Folk Dance Vs Classical Dance

• Folk dance is common people's dance.

• Folk dancing is a simple dance form meant for group performances created for a recreational or celebratory reason such as agricultural harvest, weddings etc.

• Folk dancing doesn’t have strict rules, its main aim is fun and brotherhood.

• Folk dances are all about energy, enthusiasm and power.

Chhau

• The word Chhau originates from ‘Chhaya’ meaning shadow. It is a form of mask dance that uses vigorous martial movements to narrate mythological stories.

• There are three main styles of Chhau dance –

Saraikela Chhau in Jharkhand

Mayurbhanj Chhau in Odisha

Purulia Chhau in West Bengal

• Of these, Mayurbhanj Chhau artists don’t wear masks.

In 2010, UNESCO inscribed Chhau in the

Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Jharkhand

• Dumkaach

• Sarhul

• Karma Munda

It takes place during the Karma festival when the God of fate or ‘Karma’ is worshipped.

• Agni

• Jhumar - Janani Jhumar & Mardana Jhumar

This dance is performed mainly during the harvest season.

• Paika

This dance is performed by males. This dance has a high degree involvement of martial arts. Paikas are the groups of soldiers who served to protect the safety of the kingdom and hence the name.

• Fagua

It is performed during the festival of Holi.

• Ghoomar

It is a traditional folk dance of Rajasthan. It was Bhil tribe who performed it to worship Goddess

Sarasvati which was later embraced by other Rajasthani communities.

• Bhavai

The male or female performers balance a number of earthen pots or brass pitchers as

they dance nimbly, pirouetting and then swaying with the soles of their feet perched on the top of a glass, on the edge of the sword or

on the rim of a brass thali (plate) during the performance.

• KalbeliaIt is a sensuous folk dance performed by the

women of the Kalbelia community of Rajasthan.

‘Been’ (wind instrument played by snake charmers) is the popular musical instrument of this dance form.

• The UNESCO has inscribed Kalbelia folk songs and dances in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2011.

Rajasthan

• Ghoomar

• Bhavai

• Kalbelia

• Kathputli

• Chari or Pot dance – Women from Gujjar community in Kishangarh and Saini community in Ajmer

• Kachchhi Ghodi – Stories of Bandits

• Chakri – Women of Kanjar tribe

• Gair – Men & Women of Bhil tribe holding sticks

Rajasthan

• Gavari – Men of Bhil tribe, expression of devotion to Lord Shiva & Parvati

• Terah Taali - The dancers’ community, Kamad (listed as a Scheduled Caste) performs it as a tribute to a local folk hero, Baba Ramdev

Uttar Pradesh

• Charkula Dance - Popular in the Braj region. It’s a tough act of balance where a veiled woman dancer performs with a 108 oil lamps on her head placed on a wooden pyramid platform.

• Nautanki - In this dance, the story in lyrical form is narrated by the actors on the stage, who also dance simultaneously. The story is often related to the contemporary social problems or national feelings.

• Raasleela – It is actually a Natya (Drama) belonging to the region of Braj in which the stories of Lord Krishna and his consort, Radha, are enacted.

• Khayal

• Dadra

• Kajri – During Monsoon

• Ramlila

Madhya Pradesh

• Jawara - Bundelkhand area of MP, harvest dance

• Matki – Malwa region

• Naurata - popular folk dance performed by unmarried girls of Bundelkhand region

• Maanch is a lyrical folk drama and a form of operatic ballet that is very popular in Malwain Madhya Pradesh.

• Grida Dance - When rabi crops sway in the fields in full bloom

Chhattisgarh

• Gaur Maria is an important ritualistic dance form of the Bison Horn Maria tribes who live in the Bastarregion of Chhattisgarh.

• Saila Dance: Tribal dance, post harvest

• Raut Nacha – It is performed by yadava/yaduvanshis, a caste which considers them to be descendants of Krishna.

• Panthi Dance - Dance of Satnami tribal community in Chhattisgarh on the occasion of Maghi Purnima which marks the birth anniversary of Satnami Guru Ghasi Das.

• Soowa Dance – Parrot dance, dancers keep a parrot in a pot made of Bamboo and form a circular shape around it.

• Pandavani - It portrays the account of Pandavas

• Jhirliti

• Gendi

Himachal

• Nati – Harvest, new year (Kullu, Shimla, Kinnaur)

• Demon/Rakshasha dance - from Kinnaur, it is performed with demon masks. It represents the attack of the demons on the crops and their ritual pursuing away by the forces of good.

• Dalshone and Cholamba – Ropa valley

• Shand and Shabu – Lahaul valley

• Dangi - This dance is performed during the harvest season in the temple of Goddess Naina Devi.

• Kayang Mala

Gujarat

• Dandiya - This dance stages a mock-fight between the Goddess Durga and Mahishasura. The sticks (dandiyas) of dance represent the swords of Durga.

• Garba – derived from the Sanskrit term Garbha (womb) and Deep (lamp). Traditional garba is performed around a central lamp or around Goddess Shakti.

• Padhar

• Hudo dance - Bharwad Tribe, the shepherd community of Gujarat

• Tippani – From Chorwad, Junagadh district. It has women from seaside striking the floor with sticks and chanting, while other women dance.

Assam

• Bagurumba - Performed by Bodos, practiced during Bwisagu, a Bodo festival in the Vishuva Sankranti (mid-April). Bwisagu begins with cow worship; then, young people reverentially bow down to their parents and elders.

• Bhortal – Barpeta district, The dancers are equipped with cymbals.

• Ojapali

• Jhumur – Tea community in Autumn

Bihu

1. Rongali or Bohag Bihu – April, celebrates spring festival, and new year

2. Kongali or Kati Bihu – October, related to agriculture, people light lamps or candles

3. Bhogali or Magh Bihu – January, Harvest festival

Odisha

• Gotipua – Widely regarded as the precursor to Odissidance, the dance form involves acrobatic moves performed by young boys dressed as feminine characters. The dance form is famous in Puri and the heritage craft village of Raghurajpur, which also houses the Gotipua Dance Academy.

• Chhau Dance – Typical of Mayurbhanj district of Odisha, this dance form essentially depicts the movement of a soldier involved in the battlefield, albeit in rhythmic and synchronized way. The dance was believed to have been the dress rehearsal of Paikas, the warrior clan of Odisha.

• Ghumura Dance –Kalahandi district,

Odisha

Ranappa – Meaning dancing on a stilt. The dance is prevalent in Ganjam district especially in the villages. Usually, the dancers enact chapters from Lord Krishna’s childhood during the performance.

Chaiti Ghoda Dance – Popular amongst the fishing community in the coastal belt, this dance form involves dancers dressed in elaborate costumes, besides being seemingly mounted on a dummy horse.

Dalkhai Dance - The Dalkhai dance is performed on festive occasions such as Phagun Puni, Nuakhai, Dussehra, Dalkhai and Durga Puja. The unmarried young women known as ‘Kuanris’, start the performance with a folk song, which is followed by the Dalkhai dance.

Odisha

Danda Nata is one of the most important traditional dance festivals organized in different parts of South Odisha and particularly in the Ganjam District, the heartland of ancient Kalinga Empire.

Medha Nacha is another type of mask dance performed mainly in the coastal districts of Odisha. Oversized masks of kings, queens, and devils made by paper pulp are used by dancers to perform this beautiful dance form in India.