The New Indian Express 16.11.2009
Where tradition meets urbanity
They are miles from home but still rooted to their tradition and culture. Girideepthi Tribal Hostel in Thrikkakara offers ample opportunities to the 51 boys lodged there to keep alive their unique traditions. The facilities provided to the students are far better than those in the government run tribal hostels.
Dance and music form an integral part of the lifestyle of tribals. Passed on from generations through oral traditions these art forms encompass their philosophy of life. About how they live in tune with nature, the circling of the seasons, rituals and entertainment.
Belonging to the Mannar, Muthuvan, Malayar and Ulladan tribal sects from Wayanad, Idukki and Munnar, these students get an opportunity to showcase their traditional songs and dance on Talent Day, which is held every week. “Performing these dances takes us to our huts that are exposed to wild animals and the vagaries of weather,” said a student who has adapted to the fast life during his stay at the hostel.
Set up by the Mar Thoma Students’ Conference in 1984 with just four students, the hostel aims to provide better living condition to tribal children.
“Our aim is to integrate those living in the forests with the others in society,” said Fr James Thomas, who is in charge of the hostel.
Earlier parents were reluctant to send their children far away, but now they know the importance of education and that life in the city will help them become independent, said Joji, a tutor in the hostel. When asked if these students were losing out on their tradition and culture, Joji retorts, “We are not trying to change their culture. The students don’t benefit by living in the forests.” “If we leave them there, they might get involved in criminal activities, as most of their parents are daily wage workers and can’t afford to give them three meals a day. When the children come back from vacation, they are all skin and bone,” said Fr Thomas.
To help them fit into this technology- driven world, these students are given computer lessons.
‘Equip the children’, an NGO, provides them spoken English classes and etiquette is taught by Anitha James or ‘kochamma’, the warden of the hostel.
After completing school, most of them go into the construction field while a few return to their roots, but definitely equipped with education, confidence and skills to earn a living even as they keep their tradition alive.
