Pratap Chandra Hembram is all set to climb a mango tree at Taldiha village in Bijatala block of Mayurbhanj district to collect red weaver ant nests. He cuts the branches of the trees that nest the ants. Locally known as hau or kai, red weaver ant chutney is a delicacy relished by the Santal tribal community.
Once the branches are cut down, the nests are immediately collected and kept inside a robust sack. The red weaver ants are known for their painful bites, and often spray formic acid directly at the wound, resulting in intense discomfort.
The community is careful not to collect the entire ant colony. Mature ants are usually left to rebuild their nest. Only the larvae and adolescent ants are collected.
Kai is consumed in households, and also sold in the local weekly market to earn additional income.
Pratap and his fellow villagers return to the village after collecting the ants. Traditionally, men take the responsibility to collect these insects while women prepare the chutney.
Phulamani Marandi and her husband sit in front of the traditional Santal wall painting, stitching siali leaf plates which are used for cleaning the harvested ants and preparing necessary ingredients.
Cleaning the red weaver ants requires meticulous effort. Dried leaves, pebbles and mud particles are carefully removed using a thin bamboo stick.
Sambari Marandi plucks mint leaves, one of the major ingredients for preparing kai chutney.
Chita Marandi and other village women prepare the ingredients such as red chilies, mint leaves, garlic, salt and mustard oil used in making the chutney.
For preparing kai chutney, women often use a handmade stone grinder. Garlic, salt and mint leaves are ground first. After that the red weaver ant is added and thoroughly ground with the spices.
Generally, kai chutney is eaten along with finger millet gruel for breakfast. During lunch, kai chutney is also eaten with rice water known as pokhalo, a local delicacy in the region. According to the tribal healers, kai is also used as herbal medicine to treat cold, flu, cough, arthritis, anaemia, poor appetite, weak nervous system, ringworm infection and poor eyesight.
The lead image at the top shows grinding mint leaves with red weaver ants.
Photos and captions by Abhijit Mohanty, a journalist based in Bhubaneswar.
