Folk Dance OF INDIA

Folk dances in India
Folk dance
Indian folk and tribal dances range from simple, joyous
celebrations of the seasons of the harvest, or the birth of a child
to ritualistic dances to propitiate demons and invoke spirits .
The drum is the most common of the folk instruments that

provide musical accompaniment to these dances.
Central India
Gaur dance :
 Bastar district of Madhya Pradesh
 'Gaur' means a ferocious bison
 Men put head-dresses with stringed 'cowries' and

plumes of peacock feathers and make their way to the
dancing ground.
 Women ornamented with
brass fillets and bead necklaces
with their tattooed bodies also
join the gathering.
 The men with drums usually

move in a circle and create a
variety of dancing patterns .
 As a part of the dance they

attack one another and even
chase
the female dancers.
Pandavani :
 Folk Dance of Chhattisgarh

Form of story-telling prevalent
among the tribals of the Chhatisgarh
 Both entertaining and educating the

people.
 Pandavani narrates the story of the five Pandava brothers
(protagonists of the epic Mahabharata).
 Teejan Bai is a known Pandavani artist.
Eastern India :
Chhau ;
 Popular folk dance of Orissa/Bihar/Bengal.
 Chhau means mask.
 All the Chhau performers hold swords and shields while
performing.
 The stages are decorated and brightly lit by torches, lanterns and
flickering oil lamps.
 The musical instruments used are the Dhol (a cylindrical drum),
Nagara (a huge drum) and Shehnai (reed pipes).
 The themes often revolve around
mythological heroes and warriors from the
Mahabharata and Ramayana.
It probably originated as a martial art, which is

why it comprises vigorous movements and leaps
Jatra
 Folk dance of West Bengal &
Bangladesh
 The name literally means 'going' or
'journey'.
 It is performing art combining acting,
songs, music and dance
 Developed from ceremonial functions conducted
before setting out on a journey.
 It developed from processions brought out in
honour of various deities.
North East India
Bihu :
Popular folk dance of Assam.
 It is an integral part of the Bihu festival of
Assam
 The dance performed in mid-April when the
harvesting of crops is over
 Young men and girls perform the Bihu
dance together to the accompaniment of drums
and pipes.
 Love forms the subject matter of the
songs that are sung during the
performance. The dances are performed
in circles or parallel rows.
Chiraw :
 Folk Dance of Mizoram
 It employs a grid of bamboo poles in its
performance.
 The dancers move by stepping
alternately in and out of the pairs of
horizontal bamboos.
 They tap the bamboos open and closed
in rhythmic beats.
 The dancers step in and out of
the squares formed by the
bamboos with ease and grace.
 The pattern and stepping of the

dance resemble the movements of
birds, swaying of trees
North India
Dumhal :
 A dance performed by the men folk of the Wattal
tribe of Kashmir
 This dance is performed with long colorful robes,

tall conical caps (studded with beads and shells).
Dumhal dance is accompanied by songs which the

performers themselves sing.
Performers of this dance place a
banner into the ground at a fixed
location. They begin to dance
around this banner.
Bhangra
Bhangra is a lively form of folk music and

dance of Punjab.
 People sing Boliyaan (lyrics or couplets)

in the Punjabi language.
 Dancers play the dhol (a large drum),

beating it with a stick while others play the
flute and dholak .
Bhangra eventually became a
part of social occasions including
weddings .
Giddha
 It is a folk dance of Punjab
performed by women and girls
 It is considered to be the
female counterpart of Bhangra.
Langvir Dance
 This is an acrobatic dance in
Uttarkhand, performed solely by the
local menfolk.
 Dancer climbs a pole and balances
himself on his navel on the top of the
pole.
 To the accompaniment of drum beats
and music, he balances skillfully and
rotates on his belly, performing several
acrobatic stunts. 5
South India
Padayani :
 Southern Kerala.
 Associated with the
festival of certain temples, called Padayani or
Paddeni.
 Such temples are in Alleppey, Quilon,
Pathanamthitta and Kottayam districts.
 The main Kolams (huge masks) displayed in
Padayani are Bhairavi (Kali), Kalan (god of
death), Yakshi (fairy) and Pakshi (bird).
Dollu Kunitha
 Karnataka state.
 Large drums are adorned with colored
clothes and hang around the necks of men.
 The songs used in this dance usually have
religious and battle fervor.
 The main emphasis is on quick and light
movement of the feet and legs.
 The Dollu Kunitha dance forms a part of
the ritualistic dances of the Dodavas of
Karnataka
Dhimsa
 Andhra Pradesh
 This dance is popular among

the tribes inhabiting the Araku
Valley region of Vishakhapatam.
 It is generally performed in local fairs

and festivals of the area.
Western India :
Dandiya :
 It is a popular folk dance of
Rajasthan.
 Dressed in colorful costumes

the performers play skillfully
with big sticks in their hands.
 Dandiya dance is accompanied

by the musical instrument called
the 'Meddale' played by the
drummer in the centre.
Ghoomar Dance :
 Characteristic dance of the Bhils - a

tribal community in Rajastan
 A community dance performed by

groups of women on auspicious
occasions.
 The name is derived from the word

ghoomna (pirouetting).
Kalbelia Dance
 Performed by the womenfolk hailing
from the Kalbelia community in Rajastan.
 They pursue the centuries-old profession of

catching snakes and trading snake venom.
 The dance movements and the costumes have

an uncanny resemblance to the slithery creatures.
 It has been included in UNESCO intangible

cultural heritage list .
Bhavai :
 In Rajasthan, this
spectacular dance form
consists of veiled women
dancers balancing nearly
seven or nine brass pitchers
as they dance dexterously,
pirouetting and swaying
with the soles of their feet
perched on top of a glass or
on the edge of a sword.

Folk Dance OF INDIA

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Folk Dance OF INDIA

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Folk dances in India

The drum is the most common of the folk instruments that

 Bastar district of Madhya Pradesh

 'Gaur' means a ferocious bison

 Men put head-dresses with stringed 'cowries' and

 The men with drums usually

 As a part of the dance they

 Folk Dance of Chhattisgarh

 Both entertaining and educating the

It probably originated as a martial art, which is

 The pattern and stepping of the

 This dance is performed with long colorful robes,

Dumhal dance is accompanied by songs which the

Bhangra is a lively form of folk music and

 People sing Boliyaan (lyrics or couplets)

 Dancers play the dhol (a large drum),

 This dance is popular among

 It is generally performed in local fairs

 Dressed in colorful costumes

 Dandiya dance is accompanied

 Characteristic dance of the Bhils - a

 A community dance performed by

 The name is derived from the word

 They pursue the centuries-old profession of

 The dance movements and the costumes have

 It has been included in UNESCO intangible

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