A garment, a story
Chad: discovering kadamoul
Audio 03:24
A man wearing the traditional Chadian turban, the kadamoul.
© Adriana Borra / UNCHAD
By: Aurélie Bazzara Follow
3 mins
The kadamoul, or chèche/turban in French, has been worn for generations by men living in a desert environment.
Abandoned by the new generation, the traditional kadamoul has been brought up to date with the
#challengekadamoul
launched on social networks by a turban enthusiast.
Since then, if for some the kadamoul helps protect themselves from heat and dust, for others it has become a fashion item to assert their identity.
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In the streets of Ndjamena, the kadamoul, a large white turban, is rolled up on the heads of the men, especially on dusty days.
“
Kadamoul is important in Chad.
It protects me from dust.
But I don't wear it every day.
Only when I'm on a motorcycle.
Otherwise, I remain bareheaded.
»
Next to him a man nods, he only uses it on dusty days.
A challenge that boosts its popularity
In the past, the kadamoul was an essential accessory to the outfit of men from the north and center of the country.
Today, it becomes a simple protection against bad weather in the capital, to the great displeasure of Brahim Dadi, writer.
To bring it up to date, he launched the
#challengekadamoul
on social networks.
The response is immediate: hundreds of young people post photos, proudly wearing their kadamoul.
Ministers and public figures also played the game.
A craze that surprised Brahim Dadi, who wanted to express a fed up.
"
It's not normal that we can label the turban as if it were something backward,
" he explains to us.
It started at a young age, when you arrive at school: you shouldn't wear a turban.
We were forbidden.
Today, when you arrive in a bank or somewhere, people are a little shocked (that we tell them) that you cannot arrive in a bank with a turban.
However, the turban is worn like the habit, anywhere and everywhere.
»
Express your identity
In Chad, the way of rolling up a kadamoul allows you to know at a glance who you are dealing with: a married man or a single man, a notable or a civil servant.
Add to this that each community has its own way of wearing the turban.
Brahim Dadi, from the far north of Chad, explains how to use it.
“
When I take the turban, there is a flap that must be folded over the shoulders and which must stop at the knees.
The other part will make it possible to pass a pan over the mouth and the nose, and the others I roll them over the head.
So first I bring it to the middle, then I put it on top, and then I bring it back to the middle again.
When I roll up, it's not facing the mirror.
I know how to wind up so that it becomes the same type of winding all my life.
»
In his sewing workshop, stylist Hissein Adamou Camara makes city outfits and traditional boubous.
This year, he has seen a strong comeback of kadamoul among young people.
“
It comes back under the fashion effect and the trend effect.
People try to create an identity from their kadamoul.
I use it, I express myself with it, I express my belonging.
But it's more in the villages, in the really desert areas that we consider the kadamoul as a compulsory complement of clothing to feel like a boy.
»
Long piece of cotton fabric, the kadamoul measures how much exactly?
“
The footage, for teenagers, (is) often just two meters, no more.
It is a way of introducing them to the turban.
As for the big ones, from 5 meters, it is a good turban.
For the old, they wear up to 6 meters because they sometimes add the cap on it, to be able to say that they are big enough, or wise men or notables, to change a little.
»
The stylist recalls that beyond the style, the kadamoul remains an essential accessory in certain circumstances to hide one's emotions, especially during mourning.
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