Red Clay, Leather & a Special Coating: How Gumla Artisans Make the Drum Jharkhand Dances To

The Mandar is a traditional musical instrument strongly connected with Jharkhand’s folk culture and tribal life. It is a drum whose lively beats help create the atmosphere at public celebrations. Its importance is cultural as well as musical because people have grown up hearing it across the state.

At weddings, festivals and village celebrations, musicians often play the Mandar with the drum hanging from a shoulder. Its sound accompanies singing and dancing. It is also heard during folk performances and community gatherings, making it part of shared social occasions rather than only a stage performance.

The Mandar’s role has now gained wider recognition through a Geographical Indication tag. The tag acknowledges its connection to Jharkhand, including its local red clay, leather and inherited making skills. This recognition may help more people learn about both the instrument and the artisans whose work makes Jharkhand’s celebrations possible.

The Mandar is widely used across Jharkhand’s cultural life. The article describes hearing it at weddings, festivals and village celebrations, and says its sound is familiar across the state. This suggests broad cultural use, not a tradition limited to one village or one community.

Its presence appears in several settings. People gather to sing and dance to its beats, while the instrument also features in folk performances and community gatherings. Artisans in Jarjatta, in Gumla district, make Mandars, but the instruments are heard beyond that village and across Jharkhand.

The article does not provide an exact number of Mandars, musicians or districts using them. It does show that the instrument has deep roots in folk culture and tribal life. The GI tag may increase awareness beyond Jharkhand, while helping preserve the instrument’s recognised connection with the state.

Mandar-making combines local materials with inherited craft knowledge. Artisans use red clay from the region to shape a hollow, slightly rounded drum body. They also use leather for the two drumheads. These materials give the instrument a clear connection to Jharkhand’s environment and traditions.

The two ends are not identical. One opening is smaller than the other, and leather coverings are secured with braided cords. Artisans then apply a special coating called Kiran to the smaller opening. The coating helps produce the Mandar’s distinctive sound, while the body and coverings create the structure needed for playing.

The process depends on practical knowledge learned through years of practice. Older family members often teach younger artisans the materials and techniques. The GI recognition acknowledges this combination of regional materials and traditional methods, which gives Jharkhand’s Mandar its identity.

A Geographical Indication tag recognises a product whose reputation, qualities or characteristics are closely linked to a particular place. It tells people that location matters to the product’s identity. Darjeeling tea is the example used in the article to explain this idea.

The Mandar’s GI tag recognises Jharkhand as the home of this traditional craft. Artisans use red clay from the region, leather and traditional methods passed through families. The instrument is also deeply rooted in Jharkhand’s folk culture, tribal life and celebrations. These links connect the Mandar to the state in several ways.

The application was led by Raidih Mandar Producer Company Limited, associated with artisans from Jarjatta village in Gumla’s Raidih block. The organisation applied in September 2021. The tag protects the registered geographical name from unauthorised use and gives the craft a recognised identity.

The GI tag gives the Mandar a recognised geographical identity. For buyers, that may make it easier to identify instruments associated with Jharkhand’s traditional craftsmanship. It also protects the registered geographical name from unauthorised use, strengthening the distinction between authentic Mandars and unrelated products.

For artisans, recognition could open access to buyers elsewhere in India and potentially abroad. More visibility may help people value the instrument not merely as a drum, but as the result of local materials, inherited skills and careful work. This could support the livelihoods of families who have maintained the craft.

The effect is not automatic. The article makes clear that a GI tag alone cannot guarantee more orders or better earnings. Artisans will still need help with marketing and reaching customers. Even so, the tag provides an important starting point for promoting authentic instruments and the people who make them.

Mandar-making has survived through family teaching and repeated practice. Artisans learn how to select and work with materials, shape the drum and finish it using methods developed over generations. This knowledge is practical, so it grows through doing the work as well as hearing instructions.

Jarjatta village in Gumla’s Raidih block offers a clear example. Artisans there make Mandars using red clay from the region, leather and braided cords. They shape the hollow body, cover its two openings and apply Kiran to the smaller one. These steps preserve both the instrument’s form and its distinctive sound.

The tradition is also tied to livelihoods and community identity. Families may inherit the craft from parents or grandparents, even when finding enough buyers is difficult. The GI tag recognises these inherited skills and could help the makers reach wider markets, provided they also receive support with marketing and customer access.

The Mandar’s sound begins with its hollow, slightly rounded body. Artisans shape this body from locally sourced red clay, creating the main chamber of the instrument. The clay construction also distinguishes the Mandar from many traditional drums that have wooden bodies.

Leather covers both ends of the body, and braided cords hold the coverings securely. The openings are different sizes, with one smaller than the other. This design gives the two ends distinct roles in producing the instrument’s sound. The article does not describe the exact acoustic process in technical terms.

A special coating called Kiran is applied to the smaller opening. It helps create the distinctive sound heard at Jharkhand’s festivals, folk performances and community gatherings. The clay body, leather coverings, different openings and Kiran coating work as one traditional design, learned and preserved by practising artisans.