Social Documentary Photography – The Ethnicity of Arunachal Pradesh, India
A Wancho tribal with his child in the Pongchao Primary Health Center (PHC). The PHC is 8-bedded, has one Doctor, one Nurse and serves approximately fifteen thousand people.
Photographer Kunal Chakraborty is the Edge of Humanity Magazine contributor of this social documentary photography. From his project ‘The Unknown Arunachal‘. To see Kunal’s gallery of projects click on any image.
A Nocte Tribe woman with her child in the village of Noksa, Tirap District. The tribe is believed to belong to the Indo-Mongoloids racially, with distinct and varied culture, language dress and customs. If Naga legend is to be followed, they came down from Burma (Myanmar) through the Patkai Range. The Migration is presumed to have taken place between 7-8 century B.C. or earlier.
Women sitting inside an under-construction house in Khonsa Village, Tirap District. Men and Women from all households gather for the construction of any house in their locality. It usually takes 3 days to build a house. The women prepare the food that involves pork-meat and rice beer, known by the name of Kham in their local language.
Welcome to the land of the Noctes, the Wanchos, the Ollos, a land of chieftainship, a land vibrant with
lush green landscapes, rugged terrain, flowing rivers, diverse culture, a land where money extortion and
religious conversion gains precedence over the normal living conditions, a land where people have
learnt to live with a smile on their face despite some torrid situations, a land that is said to have the
highest number of regional languages in south Asia – Arunachal Pradesh.
Portrait of an Old Wancho Tribe Man.
A young Ollo Tribe boy sleeping on the floor of a house made of Bamboo. The tribe is spread across Myanmar and India. Few of them migrated from there and settled in regions across the Southern and Eastern part of Arunachal Pradesh.
A elderly couple of Wancho Tribe.
People belonging to the Nocte tribe making the roof of a house using Toco leaves in Khonsa village, Tirap district. The house making of the chieftain of a village involves people from all the household. It’s a 3 day long affair with feasts that includes roasted pork and kham (rice beer).
A seller in the Woman’s Market in Longding District.
A seller in the Woman’s Market in Longding District.
Rain clouds seen condensing in the valley formed by the Patkai Range. Most of Arunachal Pradesh is covered by the Himalayas. However, parts of Changlang, Lohit & Tirap are covered by the Patkai Range. The Patkai Range forms a natural international boundary with Myanmar and state boundary with Nagaland. Characteristically Patkai Range has deep valleys; the peaks of the Range are low as compared to those of the Himalayas and have steep slopes.
