THE DANCING STILTS are put away in the rafters of the gotul (left) and the joy and laughter are fading. The unique co-ed dormitory system which the North Bastar Muria call their gotul, where social harmonies are learned without the patronising presence of adults, may soon be history. The joie-de-vivre that characterises these Koitor (Gond people) of Bastar has not yet been snuffed out by external pressures, religious, political or moral. It is still possible to see something of the finely tuned society they had developed for themselves. Like the Baiga to their north, and many tribal peoples of the world, their greatest peril lies in being severed from their intimate connection to the land and the natural world. Time, and the imperatives of the modern state, are not on their side.

For the young Koitor of North Bastar, the nights of harmony in their beloved gotul (left and top right) may soon be only a memory, as more conventional forms of education take over and pressures of the wider world make themselves felt. Although Bastar has seen far less misionary activity than other tribal areas of India - one reason tribal society here remains so strong - there are always powerful voices determined to tell other people how they should or should not live. Recent encroachment by outsiders is also having an impact, bringing not only destructive herds of non-productive cattle but bigoted disapproval of indigenous ways of life. (All photos: Lahar Singh, GreenGondwana) For a broader picture of life among the North Bastar Koitor over the past quarter century, visit our private gallery site Koitor.com.