The Mantrai is a conventional wooden pestle used by the Rabha tribe mainly for grinding grains, spices, and roots. This simple yet important tool reflects the very self-reliance of the tribe with their inventions being mostly of practical use and of substances made from natural forest resources.
The pestle, carved out of a single long piece of hardwood to give it durability and strength, has its central portion slightly constricted, creating an almost natural grip for the application of force by the hand and thus helps in the repetitive motion of pounding without slipping away. The design is ergonomic and speaks of generations of practical applications involved in making food by the tribe.
The mainstay of tribal food processing and herbal preparation is found in the form of Mantri, which together with a wooden or stone mortar participates in almost every tribal day's activity from rice processing to herbal remedy preparation. Handcrafted using very simple tools, each pestle expresses the individual character of the maker and of the resourcefulness of the community.