MAJULI

MAJUli is a charming island on the Brahmaputra river in Assam. It was once the largest river island in the world but is slowly losing its land mass to erosion. With little development in this region, it manages to retain its the pristine beauty of dense bamboo groves, meadows and water bodies. There is an abundance of food and nature provides materials to build their shelter. Most of the inhabitants belong to the Mishing tribe of Mongoloid stock and the others are Deoris, Sonowal-Kacharis and Mataks. There are no polluting industries so the air is clean and people, though by and large poor, seem happy. A monk mentioned, “there are many police stations but no need to visit as there is no conflict that cannot be resolved locally. There is a hospital with empty beds. The air is clean and food, all grown locally is organic so no illnesses”.

The island is flooded regularly, and people on this island are always prepared for the rising waters of the mighty Brahmaputra river. Houses are built on stills with local materials, mostly bamboo and thatch, the walls are plastered with mud mixed with dung and straw for strength. The floor is made from bamboo stripes, so the rising water which may flood the homes can recede easily. The house has many raised platforms where the meagre belongings can easily be shifted when it is flooded. Each house has a boat handing below the floor for easy access. The regular floods cause some damage to the homes but there is no loss of life, human or cattle, as they are always prepared. Majuli’s is a balanced ecosystem where people have learnt to live in harmony with the environment.

Women are very hard working and after completing all their household chores, they are either spinning or weaving. They are very skilled weavers and create the most amazing extra-weft patterned fabrics for their personal use. Until recently, they grew their own cotton, spun this into yarn and wove fabrics for their clothing needs. Many families cultivate the eri muga or mulberry cocoons and spin the yarn to weave shawls for local use. With an abundance of natural resources, there are many plants growing in the wild that are sourced to dye their fabrics.

I spent a day with a dynamic social activist, Jamini Payeng, who belongs to the Mishing tribe. Jamini desires to make a difference in the life of the women of Majuli. She has become their market link, taking their textiles to craft bazaars around the country. The interactions at these exhibitions has exposed her to market trends but she also realises that exhibitions alone cannot sustain nor can they afford the dead stock, leftovers after an event. What they need is regular orders.