Mahua Mahotsav

Mahua Purana

After reading my three successive blogs on mahua recipes Jailaxmi R. Vinayak, a friend applauded, tongue-in-cheek, my Mahua Purana! I got her message loud and clear; but why blame the blogger; for it all began with MP Department of Culture inviting me to Mahua Mahotsav, held recently at Bhopal to celebrate the 11^th Foundation Day of the iconic Tribal Museum; and the Mahua laddoos I bought at twenty-five rupees a piece, almost as pricey as Ferrero Rocher, from Mansaram, a Korku tribal from Harda, MP. I was much impressed with Mansaram’s savvy business skill for he also sold me half-a-kilo of dried mahua for fifty rupees though the MSP for a kilo is thirty rupees only. Having spent my good money on mahua, why shouldn’t I write a few pieces on this hardy, drought-proof gift of nature which provides food, drink, fodder, fuel, medicine, timber, and is an icon of tribal culture? Why, I may someday even write a Mahua Mahapurana!

Phagun Puni: Gundi Chhada

The puja platter offered to Mahalakshmi on Phagun Puni (Phalguna Purnima), celebrated in western Odisha as Gundi Chhada, contains a mahul kunji - a stem of mahua with tiny buds which will flower in due course, a stalk of mango blossom with mangoes no bigger than desi chana, a bunch of palsha flowers (Flame of Forest), char - tiny black-berries from a thorny bush in the forest, roasted chana, sakarpatti (a sweet condiment) or a piece of gud. When a child, I wondered why, since only the last three items were edible.

Now I know a little better. Phalguna Purnima is Lakshmi Jayanti, the birthday of Mahalakshmi, the Goddess of plenty and prosperity; Mother Earth is Lakshmi incarnate, and Gundi Chhada is observed as a Thanks-giving-in-advance and to seek her blessings for the bounties of nature - mahua, mango, and other fruits and flowers which nourish and sustain life.

A Sacred Tree

In Bastar and other areas where jhum cultivation is still practised in remote jungles, to clear a field to grow maize or millets the tribals burn down mature teak trees which are of no use to them, but they never harm mahua, mango, or tamarind - trees that gives food.

Why do the tribals never cut down a mahua tree, but worship it? Because Mahua trees save lives. Before the advent of famine relief, rural employment guarantee programme, and free or subsidised distribution of foodgrains, mahua (also mango and other edible forest produce) saved lives as during the calamitous famines of 1866, 1874, and 1897 in the Santal Parganas and other parts of the country. Mahua was food first, and liquor later if there was a bountiful crop.

Revd. J.M. Macphail in his book Santalia (1904) mentions the economic significance of mahua tree for the tribals.

Image: Sambalpuri Handloom Saree Motif - Mahul Benta (Picking Mahua Flowers)

Photo Credit: Susmita Mishra, a friend; Photo edited by the blogger with Microsoft Designer.

Mahua Badnaam Hui…..

Mahua badnaam hui, angrezi tere liye, that's my slogan for the campaign against videshi!. Those traders from a tiny island deliberately vilified mahua and India’s traditional alcoholic beverages, and ruined the indigenous production and distribution system. Foreign Liquor, imported from Britain, where else, became the respectable drink for WOGs, and everything else was despised as desi daru – vile, unhygienic, dangerous, and a threat to public health and morality. Even today, UK is the biggest exporter of alcoholic beverages to India!

India’s authorised retail outlets sell IMFL (Indian Made Foreign Liquor, an oxymoron!), and FL (Foreign Liquor), but not traditional country liquor. Why are alcoholic beverages made in India from raw materials produced in India called ‘Foreign’? To perpetuate the prejudice against indigenous products? Do the videshis own patent for the process of brewing and distillation, used by tribal and forest peoples of India since millennia? How about neera, toddy, and salfi – all tapped from palm trees and brewed for free by the sun; and mahua, handia, feni, chhang, and others distilled in India since ages, long before the Romans brought civilisation to England? UK’s national dish ‘Chicken Tikka Masala’ is an export from India, but do they call it British-Made Indian Chicken Tikka Masala?

Made in India

Why are we not proud, but embarrassed about Products of India. If the Scots go ga-ga for their whisky, the Irish for Guinness Beer, the French for Champagne, the Mexicans for tequila, the Japanese for sake; why are we apologetic about Mahua, Feni, Kesar Kasturi, Toddy, Salfi, and others?

The Bombay Abkari Act, 1878 regulated the production, sale, and consumption of alcoholic beverages, including mahua and other indigenous spirits.  The Mhowra Act, 1892 specifically targeted mahua flowers, prohibited both the distillation of liquor from mahua flowers and the collection of these flowers. As a result, indigenous communities resorted to covert brewing, and the quality of mahua liquor declined during this period.

The British usurped monopoly position for manufacture and trading in salt. They ruined India’s handloom cottage industry, proud supplier of fine silk and cotton to the world till 17^th - 18^th CE, to create opportunity for mill-made cloth from Britain. They vilified India’s indigenous liquors to open the market for imported liquors. For the nation of traders, their business interest was paramount.

Even today, the state governments promote sales of foreign liquor by perpetuating the stigma against India’s traditional alcoholic beverages, since for most states in India, revenue from liquor sales constitutes a significant portion of their overall tax revenue. The total amount collected from state excise by all states in fiscal year 2022 was ₹2,05,363 crore.

And the goons of liquor contractors who run the theka beat up tribals brewing mahua for their personal use - an activity permitted under the law!

Mond, Mohulo, and MAH

Try Mond or Mohulo, made by tribals and promoted by MP government; or Desmond Ji, manufactured by Mr Desmond, an entrepreneur; or MAH, manufactured in France from mahua flowers imported from India under a joint Indo-French initiative by Bastar Cooperative and MAH.

Incidentally, not all videshis condemned mahua. Here is a quote from The Garden of Life by Naveen Patnaik:

‘Those Europeans who persevered and managed to acquire a taste for mahua liquor echoed the judgment made by Forsyth in his book The Highlands of Central India (1871): “The spirit when well made, and mellowed by age, is by no means of despicable quality, resembling in some degree Irish whisky."’

Heritage Liquor

Rajasthan amended its Excise Act in 1998 to promote Kesar Kasturi and other heritage wines. Government of MP enacted Heritage Liquor Act, 2022 to facilitate production of mahua from approved distilleries operated by tribals. MP Tourism serves in its restaurant bars mahua liquor - Mond and Mohulo, manufactured and bottled hygienically by tribals of Alirajpur and Dindori respectively.

Chhattisgarh, Goa, and a few other states have also launched similar promotional regime. This is a welcome development, and will begin a process to restore the lost status of India’s heritage liquors.

MP Government should obtain GI Tag for Mond and Mohulo. Other States may get GI Tags for their heritage liquors

Government of India should file for Patent for the traditional mahua distillation process practised by tribals before MAH of France or any other Company does, like the mischievous failed attempt by a US Company to obtain Patent for the curative properties of haldi (turmeric), a daily-use kitchen spice and one of Grandmother’s Home Remedies for intestinal worms in India.

Mohua Mahotsav as World Tribal Heritage Day

India should host World Tribal Heritage Day to celebrate the life and culture of tribal and forest people. The major tribal states should each pick up an Annual Day (Mahua Mahotsav on Jun 11 in MP, for example), and host an event showcasing their cuisine, craft, song and dance, maybe on the lines of Oktoberfest  in Munich, Germany.  

Heritage liquor may also be showcased without the event being a crass liquor marketing event. Non-tribals of our own country, and tourists would get an opportunity to learn about the life and culture of tribals which have evolved over the millennia by living in harmony with nature.

Dil Jiska Hindustani

Dil jiska Hindustani, nahin koi Englishtani is a memorable phrase from Made in India, Alisha Chinai’s 1995 music video album which became a runaway hit.

Tipplers and wine connoisseurs of India, raise your glasses and say cheers to Mond, Mohulo, Desmond Ji – all Made from Mahua and Made in India. Aaj mahua ki beti se mohabbat kar le; if you still recall jhoom barabar jhoom sharabi, the hit qawwali from Five Rifles, a 1974 film. You may also cheer for Kesar Kasturi, Feni, Salfi, and other heritage liquors of India. Abjure the expensive single-malts, and 12-Year-Old Chivas Regal, the Champagnes, and other imported stuff. Remember the popular burn-vilayati-clothes campaign under the Swadeshi Movement? Instead of enriching alcohol exporting countries, contribute to our own economy.

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