Traditional Practices

Wooden-mud-plastered house is very common among the Bodo community. The walls are made of bamboo and then plastered with mud. Some people may whitewash the walls but many don't. The roofs may be either thatched or tin, but thatched roofs are hardly seen.

Hasini is an agricultural tool to weed grasses and prepare the earth for sowing or planting new saplings. It is also used to gather pieces of dry straw and roots of weeds before burning/disposing them. It is made of wood & it has a long bamboo handle.

Sen is one of several kinds of fishing tools. It is made of bamboo and has several holes through which a fish can enter but cannot come out easily. Its model changes from place to place. Its use is decreasing fast due to non-availability of fish in water.

Indi shawl, prepared from mulberry silk by the Bodo women in villages. It is used mostly by womenfolk on special occasions. They sell them in the nearby weekly markets or to the whole-sellers. Its production is declining due to non-availability of silk.

The hand-woven mulberry silk fabric is very popular among the Bodo womenfolk and used in weddings and ceremonies. They create different designs of their liking on it and there are different qualities. The best qualities are in great demand.

Indi shawl, made from mulberry silk, is very popular among the Bodos & used in winter and special occasions. It is traditionally prepared with the help of handloom. Although readymade shawls are also imported, a Bodo woman would prefer the local made one.

Golden silk thread is made from the cocoons of mulberry silkworms. The cocoons are first boiled in water and then reeled with the help of a simple tool called 'thaokhri'. It is then spun with the help of a spinning wheel, thickened and dried.

Rice cake is one of several different kinds of traditional cakes. It is made with the help of steam by placing the rice flour and other ingredients on top of a long necked pot. Among ingredients are sesame, sugar, ginger, coconut powder, etc.

Preparation of thread from silkworm is one of the main economic activities of womenfolk. The cocoon is first processed in boiling water and then the thread is reeled with the help of a simple tool called "thaukhri".

Reeling of silk from mulberry silk is a common practice of Boro womenfolk. The practice of rearing silkworm and reeling of silk give economic relief to some families. But, at present, it has been a challenge for the womenfolk to thrive in this business.