Tribal Dances of India

India is a land of bewildering diversity. People of diverse faiths and religions bind together in a great melting pot to form one colorful mosaic. The Indian calendar is a long procession of festivals: a festival for every reason and for every season. The colorful fairs and festivals of India owe their allegiance to religious or historical events or to the change of seasons. Every celebration centers around the rituals of prayers, seeking blessings, exchanging goodwill, decorating houses, wearing new clothes, music, dance and feasting. They reflect the vigor of the lifestyle of its people. Vibrant colors, music and festivities make the country come alive throughout the year.

Far from the maddening crowd of the cities of India, secluding themselves in remote hills and jungles, live the adivasis, the natives of the land. The isolation has given each adivasi tribe a distinct culture, language, dress sense, ornamentation and food habit. One thing that however is common to them all is their way of entertainment through singing and dancing. They dance merrily in groups singing in chorus, playing indigenous instruments.

Almost all adivasi groups have their own routine of group dancing. The dancing is mainly footwork, movement in circles and formations. The dance movements often is taken from their daily work, like reaping harvest, sowing seeds, grinding grains, hunting and fighting skills. Singing and dancing for them is often in the evening after a hard day’s work, or occasional, coinciding with marriage, harvesting, full moon day, spring and autumn seasons, religious beliefs and so on.

The melody, footwork and rhythm are the key elements of Adivasi dance. Though the dance forms have minimal facial expressions the collective expression of joy through body movements thrills the audience. The patterned movements of the dancers are varied, from slow and simple body movements to dynamic and rapid movements.

Santhali Dance, West Bengal, Jharkhand & Odisha

The most renowned are the dances of Santhals, the third largest tribe of India, found in West Bengal, Jharkhand, Orissa and Assam. Such is the rhythm of their Tamak, tumda drums that it is bound to touch the deep core of the heart. In the evening, with the flute Tirio playing, the women folk sing and dance in an arc, holding each other’s hand, with a lead drummer at the center. The rustic melody and the rhythm have universal appeal. They dance during Karam festival marking the end of rainy season and Disum sendra festival. The dancing has a boldness reflecting the nature of the Tudus, Murmus, Baskeys, Kore, Marandi, Soren and Hembroms.

Bamboo Dance, Mizoram

The bamboo dance of the Mizo people is also very famous. They wear feather headgears during dancing. With start of the earthly beats, men sitting on the ground both hands holding tightly onto one end of a bamboo each move the bamboos with the rhythm and young girls dance within the checkers in perfect sequence. The Mizo and Naga tribes are very colourfully dressed people. The North eastern tribes of India are warrior groups, so their all-male dance forms shows off the fighting instruments and their valor. The songs often sing of the past winnings and glories. The soothing sight of well ornamented ladies dancing elegantly with soft earthy tunes in the backdrop of the picturesque hilly landscape is a common sight as North Eastern India has a majority tribal population. The ladies weave their own dresses which they wear in the dancing rituals.

Kalbelia Dance, Rajasthan

Kalbelia Tribal Dance of Rajasthan is another very famous tribal dance, with dancers wearing gorgeous black ghagra choli and dancing in the tune of been. Moving in rounds and pulsating like a snake the dancers have a mesmerizing effect on the audience. The tune of the been creates the perfect atmosphere for the dance. Both men and women of Garasiya tribe also perform on various occasions like Holi festival, marriage etc. with accompanying musical instruments dhol and nagada.

Elelakkaradi Dance, Kerala

In Kerala, Elelakkaradi is a dance form of the Irular tribe. It depicts every stage of fighting with wild bears, which often attack their home. With drums beats and shouts, children, men and women show their heroism in facing the wild bears. The dance has a drama element to it.

Bhagoria Dance, Madhya Pradesh

In western Madhya Pradesh, the young Bhils, Bhilalas, Patalias and Ranths perform Bhagoria dances in their best fineries during the spring season and select partners for life.

Chhau Dance, West Bengal, Jharkhand & Odisha

Seraikella Chhau, Mayurbhanj Chhau and Purulia Chhau of Orissa, Jharkhand and West Bengal are highly evolved dance forms with movements and colourful masks. It is a martial tribal dance with combat techniques and often has a drama component in it. Chhau has become an art form by itself and the Mundas, Mahatos, Sahus get advance booking for performing it and teaching non tribals their dance style and the art of mask making.

Dhimsa Dance, Andhra Pradesh

In Andhra Pradesh, the Valmiki, Bagata, Khond and Rotia tribes are known for the Dhimsa dance. It is performed during weddings, special gatherings and during Chaitra month (March-April). Ladies in colourful sarees sing with spirited dances in circles. It has many variations of which one is Bhag Dhimsa which teaches skills to evade a tiger attack.

Shad Suk Mynsiem, Meghalaya

This dance is held to signify not just the advent of spring but also to express man’s gratitude to God for His bounty and blessings, for peace, tranquillity, happiness and love. It is a kind of Thanksgiving Dance. Amongst girls only the unmarried ones are allowed to participate while the men of all ages, married or unmarried, take part. The girls dance alone or in groups in the centre of a large circle formed by the men who go round the circle waving their white whisks.

The girls, dressed is yellow silk ‘dharas’, red long-sleeved blouse with silver armbands, golden necklaces and a silver crown, move in a shuffling kind of graceful movement with downcast eyes to show their demureness while the men prance around to exhibit their protection of the maidens. On a platform, a group of musicians play traditional instruments. The men wear ‘dhotis’ with a black sleeveless jacket and long silver necklaces and carry a decorated silver quiver with three arrows, signifying their commitment to protect their womenfolk, the community and their land.

The tribal dancing had been the contact point between the primitive and the modern. The modern city dwellers have always been curious of the lives of the tribals. To the city dweller it intrigues that such poor and hardship ridden people can be so joyful and merry. This advancing wave of the city culture often harms the stable simple lives. But that they are getting newer opportunities to showcase their dance to the world is definitely a welcome sign. Tribal tourism is at a nascent area, which is often seen in the form of nature walk to tribal villages. However enough care should be taken so as not to disturb and interfere with their life and habitat.

In the traditional culture of India, dance and music envelops the entire life of man in a shell of melodic sound. Dance and songs celebrate the seasonal rhythms in nature and the songs of the plough man and boatman, shepherd and camel driver, add harmony to the pulse of work. This folk tradition has been one great source of India’s culture, which is rich in spontaneity. The folk music and dances of India represent the melody, aesthetic values, and rustic ethos of the nation. The conduct of folk dances and music on occasions of temple festivals and community functions gives entertainment, myth and merry to villagers.

Folk Dances

The primary impulse of Indian folk dance is rhythm – a spontaneous expression of joy in times of deliberation. From the simple beat of the drum to the complex rhythm of a cultivated art, it is the love of rhythm that creates the dance. The folk dances and songs of the peasants, hill folk and aboriginal tribal peoples bring happiness and recreation to their simple communal life. Folk dances and plays that have their roots in religious and seasonal festivals have a cultural background and are a vital part of India’s artistic heritage.

Sanskrit literature of medieval India describes several forms of group dances: Charchari, Hallisaka, Talai-Rasaka, and Danda-Rasaka. Charchari was a dance in which girls entered in pairs and formed groups, dancing with sticks to mark the rhythm of the accompanying music.

Charchari was danced in spring in the honor of kings. The Brijvasis of Brindavan (childhood residence of Lord Krishna) performed the Charchari dance at temples and elsewhere during the Spring festival of Holi. Hallisaka was a herdsman’s dance performed on special occasions such as the coronation of kings. It was a circular dance of women led by one man, a dance in which both genders participated, the men and women being alternately arranged. Another version says Hallisaka is the dance of the Gopi’s (consorts of Lord Krishna) with Lord Krishna as a leader. It is known as Rasak or Ras. Ras also means a circle. There are two kinds of Rasak or Ras dance. Talai-Rasak, with rhythmic clappings of hands and Danda-Rasak in which each dancer marks the rhythm with a pair of sticks (danda).

The Natya Shastra defines group dances of women as a prelude to a drama. They are in four forms: Pindibandha (a group), Shrinkhala (chain form), Lata (creeper form of interwining) and Bhediyaka (the separate movement of each dancer away from the group).

Dance has been an essential part of folk culture. It is a spontaneous expression of joy in times of celebration. Folk dances are the rural extensions of the larger Indian population. Some of the popular folk dances of India are Garba, Bhangra, Bihu and Yaksha Gana.

Tribal Dances

India can boast of a vast tribal population belonging to diverse races and culture. The majority of this population inhabits the forests and hilly regions. Each of these tribes is marked for its own culture, different from others. It not only varies in their socio-economical life but also in religious ceremonies.

Tribals are the original forest dwellers and are found in every regions of India. Tribes of the northern part of India, stretched over Himalayas, practice from nomadic shepharding to primitive cultivation, Mongolian tribes of the North-east, the tribes from the dense forests of Baster and Chotanagpur and the tribes from South India, have a common dance form on the activities of hunting, fishing, food gathering and animal husbandry.

In the dances of plains and the thickly wooded plateau, one can see the exuberance and the gaity of the tribal way of life. The Gonds and Marias of Bastar, Oraons and Santhals of Chotanagpur all have a rich heritage of community dancing.

The most important aspect of tribal culture are music and dance. Among certain tribes young men cannot find brides unless they acquire special skills in dance and music. Dance and music are primarily meant to propitiate Gods and Goddesses. In social functions like marriage and feasting, dance is performed in a central place of the village or in the communal house and attended by almost all the tribesmen. Each tribe has its own pattern of dance and music. Some of the popular tribal dances of India are Santhali, Gaur and Lava.

State Wise Tribal And Folk Dances In India

Tribal and folk dances today provide the thread of continuity between the distant past and the present.

Maharashtra

Kathakeertan, Lezin, Dandaniya, Tamasha, Gafa, Dahikala, Lavani, Mauni, Dasavtar.

Karnataka

Huttari, Suggi Kunitha, Yakashagana

Kerala

Kaikottikali, Kaliyattam, Tappatikkali

Tamil Nadu

Kolattam, Pinnal Kolattam, Kummi, Kavadi, Karagam

Andhra Pradesh

Ghanta Mardala, Veedhi Natakam, Burrakatha.

Orissa

Ghumara Sanchar, Chadya Dandanata, Chhau

Gujarat

Garba, Dandiya Rass, Tippani, Gomph.

Rajasthan

Ginad, Chakri, Gangore, Terahtaal, Khayal, Jhulan Leela, Jhuma, Suisini

West Bengal

Kathi, Chhau, Baul, Kirtan, Jatra, Lama.

Assam

Bihu, Khel Gopal, Rash Lila, Tabal Chongli, Canoe

Punjab

Giddha (women), Bhangra (men).

Jammu & Kashmir

Rauf, Hikat

Himachal Pradesh

Jhora, Jhali, Dangli, Mahasu, Jadda, Jhainta, Chharhi

Haryana

Jhumar, Ras Leela, Phag dance, Daph, Dhamal, Loor, Gugga, Khoria, Gagor

Bihar

Jata Jatin, Jadur, Chhau, Kathaputli, Bakho, Jhijhiya, Samochakwa, Karma, Jatra, Natna

Uttar Pradesh

Nautanki, Thora, Chappeli, Raslila, Kajri.

Indian Folk & Tribal Dances

Indian folk and tribal dances are simple dances, and are performed to express joy and happiness among themselves. Folk and tribal dances are performed for every possible occasion, to celebrate the arrival of seasons, birth of a child, a wedding and festivals. The dances are extremely simple with minimum of steps or movement. The dances burst with verve and vitality. Men and women perform some dances exclusively, while in some performances men and women dance together.

Classical Dances in India

Indian classical dance, or Shastriya Nritya, is an umbrella term for various performance arts rooted in religious Hindu musical theatre styles, whose theory and practice can be traced to the Sanskrit text Natya Shastra.