INDIAN FOLK DANCES

Art appreciation
INTRODUCTION
The Indian folk dance is a nourishment to
the daily life of people.
Dance, being a part of man's life from to
the primitive to the most cultured
community, appears to have evolved
even before he began to speak or paint.
The concept of portraying emotions
through folk dance has been original and
natural.
The Indian folk dance is performed to to
express joy.
In Hindu mythology, dance is believed to
have been conceived by Lord Bhramha.
He later then inspired the sage Bharata
Muni to write Natya Shashtra, a treatise
on performing arts , from which a
codified practice of Dance snd Drama
emerged.
 GARBA
The term “Garba” comes from the Sanskrit word
meaning “womb” or “deep” and bears a deep
symbolic interpretation.
Originating in Gujarat, this folk dance was first held
in Vadodara, a city which is now regarded as the
culture capital of Gujarat due to its robust religious
influence.
Garba is a Gujarati folk dance celebrated in
Navratri, a celebration lasting nine nights.
Garbasongs typically revolve around the subjects
of the nine goddesses.
Garba styles vary from place to place in Gujarat.
 COSTUME
The traditional clothing of the Garba dancer is red, pink,
yellow, orange, and brightly colored chanya, choli or
ghagra choli; dupatta with bandhani (tie-dye), abhla (big
mirrors) or with thick Gujarati borders.
They also wear heavy jewellery, such as 2-3 necklaces,
sparkling bangles, waist belts, and long oxidized earrings.
Traditionally men wear an ethnic kedia and a pajama or a
dhoti with an oxidized bracelet and necklace. Normally,
the dandiya sticks are Wooden.

Props -Garbi, Dandiya( , Heavy decorated

pots,Umbrellas and many
Rangma Folk Dance
The tribes of Nagaland are mostly war tribes. Weapons and
warfares tactics are an important part of their culture even in
the present day.
Multiple festivals, songs, and dances are representative of the
life of warriors. One such traditional dance is the Rangma
dance performed by the Naga people.
It is usually a part of the Ngada festival.
The Rangma dance depicts the war culture. The dancers dress
up like warriors and move in a rhythmic style with the beats of a
drum.
The dance is a highly energetic one and is performed by the
male folk of the tribe. Recently, few women also take part.
The men dress up like warriors. A broad piece of cloth is
wrapped around the chest. It goes over both shoulders
and forms a cross in the front.
From the waist, they attach an embroidered piece of cloth
that covers the front up to the knees, while the back
remains exposed.
A tuft of the feather is attached in the back that
represents the tail of a horse. On the head, they wear gear
tucked with multiple feathers
They wear metal jewelry in the ears and bead necklaces.
On the arms, they tie golden bands, and on the legs, they
wear red and white bands.
The colorful costume enhances the performance and
keeps the audience entertained throughout.

COSTUME
 Ghumar is a traditional folk Dance of

Ghumar of Rajasthan.
it was originally performed by the 'Bhil' tribe
to worship goddess Saraswati.
Rajasthasn The word Ghumar literally means ghoomna or
the twirling movemnts of dancers


Ghumar is performed exclusively by females since its origin.

No men under any circumstances were allowed to watch women
perform.
About costume:
The dancers adorn themselves with heavy
jewellery that leaves only their hands, feet and
forearms uncovered.
The main attraction of Ghumar lies in the
twirling sequence of lengha clad women when
they dance on folk songs with dhol beating
along.
The color and motifs of the ghagra make the dance extremly
appealing to watch.
The amount of zari work and the amount of emroidery also
indicates how rich the family is.
Famous songs: jawai ji pawna, Aave hichki
 BIHU
•The Bihu dance is an indigenous folk dance performed by both men
and women from Indian state of Assam. It is performed during the
Bihu festival and is an important part of Assamese culture.
1.History-
•found in the 9th century sculptures found in the Tezpur and Darrang
,Assam and in inscriptions of 14th century King Lakshminaryan .
2. Significance-
• associated to the fertility of nature, celebration of spring and the
welcoming of the life-giving spring rain. It is the cultural emblem
and symbol of the Assamese cultural identity.
3. Musical assistance- The men play the dhol , horn-pipes and flutes
for music.
4. Costumes and Makeup-
•The male members wear a dhoti .The gamocha is used as a head
band or tied at the waist.
• The women wear a skirt like garment known as Mekhala, and
chador is worn below it along with simple jewellery, flowers in hair,
big red bindi , red lipstick and alta on the hand .It is centered
around red to signify joy and vigour.
•5. Steps and performance-
•The dancing style is characterized by brisk steps, and rapid hand movements. The
men start playing the drums .
•The women then start to slowly move in tune with the music by swaying, while
bending slightly forward from the waist.
•Gradually, they open up the shoulders and place their legs slightly apart, adopting
the main posture used in the Bihu dance.
•Sometimes men and women form lines facing each other by holding each others neck
or waist , pairing up with each other.
•6. Notable dancers -Ranjit Gogoi's professional team of Bihu dancers

 BHANGRA
Bhangra is a type of traditional folk dance of Punjab, done in the
season of harvesting. According to Manuel and is especially
associated with the vernal Vaisakhi festival.
1.History
• Like most old traditional folk dances in the world, not much is known
about the history of bhangra. According to a few academic pieces of
research, bhangra has been speculated to have evolved from another
Punjabi dance, called ‘Bagaa,’ a type of martial dance.
• Bhangra itself came from the Sialkot district of Majha.
2.Significance
• It’s commonly performed by Punjabi farmers during harvesting
season as they labor. They perform a bhangra move on the spot for
every farming chore that they do. It’s a way for them to forget the
exhaustion and tiredness, allowing them to finish the harvesting in a
fun, pleasurable way.
• After the wheat is harvested and stowed away, the people here
usually host many festivals to celebrate the bountiful harvests where
they do Bhangra to mark the success of the season, showcase their
accomplishment and welcome new harvesting season.
3. Musical assistance
• Bhangra is usually accompanied by short songs called boliyan and
the beat of a dhol (double-headed drum).[3] Struck with a heavy
beater on one end and with a lighter stick on the other, the dhol imbues
the music with a syncopated (accents on the weak beats), swinging
rhythmic character that has generally remained the hallmark of
bhangra music.
• The three main props of bhangra are kunda saap and katos
4. Costume and makeup
· The men doing bhangra wear a kurta and a chadar. It is a long,
rectangular piece of unstitched cloth that the dancer will tie around
their waist. The female analogue to the chadr is the salwar. The salwar
is a loose-fitting pair of pants with pleats stitched in.
· Both men and women can wear a kurta. It is a long-sleeved, long-
form tunic that can lengthen all the way down to the wearer’s knees or
right above.A sleeveless vest is often worn over the kurta. Both of these
pieces have very vibrant coloring and they’re often embroidered with a
variety of eye-catching designs and patterns.

5.Steps
• Bhangra is usually danced in circles. The
dancers usually move their arms and
shoulders a lot during performances. Stunts
can also be pulled, too.Most of the original
dance moves are mimics of agricultural
works, like plowing, sowing, and harvesting.
• The dancers are going to execute highly
energetic moves like kicking in the air,
jumping and twisting their bodies, sharply
move their shoulders and hips, waving their
arms and clapping their hands to the rhythm
of the music.
• In a typical performance, several dancers
execute vigorous kicks, leaps, and bends of
the body—often with upraised, thrusting arm
or shoulder movements
6.Artists
• D.J. Rekha was one of the first South Asian
women to bring popularity to bhangra in the
U.S by introducing her Basement Bhangra
Parties.
KATHAKALI of
KERALA
Traced back to at least the 1st millennium BC
Fully developed around the 17th century BC
Derived from the word “katha” which means
story or a conversation or a traditional tale and
“Kali” means performance or play.
It is native to Malyaalam speaking region of
Kerala
practiced and appreciated by malyali people.
 It symbolises the eternal fight between good and evil
It incorporates the most intricate make-up code, costume, face
masks, head dress and brightly painted faces among all Indian
classical dance form.
There are seven fundamental makeup codes.
The three major drums that are used qrw Itaykka’, ‘centa’ and
‘Maddalam’.
Some important musical arrangements are:
Cempata- used in different sequences like during combat between
good and evil and while concluding a scene.
Atanta-during scenes consisting of divine and virtuous characters.
Muri Atanta-during heroic, comic and light-hearted acts; ‘Triputa’ in
scenes involving teachers and sages.
Pancari-during repugnant scenes.

 One of the famous devotional dances of Bengal is

Gombhira , the sacred devotional dance performed
by worshippers of Shakti.

Originated in the Bengal region in the eastern part

of Indian subcontinent(West Bengal) and
northwestern Bangladesh.

GOMBHIRA These performances are centred around the malda

district.

It is performed along with musical instruments like

OF harmonium, flute, drum and judi.

Named “Gambhira” because it is performed in

WEST the dance hall of the Chandi mandir- Gambhira,

which has a specially constructed pavilion in
front of the shrine

BENGAL
Your paragraph text

GOMBHIRA
OF
WEST
BENGAL
LAVANI
Lavani is a combination of traditional song and
dance.
Is associated with the state of Maharashtra.
Derived from the word 'Lavanya' meaning
beauty.
Originated as a form of morale booster for
warring troops during the 18th and 19th century.
Performed to the beats of dholak with
manjeera, tuntuni and daf.
Saree worn by the performers known 'Nauvari'.
 Two types of Lavani:
Nirguni Lavani - Philosophy
Shingari Lavani - Sensuality
Famous lavani dancers - Kantabai Satarkar,
Surekha Punekar,
Mangala Bansode, Roshan Satarkar.
 RAAS LEELA
Raas Leela dance is originated from the state
of MANIPUR.
Based on Hindu-Vaishnavism themes and
exquisite performances of love inspired dance
drama of Radha Krishna.
Is originated from Manipur but has it's roots in
Natya-Shastra.
This dance was part of Meite community's
cultural practice with roots in Jagoi.
Chali is the basic dance movement in Manipuri dance.
The dance performance centers around the love between Radha and
Krishna in the presence of Gopis.
POTLOI costumes are worn by the dancers of which the most notable
is the KUMIL.
The Pung, small kartals, sembong, harmonium, and a flute are the
instruments used while the performance.
Famous dancers in the field- Yumlembam Gambhini Devi, Guru Bipin
Sinha, Darshana Jhaveri, Nirmala Mehta.
 CHHAU DANCE
• Chhau dance, also spelled as chhou dance is a
semi classical Indian dance with martial and folk
traditions.
• It is found in 3 styles named after location where
they performed ie the purulia, chhau of West
Bengal, the seraikella chhau of jharkhand and the
Mayurbhanj chhau of odisha
•The dance ranges from celebrating martial arts,
acrobatics and athletics
• It is performed in festive themes with religious
themes found in shivism, shaktism and
Vaishnaism.
• The costumes vary between styles with purulia
and serakuila to identify characters.

• The stories enacted by chhau dancers include those from Hindu epics the
ramayana and mahabharata, the puranas and other Indian literature.
• The chhau dance is a syncertic dance form that emerged from a fusion of
classical Hindu dances and traditions of ancient regional tribes
• The dance is traditionally an all males troupe regionally celebrated particularly
during spring every year.
.
Koli Dance of Goa
Koli Dance is a popular folk dance of the Maharashtra and Goa states of
India. It was created by Kolis of Mumbai.
The Koli Dance reflects the rhythm of the sea waves and all of the festivals of
Kolis always celebrate with Koli dance.
 Both men and women participate in the Koli dance performance. Since
the Koli community is attached to the sea and fish, the Koli dance
performance is very close to nature.
Men hold the stick and women jump along with the movement of the
stick.

Costume:
The costumes that they wear are unique, sometimes women wear green color
sarees and men wear lungis. This dance mainly shows their hardships of
catching the fish which is the only source of their livelihood.
 Kolattam
Kolattam dance is an ancient village folk art

performed in the Tamil Nadu state of India. It is a

stick dance performed only by women.

It is also know as Kolannalu or Kolkolannalu.
Mostly the dance theme is based on Ganga Gouri Samvadam, fight

between Lord Shiva’s two wives Goddess Ganga and Goddess

Parvathi.
Kolattam dance consists of different

dancing movements. Body tilting,

footsteps and other body movements

are essential to the dancer during the

dance performance.
This dance form is performed during

local village festivals. It offers a great

variety of entertainment not only to

viewers but also to the participants.
Performance:
The dance is performed by 8 to 40 artists as a group and each two artists grouped as a pair.
Each one holds the two sticks and moves the sticks according to their leader movements.
The leader means a person handles the whole performance of the group.
Actually, there are two circles formed before dance performance,
One group is around the inner circle and another one is around the outer circle.
The circles move in opposite directions by following the rhythmic dance and hit the sticks from
two circle artists with rhythmic sounds.
Costume of this dance is
mainly traditional. They
wear ornaments to
complete their look which
mainly comprises a
necklace, bangle and ear
ring. They also tie their hair
in a bun or plait and adorn
it with decorative flowers
and ornaments.
Hojagiri
Hojagiri dance is one of the famous dances of Tripura. The dance is

performed on the occasion of HOJAGIRI Festivals or Laxmi puja, held in

the following full moon night of Durga puja. generally after the 3rd day

of Dashera. The Goddess Laxmi is worshipped with full reverence and

devotion on this day

This dance form has 4 to 6 individuals, all of whom are women who

perform this dance.

The male members participate in singing the lyrics, playing the Kham

and Kshumu(wind instrument). The lyrics are very simple. But the

performance is quite unique.

Every performer needs to use a Kalash, a traditional lamp, a bottle, a Baling

formed from a cane used for rice washing, a handkerchief, a pitcher, and a

simple plate in this dance form.

The movement of their hands and even the upper body is somewhat

restricted, whereas the movement from their waist down to their feet creates

a wonderful wave.
The Reangs also use musical instruments such as the Khamb, a bamboo flute,

and a bamboo cymbal.

The Reang women prefer to wear Pachra and Rea in black. Reang women

wear a coin ring that covers their entire upper region.

In addition, they wear coin rings in their ears. They enjoy using fragrant flowers

as ornaments.
Slow hip and waist movements are seen in this type of dance form. This dance

pattern takes 30 minutes to complete.

This dance genre depicts the complete Jhum or

Huk growing process. This dance genre is similar

to Hukni dance in certain ways, but the distinction

is in the beat.
This type of dance is quite popular all around the

world, and it is often featured in international

cultural programmes.
 GAUR MARIA DANCE
Gaur Maria dance is performed in plateau of Bastar in chhatisgarh.
It is performed on the occasion of marriage and is believed that it is performed
with more joy.
Men put head-dresses with stringed 'cowries' and plumes of peacock feathers.
Women ornamented with brass, fillets and beads necklaces with tattooed bodies
The men beat the drums tossing the horns and feathers of their head-gears
It is performed to praise the spirit of hunting among tribe.
Here hunting procedure is depicted while dancing.