Rajasthan - Art, Culture & Heritage @ whatisindia.com

The Hilly Region
The hilly areas inhabited by Bhils and Meenas are known for community songs and dances. Songs and dance are an integral part of their life. The dances are participated in by both men and women without any reservation. The dances of the Bhils and Meenas are many and are performed on festive days and during marriages.

Ghoomar is a circular dance in which men and women dance to the rhythm of the song they sing. The dance has no co-ordination with musical instruments. The tune is easy and the movements of the limbs become very agile and impressive as the dance advances. The Ger is a community dance performed on the occasion of Holi Festival. It is only a men's dance conducted to the beating of a big drum with brass plates or Thalis. The dance becomes exciting as its tempo increases and the dancers quicken their movements, beating the sticks held in their hands.

The Ger and the Ghoomar are combined in another dance performed on Holi. It is called the Festival Ghoomar and is very spirited. Men and women come in their best attire and join this dance in gay, abandon making a very pleasing sight. Many dances are performed on the occasion of marriages. The gait of the women in all these dances, is the characteristic feature of the Bhil dancing of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. The body is held relaxed, the torso is used as one unit, but there are some curved movements demanding the use of upper chest and lower waist separately. While the tempo is fast, there is little use of strong energy. There is hardly any instrumental musical accompaniment; only the song of the women forms the constant base of the dance.

Jhoria is a marriage dance. The Jhoria literally means a wooden stick. The men form one circle, the women another one and they perform a vivacious dance to the accompaniment of the dhol, shehnai and nagara. Among the Bhils and Meenas the farewell to the bride after marriage is an important occasion for dance. The members of the bridegroom's party hold swords and dance all the way to the ringing of thalis and the madal. The women on the bride's side reciprocate holding baskets and broomsticks in their hands.

Neja is a musical dance game of the Meenas in Kherwara and Dungarpur. It is usually performed on the third day after Holi. Women erect a big pillar and tie a coconut to its top. Holding small sticks and whips, they guard it against the men-folk who try to climb it to take away the coconut. The women dancers drive them away by striking their sticks and beating their whips on their backs.

The Desert Region
The Ghoomar also called Jhumar may be described as the national dance of the women of Rajasthan. It is a collective dance in which hundreds of women can join and dance in giant circle. It is performed on festive days in middle-class families in Udaipur, Jodhpur and Kota Bundi areas. In Udaipur, it resembles the Garva of neighboring Gujarat and is very musical. In Jodhpur, the movement of the limbs are jerky. The Ghoomar of Kota Bundi is very lively and impressive. The tune of the song which accompanies this dance is melodious and catchy.

The fire-dance of the Siddha Jats of Bikaner is remarkable for its sensational and awe-inspiring impact. Maharaja Ganga Singh of Bikaner was a great patron of the fire dancers who inhabit Katriasar, Bhamlu, Dikamdesar and other villages. The fire dancers make a born-fire to the beating of drums, the playing of the bher and the singing of a song. Inspired by tumultuous music, the dancers, including old men and even children jump on to the fire and dance over it. As the dance, gathers tempo, they lift burning coals and throw them on others but do jot cause any injury. The dance lasts half an hour, it does not leave burns on the dancers.

The drum dancers of Jalore are professionals. It is performed during marriages, this male dance is a synthesis of various folk dances. Four or five drums are beaten simultaneously and one of the dancers holds a sword between his teeth, another carries sticks in his hands, a third swings handkerchiefs from his arms and the remaining simply make movements to the rhythm of the dance.

The Teratali is a peculiar dance-form of the desert and Deedwana and Pokaran are its centres. Those who practices this dance-form are known as Kamads and the party usually consists of two men and two women. The men play the ektara and sing, while the women produce musical notes from the manjiras tied to various parts of their bodies. The postures and the twists of the body necessary to extract musical rings from the manjira are very difficult to perform. The Kachhi Ghori dance of marwar performed to the beat of the dhol and turhi by four or five dancers during marriage, presents a scene of warriors riding horses.

The dancers of the Kan-Gujari are mendicants who describe themselves as incarnations of Radha-Krishna. They beg from door to door, singing to the tunes of the Ravanhattya and dancing with highly artistic movements. The Bhopas are a minstrel community divided into five sects. They also dance and Bhopas of Gogaji, Mataji and Bhaironji go into such ecstasy while dancing that they sometimes become unconscious.

Eastern Region
The eastern part of Rajasthan adjoins the Braj region of Uttar Pradesh and probably because of this affinity retains a rich tradition of Ras-Lila, Ram-Lila, Nautanki and other dance forms. The community dance of Gindar is a night-long affair on the occasion of Holi. It is a democratic dance in which caste Hindus and Harijans join hands in a circle in the centre of which the nagara is played on a wooden platform. Starting on a low note, the nagaras reach a high pitch and with every beat of the nagara, the dancers strike their sticks and ring ghungroos tied to their legs.

The Kanjars and the Sansis are two ex-criminal tribes of Rajasthan whose women are good dancers. The dancers of the Sansi women are disorderly, individualistic and vulgar and they perform them for every meager payment.

The Gher Ghemur of the Sansis is the simplest of the dances, both in content and form. It begins with a slow movement where men and women first dance in two separate lines and then form a circle with man and women alternately. The tempo of the dance increases gradually to a point where each person has both a rotating movements around his own axis, as also a revolving movement along the circumference of the circle. The hip movements are the most characteristic feature of this dance. There is both instrumental and vocal music accompaniment to this dance. The dance is vigorous and there are no languorous movements.

The Kanjar women, though Muslim but look life Hindus and decorate their bodies with many kinds of cheap metal ornaments and beads. They sing well and dance exuberantly. Their males play on the chang and dholak. One of their dances is performed with lathis. They also dance for a living on festivals life Holi and Diwali. The dances of the Nayaks, Chamars and Mehtars are very attractive and full of life and vitality.

The Kachhi Ghori dance in eastern Rajasthan is virtually a battle-dance in which riders of cloth or paper' horses' moving in a circle strike blows at each other and demonstrate the use of sword and the shield. As the name implies, the dance is a presentation of horse-riding. The horse used in the dance is made of two small bamboo sticks with two baskets tied to each end. An artistically prepared head of a horse is fixed to one of the baskets and a bunch of flex-fiber to the other. The dancer, dressed as a bridegroom in flowing costume and with sword in hand "adjusts the horse" on his waist in such a way as to create a realistic effect. Movements are jerky and angular. These dancers are called in to perform at marriages. In the Shekhawati area, the Kachhi Ghori dancers of Ganeri, Nechwa and Ramgarh are well known.

Geeder is danced by the tribes of the Shekhawati area. It begins fifteen days before Holi. In this, only men take part. Drums are kept on a raised platform and the dancers form circles. Sticks are also used. It resembles the Gher in many ways. In this and other dances, we observe the coalescing of the levels of agricultural functions and myths.

Costumes of the Dancers
The costumes of the dancers of Rajasthan either tribal or urban society, have many common elements. The closely gathered ghagra (skirt) is common to all the tribes and castes of Rajasthan. The design and the type of the skirt varies from region to region and the kind of material used also changes from level to level but bright-colored prints are common; particular prints are earmarked for special groups. The women wear long-sleeved cholis and have very large beautifully printed dupattas. The ornaments are both silver and gold. The Bhil tribes use silver, but the sophisticated women of the aristocracy prefer gold ornaments. A characteristic feature of the head ornament is the bolda which is a gold ornament with stones and is worn in the centre of the forehead; this is also a common ornament for the lowliest and the highest.

The characteristic costume of the men consists of a tightly worn dhoti with a traditional bandi and a turban. Although the type of the dhoti as also the long-sleeved bandis vary from region to region in Rajasthan, the manner of draping is common to practically all the communities of Rajasthan.

References:

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