14/04/2026
The Gadaba community of Odisha trace their origins to a place called 'Gada' near the Godavari river, from where their ancestors migrated to Similigida, Lamptaput, Baipariguda, Nandpur and Jeypore in Koraput district, settling in small forest hamlets according to clan and subgroup.
Gadaba culture is deeply connected to 'prakruti', or the natural environment. For generations, the community was self-sufficient and cultivated their own food and prepared their own fabrics. Weaving held particular significance: a girl reaching puberty was expected to know how to weave, and the ability to produce two pieces of kerang was a criterion for marriage. Women collected plants from the forest, spun fibre into thread, and wove it into two pieces of cloth known as the kerang, worn to cover the body. The process was lengthy and labour-intensive.
Today, with textiles readily available in local markets, women have largely stopped weaving, finding it easier to buy cloth than to make it from fibre. While the kerang remains a symbol of community pride, the tradition of making it has been lost over time.
Image: Samari Sisa wearing her jewellery.
From the module ‘Kerang: Bark Cloth of Gadaba Adivasis’ by Pankaja Sethi, published at https://www.sahapedia.org/kerang-bark-cloth-of-gadaba-adivasis
