| Madhya Pradesh State Tribal Museum | |
| Location: | Shymala Hills, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh 462002 |
| Coordinates: | 23.2351°N 77.3861°W |
| Type: | Anthropological museum |
The Tribal Museum of Bhopal or Madhya Pradesh Tribal Museum is located close to the State Museum, Bhopal, near the Museum of Man/ Museum of Mankind[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. This is a museum dedicated to the living aspects of tribal life, indigenous knowledge systems, and aesthetics.
The tribal museum was designed by Revathi Kamath. It was inaugurated on June 6, 2013, by the then-president of India Pranab Mukherjee.[6] [7] [8] [9] The museum is divided into six different theme galleries showcasing traditional art, craft and culture of various tribes of Madhya Pradesh like Gonds, Bhils, Bharias, Sahariya, Korku, Kol, and Baiga.[10] As of June 2022, the museum offers its visitors a unique opportunity to access its exhibits and presentations virtually. The digital tour is categorised into ten parts: the upper and lower level of the museum, lifestyle gallery, tribal spiritual world, Chhattisgarh gallery, Awas (tribal housing), Likhandra (painting exhibition and library), Rakku (children gallery), and Chinhari (the museum shop).[11] On May 18 2023, which was also International Museum Day, the Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board launched a "QR-based audio guide to help tourists learn about the state's rich heritage and culture".[12] This digital endeavour "connects the state's history with technology and the information from the audio guide will be available in both Hindi and English". Furthermore, considering the state of Madhya Pradesh recognises 43 different tribes, it has recently announced the launching of a "Cultural Diversity Centre to exhibit contour map of tribal communities".[13] The overarching idea is to illustrate how despite the differences there are shared commonalities between the tribes found in the region. Ashok Mishra, a curator of the Tribal Museum, says: "There is an underlying cultural unity among them. In many ways, they seem to be inter-connected, it appears as if they have common roots. And this is what we propose to highlight".
The museum "receives up to 71,000 visitors (66,000 Indian nationals – 5,000 foreign nationals) per year".[14]
The six galleries display various aspects of the tribal life.[15]
There is an amphitheatre inside the museum which hosts scheduled plays, musical performances, and folk dances. There is also a retail outlet for handicrafts and artefacts, called Chinhari. The museum also publishes an in-house magazine, Choumasa, about the tribal lifestyle.