Arts & Culture
For centuries, India has absorbed many cultural influences. From the Mongols to McDonalds, India has adopted and incorporated external culture into its own social fabric. Yet today, globalization is having a profound impact on India. Many of India’s famed artisans are being expelled from their workspaces by development projects. And as with cultures around the globe, much of India–young and old–is turning away from traditional culture in the face of global products. In this section, India Unheard community correspondents report on arts and culture.
With 9 different grains & blessings: an unusual festival for women in northern India
Padugada village, Dhanbad, Jharkhand | Bharti Kumari Karma and Jitiya festivals are very important to the Kurmi community. Unmarried girls pray for their brothers during Karma which is celebrated around August 11, while Jitiya, which is the occasion for married women to pray for the well-being of their children, follows...
The Heritage Ranchi Lake in trouble waters
Ranchi, Jharkhand | Nirmala Ekka Ranchi Lake (Bada Talab) is a man-made lake dug by the British in the heart of the city in 1842. The Ranchi Lake used to offer a beautiful and unique experience to the visitors. Located far away from the hustle and bustle of city life,...
A Boost for Lac Cultivation in Jharkhand
Kairodi Village, West Singhbhum District, Jharkhand | Xavier Hamsay A new scientific method of lac cultivation is picking up in Jharkhand, a state which contributed about 56% to India’s total lac produced in 2013-14. A local farmer, Gopi Chaki has been doing his bit to promote this method among tribal...
Respect Protect Worship : Nature
5th June 2015 | Gayarmunda Village, Deoghar, Odisha | Dashrathi Behera For those whose lives are so intricately tied up with the land, rivers and forests of a region, celebrating and worshipping nature is an integral part of their cultures. While on one hand rampant mining, badly planned dams and...
IndiaUnheard Turns Five
What would news look like if the very people who live a story produced it? What if each marginalised community had someone to document their stories and the issues they face from within the community? What if this news didn’t stop at reporting a story but also brought change to...
Unique Wedding Celebrations!
10th March 2015| Jangjir-Champa, Chhattisgarh| Vrinda Azad This video documents a unique cultural practice where young children are married-off in a community ceremony. The ritual has particular importance for young girls as they are supposed to participate in this ceremony before puberty. Community Correspondent Vrinda Azad, who is from Chhattisgarh...
A tribal festival in Jharkhand
Eind is a popular festival of the Munda tribal community in Jharkhand. Community Correspondent Warles Surin shows the celebrations and tells the history of the festival.
Unity in Diversity: The Siddis of Gujarat
Unity in diversity is a concept of “unity without uniformity and diversity without fragmentation”. It shifts focus from unity based on a mere tolerance of physical, cultural, linguistic, social, religious, political, ideological and/or psychological differences towards a more complex unity based on an understanding that difference enriches human interactions. A true image of unity in...