Ritualization and Performance of Halumatha Kuruba Identity in Mailaralinga Jatre A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Award of the Degree of Master of Philosophy in English by Yashasvi M Maadesh (Reg. No: 1730033) Under the Supervision of Sushma V Murthy Associate Professor Department of English CHRIST (Deemed to be University) BENGALURU, INDIA December 2018 Approval of Dissertation Dissertation entitled ‘Ritualization and Performance of Halumatha Kuruba Identity in Mailaralinga Jatre’ by Yashasvi M Maadesh, Reg. No. 1730033 is approved for the award of the degree of Master of Philosophy in English. Supervisor: ______________________________________ Chairperson: ______________________________________ General Research Coordinator: ______________________________________ Date: 26 Feb 2019 Place: Bengaluru ii DECLARATION I Yashasvi M Maadesh hereby declare that the dissertation, titled ‘Ritualization and Performance of Halumatha Kuruba Identity in Mailaralinga Jatre’ is a record of original research work undertaken by me for the award of the degree of Master of Philosophy in English. I have completed this study under the supervision of Dr. Sushma V Murthy, Associate Professor, Department of English. I also declare that this dissertation has not been submitted for the award of any degree, diploma, associateship, fellowship or other title. I hereby confirm the originality of the work and that there is no plagiarism in any part of the dissertation. Place: Bengaluru Date: 26 Feb 2019 Yashasvi M Maadesh Reg No. 1730033 Department of English CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru iii CERTIFICATE This is to certify that the dissertation submitted by Yashasvi M Maadesh, (Reg. No. 1730033) titled ‘Ritualization and Performance of Halumatha Kuruba Identity in Mailaralinga Jatre’ is a record of research work done by her during the academic year 2017-2018 under my supervision in partial fulfillment for the award of Master of Philosophy in English. This dissertation has not been submitted for the award of any degree, diploma, associateship, fellowship or other title. I hereby confirm the originality of the work and that there is no plagiarism in any part of the dissertation. Place: Bengaluru Date: 26 Feb 2019 Dr. Sushma V Murthy Associate Professor Department of English CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru Head of the Department Department of English CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru iv Acknowledgements I thank Christ (Deemed to be University) for giving me an opportunity to pursue Master of Philosophy. My sincere gratitude goes to the department of English for their thoughtful comments and encouragement, also for the questions posed which motivated me to widen my research from various perspectives. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my guide Dr. Sushma V Murthy for her constant support for training me in the fields of folklore and performance, for her patience, motivation, and immense knowledge. Her guidance has helped me throughout in the process of writing my dissertation. My special thanks to my internal examiner, Dr. Bidyut Bushan Jena for his insightful comments. I extend my gratitude to the Wodeyar, Archakas, Goravappas, Goravammas and other devotees of Mailaralinga during my field work for providing me with required data and involving me in their traditional ritual practices. My sincere thanks to all my friends for their constant support in helping me to finish my research on time. It gives me great pleasure to recall the sustained support extended to all my research activities by my family. Yashasvi M Maadesh v Abstract Folk performance narratives are important cultural texts in the study of communities and indigenous identities. Lord Mailara is an incarnation of Lord Shiva generally worshipped by the shepherd communities. Kurubas being the shepherd community in the regions of Karnataka, their traditional occupation was shepherding and weaving. Halumatha Kurubas are a sub-sect of the Kuruba community. This dissertation examines Mailaralinga Jatre as a cultural text which ritualizes Halumatha Kuruba identity. It highlights the lives and history of the community through an analysis of Mailaralinga Jatre, an annual carnival which brings together individuals of the community through rituals such as Karanika and Pavada Utsava. It further tries to examine the varied roles performed by individuals and groups of different castes. The project approaches Mailaralinga Jatre as a historiographic narrative of cultural history and attempts to define the connection between folklore, identity and community consciousness historically from the tenth century to contemporary contexts of globalization. Discourse analysis, folklore and performance studies constitute the methodology of research. The chapters focus on the identity of Kuruba community and Halumatha Kurubas in specific through the performances of Karanika and Pavada Utsava and the impact of globalization on the tradition. Key Words: Mailaralinga, Jatre, Halumatha Kuruba, historiography, folk performance narrative, community consciousness, collective identity, globalization vi Contents Approval of Dissertation…………………………………………………………………… ii Declaration…………………………………………………………………………………. iii Certificate…………………………………………………………………………………... iv Acknowledgements…………………………………………………………………………. v Abstract……………………………………………………………………………………... vi Contents…………………………………………………………………………………….. vii Chapter 1: Introduction………………………………………………………………....... 1-22 1.1 Lord Mailara and Kuruba Community…………………………………………. 1 1.2 The Jatre Tradition……………………………………………………………... 3 1.3 Mailaralinga Jatre as a Folk Performance……………………………………... 6 1.4 Primary Text……………………………………………………………………. 8 1.5 Research Questions……………………………………………………………... 8 1.6 Research Gap…………………………………………………………………… 9 1.7 Objectives………………………………………………………………………. 9 1.8 Method and Methodology………………………………………………………. 9 1.9 Literature review……………………………………………………………….. 10 1.10 Outline of Chapters…………………………………………………………… 18 1.11 Scope………………………………………………………………………….. 19 1.12 Limitation……………………………………………………………………... 19 Chapter 2: Kuruba Identity and Performance in Mailaralinga Jatre ………………….. 23-39 2.1 Impact of Performance on Identity…………………………………………….. 23 2.2 Goravappas: Chief Performers of the Mailaralinga Jatre……………………. 24 2.3 Initial Rituals of Mailaralinga Jatre…………………………………………… 25 2.4 Karnika Utsava………………………………………………………………… 26 2.5 Pavada Utsava…………………………………………………………………. 31 vii 2.6 Gorava Kunitha………………………………………………………………… 33 2.7 Costume………………………………………………………………………… 35 2.8 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………….. 37 Chapter 3: Globalization and New Collective Identities in Mailaralinga Jatre ……… 40-55 3.1 Impact of Globalization………………………………………………………... 40 3.2 Jatre and a Sense of Community………………………………………………. 41 3.3 Trade and New Settlements of Kuruba Community…………………………… 42 3.4 Commercial Elements in Mailaralinga Jatre…………………………………... 42 3.5 Impact of Animal Rights Activism…………………………………………….. 44 3.6 Entertainment…………………………………………………………………… 45 3.7 Modes of Transportation………………………………………………………... 47 3.8 Security at the Jatre…………………………………………………………….. 48 3.9 Impact of Social Media…………………………………………………………. 49 3.10 Mailaralinga Jatre on Google and YouTube…………………………………. 51 Chapter 4: Conclusion ………………………………………………………………….. 56-60 4.1 Mailaralinga Jatre as Historiographic Resistance Narrative…………………... 56 4.2 Contribution……………………………………………………………………. 58 4.3 Limitations……………………………………………………………………... 58 4.4 Scope for Futher Research……………………………………………………... 58 4.5 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………… 59 Bibliography ……………………………………………………………………………… 61-66 Appendices ………………………………………………………………………………… i-xx Glossary ………………………………………………………………………………….. xxi-xxii viii Chapter – 1 Introduction “Folklore, as defined by W.R. Bascom, comprehends all knowledge that is transmitted by word of mouth and all crafts and techniques that are learnt by imitation and example as well as the product of such craft” (Datta 14). Folk performance narratives are important cultural texts in the study of communities and indigenous identities. They act as historiographic narratives which give voice and visibility to sub-sects of people hitherto left out from grand narratives of history. In the postcolonial discourse of subalternity, these narratives help recover stories which have fallen through the cracks of hegemonic ideologies such as caste, nation, nationalism and race by foregrounding performance of identities through rituals, folklore and collective celebrations such as Jatres (carnivals). This dissertation attempts to highlight the lives and history of the Halumatha Kuruba community through an analysis of the Mailaralinga Jatre, an annual carnival which brings together individuals of the community through rituals such as Karanika (prophecy) and Pavada Utsava (self-punishment). Through a close reading of the elements of performance, the project attempts to establish the connection between folklore, community consciousness and individual identities. 1.1 Lord Mailara and Kuruba Community Lord Mailara is an incarnation of Lord Shiva. The temple at Mylara is dedicated to the Lord Mailaralinga which is also known as Mailari. Mylara is located in the extreme south-western corner of Hoovina Hadagali taluk, Bellary District, Karnataka. Mailaralinga is the Kula Daiva (house deity) of the Gorava families who belong to the Halumatha Kuruba Community. Maadesh 2 Mailaralinga temples are located at different regions of Karnataka. For example, at Yadgir, Devara Gudda, Baglkot,