Most houses in rural India are made of gobarmitti or animal dung and mud. Besides being readily available and cost-effective, this mixture works as an excellent insect repellant and keeps the interiors cool. Women of the household routinely refurbish surfaces, applying a fresh layer of gobarmitti to fill cracks, rid the space of physical filth – and ward off malignant energies. The application and reapplication of material is believed to be a ritualistic act that demands the reverential participation of the householder in ‘purifying’ the sanctum that is home. For a similar reason, the adornment of surfaces too, is intended to be ephemeral.

Image Courtesy: Deidi von Schaewen