Raj Gonds: Reflections in a Peacock Crown

Synopsis: The Raj Gonds, once rich and powerful rulers of a large area of central India, now live as a tribal group, outside the mainstream of Indian society, on lands rented to them by non-Gond landlords. Once a year, to remind themselves of their glorious past, the Raj Gonds celebrate the festival of Dandari. They reflect on the state of their lives and, during a week of rituals, dancing and drama, reenact the legendary marriage of the granddaughter of a god and a Raj Gond hero. They are able transcend their poverty by their faith in meditation and the power of the mind. During the Dandari festival one of the minstrels who specialise in remembering and interpreting tribal myths consoles a now nearly landless family by pointing to his forehead and saying ‘This here is the world of the Gods. Here in your mind. Here in the four caverns of your mind. This is the home of the Gods, the land of the Gods. All the things of the world live inside here’.
Series: Worlds Apart, Series
Language: English
Country: Great Britain
Medium: Film; Film. 16mm. sd. col. 55 min.
Technical information: Black-and-white / Sound
Year of production: 1982
Availability: Hire
Uses: Undergraduates. *RAI
Subjects: Anthropology
Keywords: Dandari; festivals; India; Raj Gonds

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