Acknowledgement

I would like to thank all Library Media specialists for their participation in the survey who supported my work in this way and helped me get my results of better quality. I am also grateful to the members of my Institute Tilak Maharashtra Vidyapeeth, for their patience and support in overcoming numerous obstacles, I have been facing through my research.

I would like to thank my fellow doctoral students for their feedback, cooperation and of course a motivational friendship extended. In addition I would like to express my gratitude to Siti Anzar a Prof. in Yogyakarta University (Indonesia) and Michael Palmieri (spl. in Dayak Tribe of Borneo) for their last minute favors. Nevertheless, I am also grateful to Dr. Narayan Shetty and Dr. Chinnappa Gowda for their in depth knowledge of the Bunt culture and folklore, and who have been kind enough to give me time and explain things related to my studies. I would like to thank my husband and family for accepting nothing less than perfection from me. And a big thanks to both my sons Vedant and Gautam for supporting me spiritually throughout writing this thesis and my life in general.

My special thanks to Dr. Shripad Bhat, my guide in this project who has patiently heard my excitement and further guided me as my guide and a friend. It was because of Dr. Bhat’s encouragement and faith in my ability I could conclude this thesis. I would like to also thank Dr. Hira Adyanthaya (former VC -TMV) whose experience and study in the Bunts Community, could enhance my vision to explore further in the social and cultural background of this Community related to my topic.

Last but not the least, I would have not finished this project without the support of Amit Sonawane, my nephew who so well and creatively blended the clippings of videos for presentation and enabled me to show both culture reverences. I am grateful to my family at large, whose support on my domestic front to be of great help in my daily chores, that truly helped me in concentrating on my thesis, same goes to Mr Lokesh Mandesa who actually shared the same enthusiasm I had in writing and he in helpingon typing support over time! All have truly pushed and motivated me to achieve this moment which was a promise given to my late father Mr.K. Narayan Shetty.