GADOLYA LOHARS : GATEWAY OF THE GYPSIES

EPISODE SHOT DURING THE MAKING OF THE DOCUMENTARY JAISALMER AYO! GATEWAY OF THE GYPSIES. FULL DOCUMENTARY NOW AVAILABLE ON VIMEO AT: The Gadoliya Lohars are nomadic blacksmiths who travel in their carts. This nomadic caste is distinctive for their decorated carts, around which they set camp, cooking over wood fires and sleeping on the ground, whether in the countryside or on the roadsides of cities. The Gadolya Lohar derived their name from “Gadya“ which means cart for their elaborated bullock carts that are their home and “Lohars“ name for blacksmiths. Their main specialty work: repair and work with iron and other metals, crafting everything from a shovel to a pair of scissors. Their profession is to fabricate and repair iron tools and utensils, traveling in carts from village to village. Today people prefer to buy steel and aluminium goods from the market rather than use the tools that are crafted by the independent Lohars. They, therefore find themselves constantly on the move searching for new markets. The Gadolia Lohar specialized in dealing with iron-smith and they developed a skill of melting it, heating it and making into weapons and agricultural tools. So until recently before the industrial revolution in India, their need was very much felt in every rural community. They kept their trade secret and their tools specialization evolve to the extent that nobody else could take it up. The Lohars ( the blacksmiths) therefore find themselves constantly on the move searching for new markets. “One town or district is usually not enough to sustain our living so we move on to the next place. In the old days, we had good relations with the villagers and farmers would invite us to their homes,“ says Gurjari from the Lohar community, in an interview to the film crew of ARTNETWORKTV. He continued, we arrive at the villages at the beginning of the agricultural season to repair and sell agricultural tools and implements. Gurjari also spoke of how “Kalka Devi“ cursed them to a nomadic way of life. They refer to Chittorgarh in Rajasthan as their ancestral home which they left after it fell to the Mughal Army in 1568, and being the ancestors of the Rajput caste.