Jata - Matted Hair Removal Movement

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Knowing more about the problem and movement

The Matting of hair is an age-old health and human rights problems in southwestern India that qualifies as a harmful cultural practice. When a female of any age shows the emergence of matted hair, the family, and community tags it as a deific phenomenon. The religious-based coloring prohibits the removal of matted hair and leads to either secretively done devadasi dedication or ritual obligation for the whole life. The underlying health and human rights violations due to the matting of hair have remained implicit and underreported due to the deification of matted hair as a religious-based symbol. Across the globe, there are distinct cultural interpretations of the matting of hair. One of the most oppressive cultural practices the devadasi custom carries matted hair as its integral religious based symbol. There have been many devadasi dedications due to matted hair. Due to its religious-based coloring and superstitious beliefs, the health and mental health ad well as development related problems of affected women and their families have not been visible. While devadasi custom has been legally banned, some of its major sub-practices such as the matting of hair as still seen. In this book, a review of the global literature has been presented to outline the historic status of the problem of matting of hair, allied beliefs and superstitions, and the treatment options that are being followed. This book is a primer of the problem of matting of hair in southwestern India, Karnataka and Maharashtra. Relied on a comprehensive case study, ethnography, and phenomenological research on the matting of hair, this book is useful for gender and cultural researchers, anthropologists, health and human rights researchers and activists, medical practitioners and students, nonprofit and CSR professionals, academicians, gender researchers and activists, students of religion studies, women’s health advocates, career bureaucrats, elected representatives, policymakers, journalists, and professionals that are concerned about hair health and overall health and well being of women, particularly from the depressed social and indigenous groups.

Authored by Dr Govind Dhaske ( First Published on Amazon KDP)