The Todas’ most important festival of the year, known as Modhweth, was celebrated at the Muthanadu Mund, near Thalaikundah, in the Nilgiris on Sunday.
According to local village elders, Toda men from 14 different clans living in different villages in the upper slopes of the Nilgiris come to the “mund” or Toda village during the last Sunday of December or on the first Sunday of January to celebrate the festival. On Sunday, hundreds of Toda men from more than 60 small hamlets came to the Moonpo Temple in Muthanadu Mund, said to be one of the oldest Toda temples still in existence.
The Moonpo temple is unique in that it is one of the last of the Toda temples with a similar design left in the Nilgiris. The temple draws not just Todas but also tourists, who visit the mund and marvel at the ancient temple, known for its vertical spire made of thatched roof, with a flat stone on top.
Muhammad Ali, a visitor from Bangalore, who had learned of the Todas’ celebrations after coming to Udhagamandalam, who was among a dozen tourists at Muthanadu Mund on Sunday, said that he was extremely excited to see the celebrations at close quarters. “I got to see the Todas perform their dance outside the Moonpo Temple, and was also treated to their hospitality,” he said.
As part of the celebrations, the Todas offer prayers to the deity, Thenkish Amman, and perform a dance outside. A. Sathyaraj, who is the general secretary of the Todar Samuthayam Munnetra Sangam, said, “we pray to the deity to give us good health, rains and harvests during the coming year. We also pray for the well-being of our buffaloes, fast for the entire day and drink only milk mixed with jaggery and salt,” said Mr. Sathyaraj. The celebrations culminated with Toda youth lifting a greased boulder, weighing around 80 kg, to showcase their strength, balance and masculinity. As is the custom with most Toda rituals, women were excluded from taking part in the celebrations.
