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The Niyamgiri hills of Odisha’s Rayagada and Kalahandi districts are home to the Dongria Kondh tribe. The women of this tribe are renowned for their weaving prowess and for creating a unique embroidered shawl known as Kapdaganda. This handloom product is intrinsically interwoven with the culture of the Dongria Kondh community.
The shawl features handcrafted designs made with diagonal satin stitches. These designs consist of detailed geometrical patterns, arranged in horizontal color-coded rows. The motifs primarily consist of lines and triangles, symbolizing the significance of mountains and forests to the community. They are skillfully embroidered onto a coarse, off-white fabric using red, green, and yellow threads.
Kapdagandas are primarily created by newlywed brides for their husbands and sometimes by young women for lovers. They are often gifted by family members, such as a boy giving one made by a family member to a girl he loves. The art of embroidery, which is a complex skill, is learned by Dongariya Kondh women from a young age and passed down through generations. Traditionally, the embroidery is taught by the father's sister to young girls in the family. During festivals, women wear Kapdagandas around their waist and neck, using them as a decorative stole. Men also wear these shawls around their necks, featuring a distinctive orange strip down the middle. It is interesting to note that even though the Kapdaganda is such an important cultural object for the Dongria Kondhs and is tied to their traditions and festivals, there is no historical evidence of its origins.
"What we know is that Kapdaganda was worn by community members during their visit to the Jeypore King’s court for providing vegetables, fruits, and other things collected from the forest by them. The practice of using the Kapadaganda cloth by the Dongrias started during the period of King Vikram Dev of Jeypore in the mid-17th century."
A Dongria Kondh tribal leader, in an interview with The New Indian Express.
The tribe relies primarily on slash-and-burn agriculture in the surrounding forests and mountains to sustain themselves. Their main source of income is the sale of these shawls. A major hindrance to earning their livelihood is the rampant illegal replication of their Kapdaganda designs which are then sold on e-commerce websites by various businesses and individuals.
Since last year, the leaders of the Dongria Kondh community have been applying for a geographical indication (GI) tag for the Kapdaganda shawls. Once granted , it would put an end to all forms of forgery and help boost the economy of the community. Currently, the Dongariya Kondh Development Agency (DKDA) provides aid to the tribe. This assistance involves aiding them in the sale of shawls, enabling them to make a livelihood while safeguarding their cultural legacy.
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