Nilavoor Tribal Village: Life in Past Continuous

Nilavoor, in Yelagiri, is home to a large tribal population. While their indigenous culture is being subsumed into a more homogeneous modern culture, some aspects like art and architecture are still alive.

Traditional tribal huts in the region are built on a foundation of boulders and wooden logs. These huts take about 60 days to construct and follow a specific process of construction. Red soil is crushed using iron rods, soaked in water and then kneaded into dough using the feet. This dough is then rolled into spheres that are used to build the walls. The roof is assembled with dried lemon grass. These huts also have a large container, made of either clay or bamboo that serves as a granary.

The Nilavoor tribal village also has the Nilavoor Lake and the Kadhava Nachiyamman temple that is said to be over 200 years old. Nachiyamman is the traditional goddess of the tribal people here. Her temple is open to public every Friday.

The festivities of Mattu Pongal (the third day of Pongal) are still carried out traditionally. The villagers gather in the evening and perform local folk dances such as the Kummi Dance. The celebration is open to public and is truly a sight to behold.

Those who want to take a close look at the indigenous cultures of the country must travel to Nilavoor.

Good to Know

Location: 5.3 km from the Sterling resort