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This paper examines the aging experience of three tribal communities in Kerala – Mala Vettuvan, Kurichiyan and Aranadan. Using the theoretical underpinning of bridging and bonding social capital, the study explores how social capital influences the oldage outcome of these communities. Geographically, majority of  Mala Vettuvan and Kurichiyan are located in Kasaragode and Wayanad districts respectively; whereas Aranadan are the autochthones of Malappuram district. The Kurichiyan are settled agriculturist. Mala Vettuvan were shifting cultivators under local landlords and now live in Government sponsored settlements and do wage labour whereas Aranadan are small scale hunter-gatherer, resettled in the fringes of Nilambur forests. By employing ethnographic methods of interviewing, observation, case studies and narratives, the study categorises aging experience of these communities as green, yellow or red and analyses the factors that contribute to these outcomes. It highlights the significance of social capital and argues for the need of social capital in enhancing the quality of the life of the elderly within the family as well as in the society