A new website featuring the unique culture of Kodavas, documenting the customs and traditions of the community, has been launched. The website www.kodavas.in has been put together by journalist and author B.T. Bopanna.
“My main intention is to document the customs and traditions of Kodavas, a microscopic minority community, which is slowly losing its moorings in Kodagu. Most of the younger Kodavas, who have been brought up in cities like Bengaluru and Mysuru, are unaware of the essence of Kodava culture. I felt a website was the best medium to increase awareness of the culture and help preserve it”, Mr. Bopanna said in a statement.
Mr. Bopanna, who has also pieced together five websites including his first www.coorgtourism way back in 2005, said the new website will “come in handy for someone wanting to know about the rituals involved in ceremonies connected with birth, wedding, death etc”.
In order to ensure that the content in the website was authentic, Mr. Bopanna said he took the help of Boverianda Chinnappa and Nanjamma Chinnappa, who had researched and written about Kodava culture.
“Much of the content in the website has been taken from the book Pattole Palame, compiled in 1924 by Nadikerianda Chinnappa, where the Kodava language folksongs, proverbs and riddles are transcribed in Kannada script and Kodava customs and traditions are described in Kannada language. The Pattole Palame was translated into English by Boverianda Chinnappa and Nanjamma. I have also borrowed content from their book ‘Ainmanes of Kodagu’”, Mr. Bopanna said.
The topics covered in the website including the origin of Kodavas, their customs, related to birth, wedding, death and their festivals, the religion of Kodavas, Kodava language, Jamma land tenure, their passion for the game of hockey, guns in Kodava culture, their ‘ainmanes’ etc. Mr .Bopanna said the website also contains video clips related to some of the topics on Kodava culture.
The site has been designed by Bhakti Saraswat-Devaiah, he added in the statement.
