*A month back, the National School of Drama (NSD) hosted a festival of children's folk art and theatre. Coming from different States across the country, the troupes comprising young boys and girls, presented their tribal folk dance drama which entralled the gathering at the festival.*
Typically, it was the traditional dance and drama from the little known villages, that kept the audience agog. Every art form was unique in itself, something which Delhiites don't get to see in cultural events. But when Metrolife interacted with the directors of the groups coming from Assam, Jharkhand and other States, it learnt to its dismay that folk dance-drama is in the throes of a slow death.
Philip Zaman Neog from Assam , who specialies in a dance specific to Mech Kesari tribe in Assam says, "There are total 165 tribal dance forms in the north east, out of which 37 are from Assam. Mech is one of the oldest tribes of Assam, so is its dance drama. What we generally perform is 'Byoshashi O Horai' which celebrates the harvest season. The songs talk about the flock of birds coming to eat the crops and how the farmer tries to save the harvest."
Philip has been extensively researching on Assam's folk theatre for 21 years now, and proudly claims that he has grown with and lived every moment of this dance. The choreography, Philip says, is no longer what it used to be a few decades ago. "Maximum choreography has changed now. The soul is unfortunately missing," he says. According to him, wherever they perform they get limited time and stage space. "We have to compromise with the quality a lot," says Philip in a disheartened tone.
"Since it's a tribal dance, there is no fixed rule. But in stage performance, we have to dance as per the stage set up and finish the act in limited time. Also, costumes have changed. They no more conform to the original standards. Earlier dresses used to be above the knee, now, it is uptill the ankles. Also, the colour used to be green, now bright colours like red and pink arre more popular to enhance the 'stage look'. The ethnicity and the authenticity are also lost," says Philip. Unfortunately, despite its hoary traditions, the dance-drama which has survived for more than a century, is now battling for
its existence.
Parmananda Nanda, from Dehrde village, a teacher of Kharsawan Chhau has accepted that changes will continue and that one needs to adapt to them. "There have been changes in the last few years, but since it is our cultural heritage it is important to keep it alive. For this if I have to introduce some modulations in the choreography then I will do it," says Parmanand.
Explaining about Kharsawan, he says, " People across the country are not much aware about this form of Chhau. It is a dance form specific to Jharkhand. Chhau means changing identity, so the dance form is more about abhinaya. And I am trying to make it more interesting by working on different themes, which is very different from the contemporary dance form," he says. Generally the dance form is based on history and mythology.
"The most popular is the story of Baali and Sugriv and pieces from Ramayana and Mahabharata. But now we are narrating stories that are relevant to social issues like environment, land encroachment and family dispute," he says. Truly a laudable effort to keep heritage alive. Reported by Deccan Herald 2 hours ago.
Typically, it was the traditional dance and drama from the little known villages, that kept the audience agog. Every art form was unique in itself, something which Delhiites don't get to see in cultural events. But when Metrolife interacted with the directors of the groups coming from Assam, Jharkhand and other States, it learnt to its dismay that folk dance-drama is in the throes of a slow death.
Philip Zaman Neog from Assam , who specialies in a dance specific to Mech Kesari tribe in Assam says, "There are total 165 tribal dance forms in the north east, out of which 37 are from Assam. Mech is one of the oldest tribes of Assam, so is its dance drama. What we generally perform is 'Byoshashi O Horai' which celebrates the harvest season. The songs talk about the flock of birds coming to eat the crops and how the farmer tries to save the harvest."
Philip has been extensively researching on Assam's folk theatre for 21 years now, and proudly claims that he has grown with and lived every moment of this dance. The choreography, Philip says, is no longer what it used to be a few decades ago. "Maximum choreography has changed now. The soul is unfortunately missing," he says. According to him, wherever they perform they get limited time and stage space. "We have to compromise with the quality a lot," says Philip in a disheartened tone.
"Since it's a tribal dance, there is no fixed rule. But in stage performance, we have to dance as per the stage set up and finish the act in limited time. Also, costumes have changed. They no more conform to the original standards. Earlier dresses used to be above the knee, now, it is uptill the ankles. Also, the colour used to be green, now bright colours like red and pink arre more popular to enhance the 'stage look'. The ethnicity and the authenticity are also lost," says Philip. Unfortunately, despite its hoary traditions, the dance-drama which has survived for more than a century, is now battling for
its existence.
Parmananda Nanda, from Dehrde village, a teacher of Kharsawan Chhau has accepted that changes will continue and that one needs to adapt to them. "There have been changes in the last few years, but since it is our cultural heritage it is important to keep it alive. For this if I have to introduce some modulations in the choreography then I will do it," says Parmanand.
Explaining about Kharsawan, he says, " People across the country are not much aware about this form of Chhau. It is a dance form specific to Jharkhand. Chhau means changing identity, so the dance form is more about abhinaya. And I am trying to make it more interesting by working on different themes, which is very different from the contemporary dance form," he says. Generally the dance form is based on history and mythology.
"The most popular is the story of Baali and Sugriv and pieces from Ramayana and Mahabharata. But now we are narrating stories that are relevant to social issues like environment, land encroachment and family dispute," he says. Truly a laudable effort to keep heritage alive. Reported by Deccan Herald 2 hours ago.