas in the last two hundred years or so, has made many researchers deny the tribal status. They, probably, are still stuck with the mind set that a tribe has to be shy, illiterate, undeveloped and living far away from the main stream population. Badagas do not fit into this groove.

Then, these ‘learned’ people, probably to get their doctorates, coined a new term – PRIMITIVE HILL TRIBES. It suited their purpose of not including Badagas in the PHT of the Nilgiris – Todas, Kothas, Kurumas and  Erulas.

But a few of the old and ‘original’ researchers found enough and more in Badagas, ‘in their origin, customs, rites, rituals. life style and language’ to write and record extensively about them. I would give the maximum ‘credit’ to Professor Paul Hockings in this respect. The very fact that he is still writing many books on and about Badagas [his latest book will be published in a few months] shows his interest. – Wg Cdr JP

Dr.R.K.Haldorai,M.A.,M.Ed,M.O.L.,PhD
[haldoraitamil@gmail.com]

“A tribe, as we find in India is a collection of families or group of families, bearing a common name, which, as a rule does not denote any specific occupation, generally claiming common descent from a mythical or historical ancestor and occasionally from an animal, but in some parts of the country held together rather by the obligations of blood-feud than by the tradition of kinship, usually speaking the same language, and occupying, or claiming to occupy, a definite tract of country. A tribe is not necessarily endogamous” (The Imperial Gazetteer of India vol-1: 308).“The use of the word ‘tribal’ follows South Asian usage, refers to a type of societal organization and does not imply a lack of sophistication or of economic well- being. It usually does imply a certain amount of isolation in the past, if not the present. In this context ‘tribal’ contrasts with ‘caste’ as one of the major organizing principles of South Asian society. The Nilgiri plateau of extreme Western Tamil Nadu was almost totally isolated until the nineteenth century. It developed unique cultural complex of its own with at least four Dravidian languages spoken there. They are Toda, Kota, Badaga and Irula”( McAlpin 1981 :19).1As the Nilgiri hill is the home land for Badagas for a long period, the hill tribe status for these people is obviously natural one. There is no doubt that their history goes back to very early period. Since then they are identified with the Nilgiri hills alone. Their origin is buried among the secrets of the past. Continue reading →

The lives of Badagas and  Kothas are intricately connected from time immemorial. This may be due to the fact that both are considered as original tribes of the Nilgiris along with Todas.

Kotha music is, thus, an integral part of Badaga festivities in olden days. The nearby Kotha musicians were invited to almost all functions in any hatti – Badaga village.

Their ‘Harakolu’ music was the start of any dance, since it is so beautiful and rhythmic. When the dancers, generally male, wear ‘Dhodda Kuppacha – Big Garments’ and dance in circles [and going around in ‘circles’] with these garments ballooning out, it is a shear joy to watch.

The following video uploaded in youtube is by GRSARAVANAN7

The following pix was taken by me when I was on my way to Ebbanadu from Peddhuva.

Sudharsan Vasudevan [Anikorai] informs that this is “Thirichigidi Mandhu”

photo by : Wg Cdr Bellie Jayaprakash

Happy Birthday to Bella gowder of Jakkadha

(photo by Maya Kumar in facebook)

[The post I had written earlier- four years back]

There are a few elderly Badagas spread among our Hattis and Cities who are so well informed about us. May be due to their age or the personal interest and individual atrributes, they know about our origin, customs, culture or anything connected and concerning Badagas. It is a shear blessing to meet them.

Jakkada Bella Gowder is such a wonderful person. Talking to him is an honour and pleasure and needless to say, highly educative. It was indeed my good fortune when he dropped in at my place in Bangalore, though for a very short while. Discussing about [Jakkada] Hethe Amma or about Rao Bahadur Ari Gowder when he was a student of Madras Christian College, Madras in the 1930s, he becomes very exited and emotional. My only regret was that I could not spend more time with him.

He is 92 years younger and is in good health and does not like to have any artificial help like hearing aids etc. He moves on his own and politely declines when somebody tries to help him climb down the stair case or get into the car.

May God bless  him with many more active years!

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As I have mentioned elsewhere, Prof.Paul Hockings should be credited for doing a lot of research on Badagas [and Nilgiris]. He has published many books on both. Though priced on the higher side, his book ‘ A Badaga – English Dictionary’ written along with Raichoor is a must read for all Badagas.

(See the page on Research for more)

So, it was a pleasant surprise to receive an email from him informing about his new books.