The “Bison Horn” Muria: Making it “More Tribal” for a Folk Dance Competition in Bastar, Chhattisgarh

Abstract

This article examines the tribal stereotypes used in Bastar (Chhattisgarh) by some local institutions in their different representations and mise-en-scène of the ādivāsīs, the local authorities organizing " tribal " dance competitions, some local NGOs setting up workshops and selling " tribal handicrafts, " or the new government planning its tourism policy with perfectly arranged " tribal tours. " More specifically, it analyzes the aesthetic transformations of a Gond ritual into a dance competition promoted by the government. While the manipulation of symbols hides political strategies from some influential groups to incorporate or dissolve tribal people into the main (Hindu) society and aspire to a shared indigeneity, ādivāsīs also build their own image by appropriating the stereotypes projected on them through their musical performances. However , they are torn between Hindu nationalists and Maoists and caught in the crossfire between the " security forces " and the guerrillas, overwhelmed by the huge industrial issues behind this gory crisis. D espite their central position, the state of Chhattisgarh and its southern districts of Bastar 1 and Dantewada are little known to Indian people except for their image of a backward tribal area highly affected by Naxalism (that is, the Mao-ist guerrillas). These districts are indeed inhabited by a majority of tribal people (st, Scheduled Tribes) and local castes (sc, Scheduled Castes) that are considered " indigenous. " 2

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