Introduction

Bunt Communities are the people of South Kannada or Karnataka. They live on a small strip of land locally called "Parashurama Srishti" meaning the "Creation of Parashurama". The Bunt community is regarded as the single most important and advanced section in the district for its traditional leadership, agricultural knowledge and prowess. The men of this community are handsome, aggressive and warrior-like while the women are beautiful and independent.

Origin of Bunt Community

The origin of this agricultural community is still obscure but it is known that the Bunts belong to a fighting race. The Bunts of Tulu Nad and the Nadavas are considered Sudras. The Nadavas were agriculturists and traders and are now called Bunts.

Another theory, based on the different surnames of Bunts, such as, Shetty (Sethi), Rai and Bhandari, is that the origin of the Bunts may have been in North India. The language spoken by the Bunts is Tulu - one of the five Dravidian languages but it does not have a script.

History of Bunt Community

The Bunts are today considered Sudras although they played the role of Kshatriyas early in the Christian era when they and the Nadavas were the military chieftains of the area. Their lands were given to them as gifts by the rulers for the services rendered in wars and they gradually became agriculturists. When the Vijayanagar dynasty came to power in South Kannada in 1336 AD, a number of minor Bunt and Jain feudatory chieftains were already well established.

Society of Bunt Community

The striking feature of the Bunt community is that the property rights are vested in the females of the society. The marriage ceremonies are simple too. Presently, Mumbai has the largest number of Bunt residents outside the district. Some of the Bunts who have migrated to Mumbai and other places have shown initiative and enterprise. Several Bunts have become poets, doctors, journalists and politicians.

Being fighting people who had to be away from their properties for long periods, the Bunts, evolved the `aliya santhana` (family line of the nephew) system by which all the property was vested in the female members who managed the farms while the title remained with the males. The entire family property remained undivided and intact as it devolved upon the sister`s son of the deceased holder. A `family` consists of a mother and her offspring and the father is an `outsider`, an ideal co-operative venture. Unlike many other communities the birth of a girl is welcomed since she perpetuates the family line.

Till recently there were instances of over a hundred persons of such a family living under one roof with a common kitchen. Agriculture was practised on a co-operative basis under the `yajaman` (head) of a `guttu` or `beedu` (Bunt memorial house).

Intermarriage between people belonging to various guttus and beedus was prohibited but this restriction is dying out gradually. The Bunts love manly and outdoor sports. Buffalo racing and cock-fights (koridatta) are two popular recreations for them.

The folk dance drama of the district, the Yakshagana, has been promoted and nourished mainly under the guidance of the Bunts. It is a form of dance that has received nationwide acclaim. Some Bunt houses have their own troupes and many Bunts have made notable contributions to this form of the dance.

A marriage solemnized under the `aliya santhana` system is not a marriage in the strict sense of the term and based more on custom than on the Aliaya Santhana Act. Divorce is granted after six months of the application. Under the Act there is no system of alimony or maintenance. Nevertheless, despite this liberal provision there has been hardly any instance of separation worth mentioning.

As the girl given in marriage was the chief inheritor of property and got valuable jewellery from her mother, the dowry system was unheard of till some 50 years ago. Nowadays, it has become a common practice in this community as well. Only a few families have set an example by not giving or taking dowry and a few have gone a step further by giving their girls in marriage to Vokkaligas, who are regarded as being closest to the Bunts. The marriage ceremony today is a simple and inexpensive one though in the past it was a long drawn out affair.

The British made the Bunts village headman. On account of a peculiar Ryotwari tenancy system hundreds of Bunts found themselves in distress as they could neither get the rent nor evict the tenant.

Despite land reforms and economic stress, the Bunts even now own most of the cultivable land and command the traditional leadership and respect of the villages. Bunts still have a majority representation in most panchayats, taluk boards and even in the State Legislature. Successive ministers representing the district have been Bunts. Political power naturally belonged to them because they always shared the joys and sorrows of the people, particularly the tenants.

This community prefers non-vegetarian cuisine but head of some families, such as, the Ballals and Kurla Hegdes, abstain from eating flesh and imbibing intoxicating drinks. These groups wear the sacred thread.

Religion of Bunt Community

It is said that there were no temples in Karnataka before the Brahmins were imported by an invading king. But when they were built their lands remained with the Bunts.

Along with the other non-Brahmin communities of South Kannada, Bunts are noted for their "bhuta" (ghost) worship. There is no Bunt house without a place meant exclusively for a ghost. Unlike other Hindu communities, Bunts have no guru or swami of their own. Since the ghost or the demon is their main deity, there is no compulsion about visiting temples although this practice has come into being in recent times. Bunts are neither tied to any religious custom nor bound by any Vedic ritual.