Bhopal boasts some of the finest museums in the country which earns it the reputation of being ‘city of museums’ apart from the equally popular ‘city of lakes’. And the Tribal Museum is one of the most popular of the lot. A visit to this museum will surely turn you into a repeat visitor given the diversity of exhibits available.
The tribal museum’s main draw is its beautifully planned and stunningly arranged thematic galleries, where every visitor can connect through motifs and artefacts illustrating tribal lifestyle. The museum is a cut above the rest in terms of the way exhibits are displayed which is not only innovative, but also a visual feast.
It does not confine itself to the classical style of presenting individual artworks as distinct masterpieces with little contextual information. Instead, it emphasizes the ways of life followed by the Madhya Pradesh state’s seven major tribes – the Gond, Bhil, Korku, Baiga, Sahariya, Kol, and Bhariya – through their crafts.
The colorful galleries with soaring roofs, the dramatically-lit artefacts project tribal living, aesthetics, and spiritual beliefs make you fall in love with the museum once you are there. The place is situated only a few hundreds meters away from Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya (IGRMS), another milestone museum in the city that you must visit.
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History and Architecture of MP Tribal Museum
Madhya Pradesh government commissioned the MP Tribal Museum way back in 2004 for the state’s tribal community (more than 30 percent tribal origin). The aim was to build fabric inspired by their rich culture that the communities could identify with, as well as to develop it as a platform for the expression of their ideas. Formerly known as Bhopal Tribal Heritage Museum, the then Indian president Pranab Mukherjee inaugurated the museum in 2013.
The strikingly beautiful museum is designed by famous architect Revathi Kamath who is considered a pioneer of mud architecture in India. In addition to this, she is also credited with building the tallest stainless steel structure in India. The museum’s architecture is inspired by the rhythms, geometries, materials, forms, aesthetics and spatial awareness of the tribes, allowing it to integrate harmoniously into its context.
The complex trusses of steel rods and crenelated beams rest on walls made of local brick and stone. The roofs are made of tiles, slabs of galvalume and concrete with a covering of grass and earth. This work today plays a key role in the work of tribal artisans.
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The Colourful Galleries
Madhya Pradesh’s cultural tapestry is woven with diverse art, craft, architecture, and rituals because it is home to several tribal communities such as the Gonds, Baigas, and Bhariyas. The Tribal Museum in Bhopal brings these tribes’ cultures to life through full-scale models as well as vibrant art pieces and performances. The museum was founded in 2013 and is dedicated to the indigenous people of Madhya Pradesh.
The museum is spread over 7 acres of land and boasts six colourful galleries that depict the diversity of the state’s seven tribes – the Bhil, Gond, Korku, Baiga, Sahariya, Bhariya, and Kol. The artistic exhibitions are captivating because they raise understanding about tribal rites, customs, and forms of devotion, among other things.
The galleries are thematically arranged where Tribal artists recast myth and life in stunning visuals using traditional materials such as wood, iron, jute, mud, clay, straw, hemp, and leaves, as well as canvas, acrylic, and glass, to create intricate and well-constructed exhibits.
Let’s take a walk to these galleries to explore the tribal life of Madhya Pradesh.
Gallery of Cultural Diversity
The objective of creating this Madhya Pradesh specialty, as well as better knowledge and display of its multi-dimensional culture, found in Gallery -1, which is designed in such a way that will leave visitors with a strong impression of Madhya Pradesh’s multifaceted cultural presence.
Like the shoots of a banyan tree, which spread far and wide and are not bound by any boundaries, the culture of diverse Madhya Pradesh tribes is displayed over there. You are able to see firsthand how cultural offshoots of one tribe spread to other tribes beyond the limits of a neighbouring state.
You can catch a glimpse of a contour map of Madhya Pradesh exhibited in the middle of the gallery so that you get a sense of the state’s physical contours like hills, plateaus, forest, and the serpentine journey of the Narmada. Despite the fact that it is a map of Madhya Pradesh, it has the appearance of an uneven hillock symbolising diversity.
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Gallery of Homes
The next you step in is bathed in a warm glow of yellow and orange . It is the place for the tribes’ traditional mud and brick dwellings. You can go inside the houses and look at the exhibits. Everything felt so genuine. It appeared as if the lady of the house would simply go about her everyday chores. The houses’ exteriors were decorated with vibrant murals and paintings. This collection is a visual treat that gives a fantastic glimpse into tribal life, their way of living, the basic tools they use, and how they cook and preserve food grains.
The Tribal Aesthetic Gallery
You can see this gallery dedicated to tribal rites and practices that mirror the life cycles of birth, marriage, and death. There are four finely carved trees, each with a spiritual significance and symbolizing the beginning of life, the cycle, life in its entirety, and eternity. Wedding customs and symbolism are also engraved on trees, while terracotta images depict Bhil tribes’ death rituals. The pick of the gallery is a large illustration of a traditional wedding bangle in the gallery. It is a large bangle that was given to a Bhil woman at her wedding.
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The Spiritual World Gallery
The Tribal Art Museum of Bhopal’s Spiritual World Gallery exhibits a magical world filled with breathtaking blue and red lights. This is an enthralling realm where realism and spirituality coexist. This gallery’s exhibitions depict the afterlife, the mystical and spiritual world of the tribes. It depicts both good and evil spirits. The tribal communities believe that spirits live in nature, and that these spirits include gods, wandering spirits, and ancestral souls.
Furthermore, tribal people worship through images, signs, and symbols because they believe that deities have no tangible form and hence cannot be confined only in temples. God’s presence can be felt in several objects, including stones, sticks, flags, and mounds.You can find there are figurines, terracotta sculptures, and memorial pillars to encourage visitors to immerse themselves in the tribes’ mystical and spiritual world.
A Gallery for Guest State – Chhattisgarh
We all know that Chhattisgarh is now a separate state that was once a part of Madhya Pradesh. The geographical separation could not affect the cultural integration. Chhattisgarh, a predominantly tribal state, is endowed with dense forest. Bastar is home to a number of these tribal communities. Murias, Madias, Halbas, Bhataras, Dhurvas, Panikas, and other tribes have lived here since time immemorial. This region’s Dussehra event is special in many respects.
Thus, the Dussehra chariot has been placed in the centre of this gallery. Furthermore, the gallery displays a gudi (small temple) of Bastar’s most ancient goddess Mavali, Shitala Mata’s site, Biman Diya, Ghotul, Karma-Seni tree, potters’ houses, Panika, Ghadva, Jharas, and so on. A replica of Bastar’s Rajwar’s gateway is also recreated in the gallery, as the gudi of Devi Danteshwari, Bastar’s presiding deity, is located in the gateway.
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The Exhibition Gallery
The minute you walk into the sixth gallery, the last of the Tribal Museum, you are transported back to your childhood. The exhibition gallery depicts tribal tribes’ pastimes and sports. Through different activities, children in tribal communities learn to sing, dance, hunt, and fish. The sculptures and figurines of children playing these games are designed in such a way that visitors get a true sense of what these games are really like.
The Gallery displays games through three-dimensional forms. Iron pieces, hollow out-gourd and clay or terracotta figures are used in creating these games and figures. The other games like Rakku, Pithhu, Gendi, wrestling, fishing and games for girls, specially like Gippa, Chaupar, Ghar-Ghar and Ghullu-Dandi have been displayed elaborately.
Games like Atkan-Matkan have been shown through pictures. Jhumars, Rattles, a variety of toy carts etc are also important exhibits.
How To Reach There?
The MP tribal museum is located at a distance of some 8 kilometers from the Bhopal Junction Railway station and 10 kilometers from the city center. You can take an auto rickshaw or taxi to reach there. The museum is at a walking distance from the Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya(IGRMS), another must see museum in Bhopal.
Address: MP TRIBAL MUSEUM · Shyamla Hills, Bhopal – 462002, Madhya Pradesh, India · Telephone : +91 755 2661948, 2661640, 4850550. Email : mptribalmuseum13@gmail.com.
Timing and Entry Fees
You can visit the museum between 12 PM and 7 PM everyday except on Monday and government holidays. The entry fee for Indians is a nominal Rs 10 while foreigners have to pay Rs 250. You have to pay Rs 50 extra for photography. The museum is quite huge and you need at least 2 hours of visiting time.
FAQs
Revathi S. Kamath, an Indian architect and planner based in New Delhi. She is a pioneer of mud architecture in India. In addition to this, she is also credited with building the tallest stainless steel structure in India
In which city is the MP tribal museum?
The Madhya Pradesh Tribal Museum in Bhopal takes you on an immersive journey through the culture of the local tribes of the state. With large colourful displays, the museum shows the art, traditions, daily life, and customs of a large number of indigenous groups
There is a lot to see at the Tribal Museum and the exhibitions are full of artefacts and information related to tribes of Madhya Pradesh that are presented in six colourful galleries.
The MP tribal museum is located at a distance of some 8 kilometers from the Bhopal Junction Railway station and 10 kilometers from the city center. You can take an auto rickshaw or taxi to reach there.