Under the Latest and popular online series of Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya entitled ‘Exhibit of the Week’ the 'Kering / Kerang' Waist cloth made of bark string collected from 1995 was exhibited. The waist cloth relating Community of Parenga of Koraput, Odisha, it’s Measurement Length - maximum 99 cm., Width – maximum 51 cm. was displayed in the audience as the First Exhibit of the month of August, 2021 through official website, Facebook, Instagram and twitter page of the IGRMS.
In this regard Praveen Kumar Mishra, Director, IGRMS said that Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya (National Museum of Mankind), Initially this series will focus on the masterpieces from its collection which are considered as unique for their contribution to the cultural history of a particular ethnic group or area. Kerang, is an inseparable cultural entity of Gadaba and Parenga women.
It is also a mark of origin of clothes among some tribals of Koraput and Malkangiri district of Odisha. It was compulsory for a woman to wear and to weave this skirt after achievement of her puberty. The fibre from Kerang (Calotropis gigantean), a deciduous shrub is used as a major element to weave Kerang. The cutting of shrub with the help of a small knife is done by the women. To make the fibre strong they bury the small branches under the stream or the mud for few days. It is then allowed to expose to the sunlight.
The soft branches thus collected are beaten against a stone with a wooden mallet to obtain fibre. The fibre is beautifully coloured by the different vegetable and natural dyes. The dried fibres is then polished and rolled to prepare yarn and weaving is done on their small indigenous loom.