Parla Balli keer

Parle Balli was a traditional rope used for tying and securing cattle

Parle Balli was a traditional rope used for tying and securing cattle, made by processing strong, flexible forest creepers. The reference records creepers such as Rhaphidophora pertusa (Roxb.) Schott and Elettaria rheedii Wt. as materials used for making this rope.
It represents an older method of making functional rope from naturally available forest vegetation. Strong creepers were collected from the surrounding forests, processed and twisted or braided to form a durable rope suitable for tying cattle. It was a practical example of how traditional Kodava communities made everyday agricultural and livestock equipment from locally available natural resources.

Traditional use: The rope was primarily used for tying cattle, securing them when required and managing livestock around the household and agricultural areas. Parle Balli was primarily a functional livestock implement rather than a ritual object.

Cultural significance: Parle Balli is significant as an example of indigenous material knowledge and sustainable use of forest resources. A simple cattle rope reflects a much broader traditional understanding of the landscape—knowing which plants could be gathered, how they could be processed and how natural materials could meet everyday agricultural and livestock needs. Its extinction makes documentation especially valuable for the Modha Goode Virtual Museum

Historical context: The practice belongs to an earlier period when household and agricultural requirements were met largely through locally available natural materials. The use of forest creepers for making rope demonstrates the resourcefulness and material knowledge of earlier generations.

Suitable creepers were collected and prepared for use. They were then twisted, joined or braided together to produce a sufficiently strong length of rope for tying cattle. The process relied on knowledge of which locally available creepers possessed the required strength and flexibility.

Reason for decline: The practice declined because manufactured ropes became more readily available, uniform, durable and convenient. Changes in cattle-rearing practices and the reduced dependence on traditional forest materials also contributed to its disappearance.
With the availability of commercially manufactured ropes made from cotton, coir, nylon and synthetic fibres, natural creeper ropes gradually disappeared from everyday use

Revival efforts: Although no longer in practical use, the knowledge could be documented and demonstrated as part of Kodava traditional knowledge and material-culture preservation. Recording the plants used and the traditional rope-making process is particularly important before this knowledge is completely lost.