The half clad attire of ‘Bonda Women’ goes back to ‘Hindu Epic’, ‘The Ramayana’. To make the topic more vivid, let me go to the Indian mythology. Centuries back in the period of Rama which is known as the ‘Satya Yug’ by the Indians, King Dhasarath, Rama father under the pressure of one of his queens. Kaikai had ordered Rama to leave the place and live for fourteen years in the forest. Rama with his wife Sita and younger brother Lakshman did go to the forest and kept wandering from one place to another. In their journey through the forest they reached Southern Odisha.
The ‘Savari River’
The legend goes that the three royals resided in the caves of ‘Gupteshwar’ where Rama worshiped lord Shiva. Once while Sita was bathing in river Savari, some Bonda women by chance came to the bank of the river on other side and sniggered at her. This angered ‘Goddess Sita’ and she cursed them saying that, “You shall remain nude lifelong and shall have hairless heads”. They repented for their act and pleaded her to take back her curse. In return tore a piece of cloth from her sari and threw it at them which the grabbed and put it round their waist. This waist cloth is known as ‘ringa.’
It is the modern ‘Bonda women’ that has challenged this cursed and wiped it out. Today they wear clothes and deck themselves with jewellery from the head that has black hair to the anklet that decks their feet.
About the Author
Anindita Sengupta is an Indian based at Rourkela, Odisha. She is a volunteer who contributes to the Urunji blog. She loves writing and sharing ideas. Anindita has written many articles among them ‘The Nectar of Southern Odisha‘ which is featured on the Urunji blog
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