Kudubi Folklore

Konkani speaking communities cover a few tribal people like Kudubis. Kudubis or Kudmis settlements are found in North Kanara and South Kanara regions. They speak in a Konkani dialect which has rich linguistic elements. Kudubis leave in Vaadem वाडें (wards) and have their own internal village level hierarchy. In Bajpe they have one gurikar (village head) house under which 18 wards are covered spreading from Shakthinagar to Edapadav. These kudubi people celebrate their age-old tradition of with utmost zeal and devotion. Holy day, which is the concluding day of their week’s long celebration of house-to-house visit and dance to the tune of gummat. The gummat is a primitive variety of folk instrument used by a few selected communities. On the holy day the ritual begins in the afternoon and continues till night. And during the time troupes coming from all neighboring wards play gummat naach and thoniya khel in turn one after the other. And the main deity Mallikarjuna and Mahammayee are worshipped in a grand manner with procession etc. In all their folk dances the complex footsteps and lengthy verses of Ramayana epic are rendered orally, transmitted from generation to generation, no scripts or books, is a wealthy folk ritual in real sense.