Originally posted by: Bhaskar.T
A dance worth watching 😊 Love the rhythmic steps of the dance.
Great articles. Just read the article by P C Baruah. Thanks Barnalidi and Vinnie. Will read the rest too now.
Bhaskar, BTW I am not a bad bathroom dancer, that too in a Delhi winter morning, when late for work and hot water is not coming. Can give a good competition to Micheal Jackson in such situation.😉
Originally posted by: musicbug
Bhaskar, BTW I am not a bad bathroom dancer, that too in a Delhi winter morning, when late for work and hot water is not coming. Can give a good competition to Micheal Jackson in such situation.😉
😆 - Pranjal...I can literally visualize you giving a mind boggling performance. Thandey thandey paani se nahana chahiye...😆
There is a dance done with bamboos...the dancers jump across the bamboos in a rhythmic way while the bamboos are made to shift....a really beautiful and challenging dance form.Is that from assam too ?
Rongali Bihu Celebrations at Delhi
Sun, 23 Apr 2006 01:45:42 -0700
Assam Association, Delhi celebrated Rongali Bihu Festival on 21st April, at Samaj Sadan, Laxmibai Nagar, New Delhi 110023 in the presence of a huge audience of about 900 in traditional fervour. The attendance was large by Delhi standard, despite being celebrated on a working day. The function started with the felicitation of the Chief Guest Shri Tarun Chandra Gogoi, Hon'ble Chief Minister of Assam, Dr. B B Bhattacharjee, Vice Chancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru Unibversity and Shri Ajit Kumar Hazarika, Director (Onshore), ONGC and lighting of the ceremonial lamp by the Hon'ble guests.
The function succeeded with the release of the "Samayik"- the magazine of the association by Dr. Hemeswar Dihingia, the septuagenarian writer. The magazine is edited by Smt. Protima Thakuria and cover design was tastefully done in Bihu motif by Ms. Priyanka Das. The magazine has a mix of writings, experience sharing, poems, news, and other variety articles by established and amateur writers.
The Choir of the association presented a "quorus"- "Xurore Deulore Rupore Xhiloki Bhangi Chingi dili Pujari O.." By Kalaguru Bishnu Rabha as a tribute to Bhupenda, who is recuperating. Therafter a huchori was presented by the 'Kirtan Sangha'. Youngest girls of the association rendered a bihu to show the continuum of the great cultural heritage. Among others artists Dwipen Lahkar, Robin Kalita, Doli Das, Murchana Borkakti, Devina Saikia, rendered solo Bihu songs. Ms. Ayushika Barman presented a creative dance on the song by Pulak Banerjee- 'Phulore Melate.. Ms. Rimjhim and Jhilmil Pathak performed a bihu dance to treat the crowd.
The main attraction was an assemblage of an orchestra by artists Hemanta Saikia, Dr. Jeet Patwari, Pranab Sangam, Nabin. They accompanied all the artists and provided the required musical mix.
Finally main bihu was performed by the youth team of the association, who came from different parts of Delhi and NCR. After the bihu "mukoli bihu' – the free for all bihu went on by another one hour, where everyone tried their vocal chords and gyratitc skills. A simple yet decent dinner was served at the end of the function.
Rongali Bihu celebrated by the association has attained a central character and is an important day in the calendar of the Assamese folks here. In recent bihu is beign celebrated in different pockets on the actual bihu day. This year there were reports of bihu celebrations at Assam Bhawan, Chanakyapuri; Pragjyotishpur Apartments, Shalimar bagh, Rohini, Gurgaon, Faridabad etc.
The central bihu "Notun Dilli Rongali Bihu Sanmiloni" is held about a week after the bihu day
Some famous lyricists and singers and composers from assam.
L Y R I C I S T S
Jyoti Prasad Agarwalla | Navakanta Barua | Rudra BaruaRomen Barua | Rudra Barua | Parvati Prasad Baruva
Pratima Barua-Pandey | Birendranath Datta | Zubeen Garg
Bhupen Hazarika | Jayanta Hazarika | Khagen Mahanta
Rameswar & Dhanada Pathak | Dilip and Sudakshina Sarma
Prabhat Sarma | Dipak Sharma | Parveen Sultana
she with bhupen hazarika are the favourites of mine.😛 i am not sure but we hav possibly discussed pratima barua i think.
Originally posted by: adi_0112
😆 - Pranjal...I can literally visualize you giving a mind boggling performance. Thandey thandey paani se nahana chahiye...😆
There is a dance done with bamboos...the dancers jump across the bamboos in a rhythmic way while the bamboos are made to shift....a really beautiful and challenging dance form.Is that from assam too ?
Adi, see the highlighted portion
The North-East India
Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura...
by Dr. B.R. Kishore
The north-east India, popularly known as the "Land of Seven Sisters", is characterized by simple and exotic tribals, lofty mountains, lush valleys, dense forests teeming with varied flora and fauna, fascinating scenery and pastoral life amidst isolated splendour. Ethnically, the area, very rich and varied in dance and music, presents a complex pattern of large tribal population. The multi-layered and intricate cultural design makes difficult if not impossible the classification and categorization of the hill and tribal folk comprising over seventy-five percent of the total population of the area.
Assam, remote, exotic and an extravaganza of landscape scenery, lies in the extreme north-east corner of India. Assam is bounded in the north by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh, in the east by Nagaland and Manipur, in the south by Mizoram, Tripura and Meghalaya, and in the west by Bangladesh and West Bengal. Drained by the mightly River Brahmputra and a network of its tributaries, Assam presents a vast canvass of varied tropical flora and fauna including the last of that endangered species, the one horned Indian rhino, sprawling tea carpets, lofty hills, deep valleys and a simple but spectacular tribal life.
Lying at the foothills of the Himalaya, the abode of gods, Assam is linked to the rest of India by an isthmus winding its way between Bhutan, Bangladesh and Nepal. Assam is a land where clouds float at your feet, hills emerge from its bosom and soar high like a chorus, and panorma changes with unbelievable frequency. It is here that one feels the freshness of the very first dawn of creation and has the ecstasy of almost touching the sweet dreams with his fingers. Far from the madding crowd, it is altogether another world, a walking reverie you are traveling through.
Meghalaya is inhabited chiefly by Khasi, Jaintia and Garo Tribes; in these tribes power and land, etc. are inherited only through women. They have their distinct culture in spite of the fact that most of them have been converted to Christian faith. They still follow their time honoured traditions such as erecting monolithic stones to their ancestors and celebrating the festival of Great Sacrifice marked with tribal rituals, dances, color and gaity. Over 80 per cent of its population are engaged in agricultural activities.
Nagaland with its administrative seat at Kohima is a narrow long strip of hills running almost parallel to the River Brahmputra. The entire region is covered with hills, spurs, ridges and mountain slopes. The highest and awe-inspiring mountain peak Japvo, 2,995 meters, lies south of Kohima. It is a fascinating country with healthy climate, fertile soil, well-cultivated, drained and manured terraced fields of paddy. Rice is Naga's staple diet supplemented by meat and fish.
The term "Naga" is derived from Sanskrit "Nag" and literally means "hill-men". Nagaland is the home of Indo-Mongoloid hill-tribe known as Nagas. While the majority of the Nagas live here, a great number of them remain outside in the border states of Assam, Arunachal and Manipur. The term "Naga" covers many tribes. They are a warrior race, tall, robust, hardworking, gay, brave, self-reliant, artistic, freedom-loving, good looking and possess an inborn instinct for color and intricate designs. They are also noted for their keen sense of humour, splendid war dances and songs. The grisly sport of Head-hunting was in vogue till recently in some tribal pockets, but it has now completely died out. Most of the Naga villages are at a height of three to four thousand feet and the majority of population is on the hills and higher elevations, and the foothills are with little population. The land is drained by many rivers and streams. The Nagas are very particular about their dress and it is well highly impossible to beat a Naga man or woman in his or her ceremonial finery. Women are held in high and honorable position. Over 90 per cent of Naga population depend on agriculture. And over 70 per cent of people are Christian by faith.
Tripura is named after a tribe. "Tipra", that inhabited the state and to which the ruling house of Tripura belonged. Tripura is actually a Sanskritized form of early Bodo name, Tipra by which the aborigines were known.
Arunachal Pradesh, rich in varied flora and fauna, is the home of a large number of tribes of different socio-economic and religious pattern. These are Buddhist tribes, Vaishnavite tribes and others with their own distinctive ways of life, living side by side in perfect communal harmony and peace. Studded with hills and valleys and comprising frontier divisions of Kemeng, Tirap, Subansiri, Lohit and Siang, Arunachal is predominantly rural and pastoral. About 94 per cent of its total population of 6,31,839 live in 3,257 villages. About 62 per cent of its area is under forest cover.
The tribes of Mizoram are of Mangolian stock and the Lushais form the main tribal group. Lushais are the dominant tribe and most of Mizo chiefs of old were from this ethnic group. Over 90 percent of the population is Christian.
Bihu is the most important festival of Assam; equally popular both among tribal and non-tribal population of the State. It is celebrated three times every year both by men and women. Of these three, Baisakh Bihu is of the greatest significance. It is observed during first week of the Indian New Year. The other two Kartika and Megha Bihu come in autumn equinox and winter solstice respectively. On these occasions, after early morning ablutions, the people visit each other exhausting sweets, gifts and good wishes; worship the cows and other cattle and then follows in the evening the seasons of dance and music in groups called the Husari. They collect in the open and begin at slow tempo in a circle. One of the participants sings the refrain and the rest follow him in a chorus. Gradually the tempo increases leading to a crescendo. The musical accompaniment includes the drum (dhol), the cymbals (tala), the bamboo clappers (tokka), the paupa (buffalo horn) and flutes.
This very captivating and pulsating performance is also held under the shade of huge trees to the accompaniment of thrilling instrumental music and vocal songs comprising couplets which are repeated over and over again. They begin in a circle but break up into groups and execute fine choreographic designs, patterns and figures, the drummer leads the performance by singing the refrain and drumming and dancing it.
It is really an unforgettable experience to participate and watch these dances in the night illuminated by torches. The dancers, men and women, boys and girls, from far and near congregate and converge at one appointed place in the open or under a huge tree and begin the ritualistic dance. They dance and interpret the songs pertaining to love and romance with gestures, mime and mimble footwork. The songs are marked with their liquid lyrical charm, rich poetical strain and ideas and enchanting melody. But these songs vary in contents from tribe to tribe and place to place. For example, the neo-tribal songs are different from those of the Bodos, the Garos, or the Ahoms.
The Jatras offer another occasion for dance and music. The Jatra festival commences with the celebration of Holi when the image of Lord Krishna is taken out on a journey in a palanquin and then back after two days amidst dancing, music and theatrical performances. It is celebrated in many parts of Assam, but the festival observed at Berpeta in Kamrupa district is of special significance. It is a great center of Vaishnava Bhakti cult and the occasion is observed with great enthusiasm, devotion, singing and dancing sessions. Lord Krishna is taken out from and his shrine in a big procession and the people play Holi with much gaiety and exuberance to the accompaniment of devotional songs, instrumental music and dancing. Being without much codification and rules, the Jatra dancing provide a great occasion for rich enjoyment of secular and erotic singing, dancing and theatrical performances.
The dance-drama known as Bhaona is another popular item of Assam. The performance which may sometimes run for several nights, generally begins after night meals around nine p.m. and continues till day-break. It begins with the playing on khols (drums), invocative Kirtan and the appearance of the director or the Sutradhar who narrates the synopsis of the play through and song and dance. He is generally present on the stage throughout the performance and provides missing links in between by his expressional singing and dancing. The female roles are played by the males. The theme of these dance-dramas is invariably from Krishna legends. The plays, composed and written by Shankardeva, a great Vaishnava saint leader, are performed by troupes of various Stattras or monasteries established by Shankardeva. These troupes meet their expenses from the donations and other subscriptions made by the devotees for whom they enact these dance-drama full of religious fervour and exuberance.
The Oja Palli dances are perhaps the oldest Assamese traditional performances. Their scope and range is wide enough and it includes themes belonging to the Ramayana, the Mahabharata and the various Puranas. They may be performed on the occasion of the worship of the snake-goddess Mansa Devi or any other occasion. The Oja, with the help of his two assistants called Pallies, enacts these dances to the accompaniment of Khanjani a pair of small cymbals. They sing and dance and interpret the story through gestures of hands and other limbs and facial expressions. Their dance consists of simple broad rhythmic footwork to the beat of cymbals.
The Nati-Nritya revives the memory of Devadasis of South India. The Natis are temple dancing girls who perform in temples on certain occasions. The female dancers, financed and supported by the temples, have to lead unmarried life and perform in the temples. Such Natis are still there in certain temples as in Hazar Haya Griva Mandir, near Nalbari at Hazu in Kamrupa district, the Kamakhya temple at Gauhati and Vishvanathghat temple at Darrang in Shibsagar district. Many other Shiva temples in Assam had their own dancing girls in the past. These female dancers enacted and danced before the temple deity to the accompaniment of religious songs, drums and cymbals in the Devadasi tradition of South India.
The Naga is a generic term under which come many tribal communities spread all over the hills and plains of north-east India. Their dances have been conditioned by their environ, occupations, religious beliefs and practices and the social setup. Their cultural activities and especially their dances reflect varied aspects of their life-style in rhythmically movements and choreographical designs. Their dance repertoire is as rich as varied. Most of these dances are war-like and martial in essence.
The head-hunting or war dance is the most important. It is in vogue in almost all the Naga tribes with slight variation from one community to another. The dancers, dressed in ceremonial war costume and adorned with many silver, brass and iron ornaments, enter the dancing arena in a single file to the chant of a chorus. Soon they form single circle and attack the imaginary enemy with their spears held in the hands. They also thrust their spears at themselves in imitation of enemy attack and deftly avoid the attack. As the dance terminates there is a crescendo of shouts, cries and calls. Obviously, there is no musical accompaniment and the chant and shouts of the dancers themselves provide the background music. Characterized by primeval grandeur, brandishing of flashing spears and many attacking stances and postures, it is a spectacular performance which only the Nagas can do.
The Bamboo dance is popular among the Kuku and the Mizo Nagas. In it four long bamboo poles are used across one another so as to form squares which can be closed and opened by the men holding the bamboo poles at the ends to the beating of the drums. The dancers deftly hope on one foot outside the cross when it is closed and then inside the squares when they are open. Generally done by girls and women, it presents a complex spectacle with two or more dancers performing skillfully in and out of the squares to the fast beating of the drums. The dance begins at a slow tempo but as the drumming increases, the dance grows faster and faster into a vortex of very quick footwork, clapping and fast drumming.
A solo dance is an exception among the Nagas and the group dances are the rule. The Kabuis have many colorful and inspiring dances. Both men and women, boys and girls perform together to the loud beating of a big drum. The audience collect in the village green and stand around the dancers. The Kabui women also have a dance done only by themselves. They begin in a squatting posture singing and waving their arms and hands in a very supple manner in the air and on the ground. Gently and gradually they stand up and perform a very lively and graceful dance involving some very difficult rotating movements of the hips and left footwork, change of positions and kicking high up of the legs in the air. It is performed as a ritual to propitiate the local deities.
Nongkrem is an important dance of the Khasis. It is danced annually at Smit, near Shillong during a week long ceremonial rites and rituals when many fowls and goats are sacrificed to propitiate the mother goddess. In the dancing arena of the shrine a number of unmarried and virgin girls perform this dance on the occasion of the Puja rituals to the accompaniment of cymbals, drums and flutes. The Nongkrem dance is done on main Puja day from early morning till evening. The girls dressed in their ceremonial best and adorned with various costly jewellery dance with their hands hanging on both sides and the eyes looking down. They shuffle their feet forward and backward in the center while an equal number of male dancers dance a kind of martial dance around them in a circle. When they recede two semicircles are formed and when come forward a full circle is made. The movements of the male dancers comprising whirls, pirouettes and spins are larger. They hold naked swords and shields in their hands which they brandish rhythmically. Sometimes they hold flywhisks instead and wave them towards the dancing girls. The orchestra men called the Dhulias play their instruments in the corner of the arena on a raised platform while the dance continues. The audience sits or stands up around the arena.
The Nruira Lim or Cock-fighting dance is full of great excitement and fun. Popular among the young Naga boys and girls, it can be performed anywhere and at anytime of the year. The boys and girls stand opposite each other in two rows and stage a mock cock-fight leaping and jumping back and forth and their heads raised and hands in motion like claws of the cocks. Similarly, there are many other dances performed as a sport. They are related to hunting in which various birds like hornbill, cock, etc. and animals like mithun, tiger, etc. are imitated and songs pertaining to these creatures are sung. Accompanied by songs, drums and cymbals, these dances done for the sheer joy of life and as an expression of community living, create a rich spectacle of rhythm and sound. Inspired and conditioned by their ecology, these imitative dances reveal their intimacy and close affinity with nature.
The Khamba Lim dance is a harvest dance performed both by men and women together. Popular among the Zemis, the Angamis and the Kabuis, it is enjoyed at the Zemis, the Angamis and the Kabuis, it is enjoyed at the beginning of the harvesting time to pay their tributes to the Mother Earth for her bounty and blessings. Danced ritualistically in two opposing rows of the male and female, the dancers may change their position but the rows are never broken. They do it to the beating of drums, sounding of horns and singing of the songs shuffling and stamping their feet, going round and round.
In Arunachal Pradesh also such dances as imitate the movements of the birds and animals are very popular. Besides the mock-fight, they indulge in the dances centered around the yak, the peacock, the deer and the tiger. The recreational value of these dances can hardly be overemphasized. The yak is an important animal for the hill tribes of Arunachal Pradesh. In the yak dance the story of a young man is interpreted who has been driven away from home and hearth by the father and how he comes across a yak and befriends him. Similarly in other animal dances some beautiful stories underlining the intimacy and love between man and beasts are told and danced and their movements imitated. In the cock-fighting, the dancers use masks of the cocks and perform to the loud beating of drums, cymbals and gongs. The people of Arunachal also have their harvest, ritual, religious, marriage and birth dances too numerous to be recounted here. The female dances are characteristic for their delicate slow movements, small steps and interlocking at the waist, while those of men are without such interlocking patterns.
In Tripura there are many non-Naga tribes and they are agriculturists and practice shift or jhoom cultivation. Many of their dances are concerned with sowing and harvesting. A well known dance of Riang tribe of Tripura is performed to propitiate and worship Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and plenty. It is done during harvesting time. They call Lakshmi as the goddess Hajagiri and so the dance is known as Hajagiri dance. In it both men and women participate. The dance begins at slow but terminated at a very fast tempo.
In the valley of Manipur live many non-Naga tribes and they have their own distinct dance and music traditions. Besides the famous Lai Haraoba, they have numerous other dances connected with hunting, harvesting, animal and bird life, rituals, rites and various ceremonies. The Lam is a generic term which is applied to every chan Lam and so on. The Keet Lam is a cricket dance and the Khongi Lam is concerned with birds in which their gaits, etc. are initiated and danced. Chawng Chan Lam is a significant and very popular ceremonial dance of the hill tribes of Manipur performed by men of a particular village and the neighbouring villages. It has many touches of a martial dance and is followed by a grand feasting at the expenses of a tribal chief. The generic term Lam also remind us the so well known Poong Cholam and Karial Cholam, the tandava dances of the drums and the cymbals respectively. This valley has given us, above all, one of the most famous classical dances popularly known as Manipuri based on noblest dance traditions and philosophical thinking.
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