ITANAGAR, Oct 22 � Bollywood stars like Deepika Padukone and Ranbir Kapoor maybe making a fashion statement by tattooing but tribals practising the art for centuries are now gradually abandoning it.
The girls of the Laju tribe in Tirap district of Arunachal Pradesh, who have been tattooing their body parts since ancient times, are now less inclined to adorn themselves with the tatoos, say locals.
Laju girls, who believe that tattoos bring good fortune, particularly wear diamond-shaped tattoos on the chin from age four to five and also draw lines on their cheeks and noses after they attain puberty.
Tattoos in the form of lines and dots are also worn on their chests, navels, thighs and other body parts to the accompaniment of religious rituals and ceremonies.
The art is, however, fast disappearing from the Himalayan State with modernity coming in a big way to reshape their lives. However, some enterprising youths in the State are now promoting tattooing by branding it as a fashion statement to arrest its decline.
Tadum Baja, 24, when asked about the tattoos on his arm, said it was hip and cool.
Tattooing of women here is a social custom. Girls are tattooed in a ceremony called Bong Juong which is basically done when a girl attains puberty.
In the Borduria, Namsang and Laptang areas of Tirap district, tattooing is done by a maternal uncle of the girl whereas in other areas it is done by an expert.
The designs of tattoos are generally big stars with cross lines joining the ends, said a tattoo expert. The Adi women have tattoo marks around the mouth, in the hollow of the upper lip and immediately under the nose.
The men in Arunachal Pradesh generally do not tattoo their faces or bodies. However, in the Laju, Tut and Dadom areas in Tirap district, some men carve tattoos on their face and chest.
The traditional tattoo patterns for females are �V�-shaped designs with circular ends on the face, a feather design on the chest and stomach and zigzag patterns on the neck.
Tattoos among Aka women have more variations with tattoos on their faces with artistic patterns of a straight line running below the forehead to the chin where it bifurcates into two directions.
It is different among the Singpho men, who tattoo their limbs, arm and shoulders slightly and the married women carve both legs from the ankle to the knee in broad parallel bands consisting eight bars alternatively of black and white.
However, the unmarried women of this community are not permitted to tattoo.
Tattooing in Apatani tribe is called �Tipe� and the designs are different in males and females. Women have perpendicular lines from the forehead to the tip of nose and five lines on lower chin which are vertically done and one horizontal line on the upper portion of the lower chin.
The children too are tattooed at the age of seven and are done repeatedly till the marks are clearly visible. The girls are tattooed on the forehead called �Tipe Tinyo�.
The paint used for tattooing is prepared from soot collected from burnt earthen pot in a green bamboo tube with boiled rice water along with a few drops of oil from skin of domestic boars in proportion.
Before using this paint it is stirred with the help of a bamboo stick. The tools for tattooing comprise three to four pieces of thorns known as �Iimo Tire� or �Tipe Tare� and are bound together in a small wooden handle just like an axe, said a tatoo developer.
�Tattooing is a very painful operation as the designs are drawn by pricking by thorns of cane,� says Mime Ering, a tattoo expert.
Another practice involves pricking of the portion first and then smearing the paint over it, she added. As they do not apply any medicine during tattooing, the skin swells with severe pain. Instead of medicines, they apply hot fomentation for a few days to relieve the pain. � PTI
ITANAGAR, Oct 22 � Bollywood stars like Deepika Padukone and Ranbir Kapoor maybe making a fashion statement by tattooing but tribals practising the art for centuries are now gradually abandoning it.
The girls of the Laju tribe in Tirap district of Arunachal Pradesh, who have been tattooing their body parts since ancient times, are now less inclined to adorn themselves with the tatoos, say locals.
Laju girls, who believe that tattoos bring good fortune, particularly wear diamond-shaped tattoos on the chin from age four to five and also draw lines on their cheeks and noses after they attain puberty.
Tattoos in the form of lines and dots are also worn on their chests, navels, thighs and other body parts to the accompaniment of religious rituals and ceremonies.
The art is, however, fast disappearing from the Himalayan State with modernity coming in a big way to reshape their lives. However, some enterprising youths in the State are now promoting tattooing by branding it as a fashion statement to arrest its decline.
Tadum Baja, 24, when asked about the tattoos on his arm, said it was hip and cool.
Tattooing of women here is a social custom. Girls are tattooed in a ceremony called Bong Juong which is basically done when a girl attains puberty.
In the Borduria, Namsang and Laptang areas of Tirap district, tattooing is done by a maternal uncle of the girl whereas in other areas it is done by an expert.
The designs of tattoos are generally big stars with cross lines joining the ends, said a tattoo expert. The Adi women have tattoo marks around the mouth, in the hollow of the upper lip and immediately under the nose.
The men in Arunachal Pradesh generally do not tattoo their faces or bodies. However, in the Laju, Tut and Dadom areas in Tirap district, some men carve tattoos on their face and chest.
The traditional tattoo patterns for females are �V�-shaped designs with circular ends on the face, a feather design on the chest and stomach and zigzag patterns on the neck.
Tattoos among Aka women have more variations with tattoos on their faces with artistic patterns of a straight line running below the forehead to the chin where it bifurcates into two directions.
It is different among the Singpho men, who tattoo their limbs, arm and shoulders slightly and the married women carve both legs from the ankle to the knee in broad parallel bands consisting eight bars alternatively of black and white.
However, the unmarried women of this community are not permitted to tattoo.
Tattooing in Apatani tribe is called �Tipe� and the designs are different in males and females. Women have perpendicular lines from the forehead to the tip of nose and five lines on lower chin which are vertically done and one horizontal line on the upper portion of the lower chin.
The children too are tattooed at the age of seven and are done repeatedly till the marks are clearly visible. The girls are tattooed on the forehead called �Tipe Tinyo�.
The paint used for tattooing is prepared from soot collected from burnt earthen pot in a green bamboo tube with boiled rice water along with a few drops of oil from skin of domestic boars in proportion.
Before using this paint it is stirred with the help of a bamboo stick. The tools for tattooing comprise three to four pieces of thorns known as �Iimo Tire� or �Tipe Tare� and are bound together in a small wooden handle just like an axe, said a tatoo developer.
�Tattooing is a very painful operation as the designs are drawn by pricking by thorns of cane,� says Mime Ering, a tattoo expert.
Another practice involves pricking of the portion first and then smearing the paint over it, she added. As they do not apply any medicine during tattooing, the skin swells with severe pain. Instead of medicines, they apply hot fomentation for a few days to relieve the pain. � PTI
