Freshly plucked mahua flowers taste somewhat like grapes and their strong fragrance can reach long distances. Mahua trees, some of which are more than 20 years old, make the region’s landscape look gorgeous.
An adivasi family catches a break on a hot summer day. As the process of collecting mahua can be long and backbreaking, families usually take food and rest breaks at regular intervals.
Usually the traditional bamboo tokris (basket) are used to store fresh mahua flowers during collection. Sometimes families do use plastic containers too. Mahua collection starts early in the morning and continues till noon.
A family collects mahua in Abujhmar region of Bastar sub-division in Chhattisgarh. Once collected, the flowers are cleaned and dried in the sun. Once fully brown in colour, mahua can be stored for months.
In many places, controlled burning is carried out for easy identification of mahua flowers from other vegetation. But sometimes this also creates a risk of forest fire in the region.
At some places, mahua nets make the collection easy. It also saves families the hassle of cleaning up the flowers.
Mahua is dried inside homes wherever there is open space. Dried raw mahua tastes like raisins. Besides liquor, mahua is used for different delicacies and has medicinal and nutritional properties.
Photos and text by Deepanwita Gita Niyogi
Deepanwita is a journalist based in New Delhi. An alumna of Asian College of Journalism, she writes about rural development, gender and climate change.
