Mamatha MJ

This Grant was amicably cancelled based on reasons mutually agreed upon by the Grantee and IFA due to unavoidable circumstances.

Mamatha MJ is an assistant teacher at Government PU College (High School division) in Sullia, Dakshina Kannada district. She is an active teacher from that region and she has been encouraging students to participate in taluk and state level cultural competitions organised by state educational departments. Her participation in Kali Kalisu teachers training programme at Sullia aided her understanding of Bhutaradhane and triggered this project.  

Bhutaradhane or Bhuta Worship represents the cultural identity of the Tuluva community within the Tulu region in Karnataka. This is part of the Daiva cult - exclusive non-Brahminical worship practice - has been largely patronised by the non-Brahmin upper castes. The worship of a majority of the Daivas is confined to the respective caste to which the deity belongs, which further challenges notions of homogeneity. The Pardanas or oral literature and folk epics are an inseparable component of Bhutaradhane. It contains a variety of characters, settings, themes, descriptions of human activities, aspects of magic, miracle, description of universal themes such evolution of mankind and so on.

It is in this context that the project titled Bhutaradhane – Namma Bhuta (Bhuta Worship – Our Bhuta) intends to engage eighth grade students of Government PU College (High School division) in Sullia to explore and document Pardanas of the region. Many of these students are from the families of Bhuta performers. In this yearlong project the students will work closely with Bhuta performers as well as their family members to document the history of their Bhuta and the changes over time in practice and performance. This project also aims to provide a platform for students to experience a community practice outside their classrooms. Mamatha believes this engagement will enable students to explore into layered understandings of their family Bhuta practices. By documenting the Bhutaradhane and Pardanas with interviews of the community members, this project further aims to explore various aspects of identity, belonging, discrimination, self-expression, and legacy.

During the project students will draw, write, sing and perform this practice which has a direct impact on their critical thinking, writing skills, researching ideas and communication skills. Mamatha will conduct a series of workshops that will enable the students to develop an appreciation for Bhuta practices and encourage them to write.  The outcome of the project will be a culmination of drawings, writings, interviews and a performance from students and an essay from Mamatha for publication.

The deliverables from this project to IFA will be a copy of the publication, photographs and video documentation of the project.

This grant was made possible with support from Citi India.