Mysuru:  A one-day regional seminar on ‘Marriage practices among forest-based Scheduled Tribe communities in Karnataka’ was organised by Karnataka State Tribal Research Institute (KSTRI), Mysuru in association with Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs at Administrative Training Institute (ATI) premises on Lalitha Mahal road here yesterday.

About 100 researchers and tribal leaders participated in the day-long event.

Keeping away from tradition, the seminar was meaningfully inaugurated by Lakshmamma, an elderly woman in her late sixties of Hasalaru Tribal Community from Sagar taluk in Shivamogga, by lighting the traditional lamp.

Going nostalgic on the marriage practices during yesteryears in forests, Lakshmamma recalled that marriages among forest tribes used to be a four or five day elaborate affair.

She said that the members of both bride and bridegroom families used to participate in interesting and intriguing games. She added that marriage was incomplete without Kanagale flowers.

However, she observed that down the years when the marriage ceremony got shifted to choultries, the duration got scaled down to two days and bemoaned that many traditional rituals have vanished now but the essence was kept intact.

Delivering the keynote address Prof. T. Subramanyam Naidu, Retired Professor, Department of Anthropology, School of Social Sciences and International Studies, Pondicherry University, recalled that forest tribal marriages were always unique. He said that polygamy which existed among the tribes during yesteryears gradually got replaced by monogamy with advent of civilisation.

KSTRI Director Prof. T.T. Basavanagouda presided. Research officer H.N. Gayathri, Audit Officer Girish and others attended the seminar.