ANATONGRE (India): Sitting in his out-of-the-way village, an old man quietly sorts strips of cane for weaving baskets. Villagers say he is nearly 100 years old, but still weaves the finest baskets around.
The man does not look up when a stranger enters his spare kitchen to watch him work. The tattoos on his body tell the stories of his tribe, and the furrows on his brow tell of struggle and survival.
This is the world of the Tikhir Naga, an ancient people living in the dense forests along India’s border with Myanmar. Numbering less than 50,000, they are a people isolated not only from the rest of India but also from other Naga tribes.
While other Naga groups are grappling with the challenge of preserving their culture amid growing Western and mainstream Indian influences, the Tikhir social fabric has managed to survive more or less intact.
Christianity replaced animism as the primary faith of the Tikhirs in the late 1950s, but old beliefs and practices are still followed. Many still rely on herbs, massage therapy and other forms of traditional medicine instead of making the long walk to the nearest hospital.
This year, the Tikhirs marked the 25th anniversary of their main student organization, the Tikhir Student Union, with festivities that also gave them a chance to celebrate their identity and display their strength and unity.
Members of an armed youth movement — the Shield of the Land, created to protect Tikhir territory from incursions by other tribes — mingled with dancers in traditional attire, kicking up a dust cloud so thick it blocked the view of the 12,552-foot Saramati mountain.
While deeply proud of their heritage, the Tikhirs also care deeply about modern education.
“My tribespeople reacted as if something great had happened and rejoiced a lot,” 30-year-old T.L. Kiusumong said of the response when he became the first Tikhir to earn a master’s degree in 2001.
“For us, every single person counts,” said Kiusumong, who is now a government official.—AP
