ABSTRACT
Verrier Elwin’s work is an outstanding contribution to indigenous ethnography in India. Outside the study of anthropology little is known about Verrier Elwin’s contribution to the knowledge about tribal cultures in India. Modernization has brought mass media entertainment to the more isolated areas of India and traditional forms of entertainment such as storytelling is now usurped by television programming that distinctly lacks any local cultural relevance. In response, the Tales of the Tribes has been produced as a sample collection of indigenous folktales that have been adapted for short animated films with local community collaboration. Elwin’s collections of folktales were revisited in the process as source material for the series and now, as the Master-of-Ceremonies, a graphic representation of Elwin creates a cross-cultural link to introduce the films and invite young audiences to choose their favourite story in the half hour long programme. This chapter reviews Elwin’s approach to illuminate his role as the presenter of the Tales of the Tribes films.
