An Irula man looks for edibles and small animals in the scrub forest near his hamlet in Thiruthani in Tamilnadu.

V. Govindaraj, 48, looks for edible plants and small animals in thick bushes of the scrub forest near his hamlet Bangalamedu in Thiruvallur district.

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The edible root of a tuber appears underground, after an Irula man digs for it in the scrub forest.

The root of the 'kaattu vellikizhangu' reveals itself after K. Krishnan, 50, identifies its climber and digs the ground. The thickness of the climber stem indicates how deep to dig and how big a tuber to expect.

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Edible roots, tubers and small fruits foraged from the forest are spread on a blue plank.

A spread of different edible roots, tubers and small fruit from the scrub forest near Bangalamedu. Many of these are not commonly known or used outside the Irular community.

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Hands peel an edible lotus root.

G. Manigandan peels a 'thaamarai kizhangu' or lotus root. These roots are cooked and consumed.

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An Irula girl observes an elder forage in the forest for edibles.

An Irula girl observes Govindan, an Irula elder, look for edibles. Children learn the traditional ways from an early age, by accompanying their parents on hunting and foraging trips to the forest during the weekend or school holidays. Children learn to identify edible from harmful plants and ways to satisfy thirst and hunger.

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An Irula man takes a bite into a fruit that stains his lips red.

K. Krishnan, 50, bites into the 'nadhelli pazham' or 'thappattikalli' fruit that stains his mouth pink. The children in the hamlet have named it the "lipstick" fruit.

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An Irula healer looks for suitable herbs and medicinal plants used to treat different ailments.

Karthiga, a healer from Dargas Irula hamlet in Thiruporur looks for fresh herbs and medicinal plants in the open fields around her hamlet. The Irulas rely on traditional remedies for most ailments, including snake and insect bites.

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An Irula man holds a rat caught from a tunnel in a paddy field. Rats are a staple food of the Irulas.

Krishnan quickly breaks the teeth and feet of a rat he has caught, to prevent it from biting or escaping. Irulas hunt for rats in paddy fields. Rats are a staple diet. They also use the salvaged paddy stored away by the rats. Younger irulas are not keen on rat hunting, considering it undignified and prefer rice from the ration shop.

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An irula child holds her pet rat.

Rats are a common pet among the Irulars, who adopt baby rats if they find them while hunting for rats in paddy fields.

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An indigenous drum made from a mud pot and covered with stretched animal skin.

'Dolkattai', a traditional percussion instrument used in Dargas Irula hamlet. It is a mud-pot sealed on either end with animal skin, usually goat and monitor lizard skin. With a ban on hunting, and monitor lizard being on the endangered list, these instruments are not being made anymore.

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An Irula man uses an indigenous conical fishing device called the Ootha made of straw and sticks to catch fish in shallow lake waters.

An Irula man uses the 'ootha' a device to fish in shallow lake beds. Post sunset, when the fish stop moving and are closer to the water surface, Irula men place the ootha's wide mouth over the fish. They then remove the trapped fish through the cone's narrower end and transfer them into water-filled containers or plastic bags. Night time fishing is fraught with risks of snake and venomous insect bites.

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An Irula woman shows a small venomous snake called suruttai, meant to be taken to the Madras Crocodile Bank for anti-venom preparations.

Valli holding a young venomous snake called Suruttai. Irulas need to procure licenses to catch snakes legally. Valli learnt to identify snakes, their habits and habitats from her parents at a very young age. Before her father's demise, their family used to supply and release venomous snakes as per the requirements of the Madras Crocodile Bank near Mahabalipuram, for research and anti-venom preparations. 

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A traditional indigenous fishing device made by the Irulas to trap small fish in shallow waters.

'Ootha' a traditional fishing device made of straw and dried sticks used by the Irulas.  

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An Irula man knots a nylon net to prepare it for fishing needs.

T. Sakthivel, 23, painstakingly ties the ends of the net made of tangus nylon to attach it to a string to hold the net together. Nylon nets are cheaper compared to the stronger but more expensive silk net.

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A group of men work on the nylon fishing net to prepare it for community fishing.

A group of men prepare the 7metres long and 6ft high net. A net of this size could cost the families upto Rs. 5000. Each net is for fishes of a specific size only. 2-3 families jointly own such nets and share the cost and labour in procuring and preparing the net.

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An Irula man holds a net used to fish in the backwaters off the Mahabalipuram coast in Tamilnadu.

An Irula man from Thiruporur town handles a fishing net at the back waters near their town. Large parts of this salt lake have been leased to companies for salt pans. Lakes are auctioned off by local panchayat for private use, which restricts access and limits quantity of fish the Irulas can catch.

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An improvised fishing tool made of thermocol, nylon thread and a hook.

An improvised fishing tool made with thermocol, nylon thread and hook. A piece of lead keep the device from floating away. 

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Group of little Irula children fiddling with drums made of plastic and metal.

Irula children playing with metal and fibre drums which have replaced their traditional percussion instruments made of mud and animal skin.

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An Irula woman holds several identity cards to show the extent of documentation needed for the Irulas to claim entitlements.

M. Mariamma, 30, with her documents. As Scheduled Tribes,  Irulas are entitled to many benefits. But the paper work involved in securing the same is not easy.

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Two young Irula girls play cricket in the open outdoors in the evening.

Young girls Kavya and Adilakshmi play cricket in behind the Cherukkanur Irular Colony in Thiruthani. Aspirations are changing. 

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