This collection of traditional broomsticks belongs to the Gadaba tribe, an eco-friendly community that has a great skill for making items needed in day-to-day household living from natural resources. Mostly, its members live in the hilly terrains of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh and depend on indigenous knowledge systems for most of their domestic needs.
The object includes three brooms made of grass-an abundant and naturally biodegradable material in their region. Every broom's handle is made from the same grass, thus having a strong yet flexible grip, ideal for everyday use. A unique feature of these broomsticks is that they have a plaited grass ring from which each one is suspended and is multifunctional from the user's perspective such as for decorative purposes. This very may serve as a means to hang them or enhance structural integrity. Traditionally, these broomsticks are used to clean the floors of mud or earthen homes, and thus, they form an important part of the personal hygiene and domestic upkeep of the tribesmen. The craftsmanship speaks not only of their creativity but also of their value for sustainability and minimal waste. They may appear very simple but carry within them generations of environmental wisdom and self-reliance.