Dance is humanity's oldest expression. Dance is a living art, a true indicator of the health of a culture.
Unlike painting and sculpture, dance exists in time, not through time.
~ Witness the celebration of Dance in Odisha & Chhattisgarh ~
ODISSI
Odissi is one of the six acknowledged classical dance forms of India. Like all other Indian classical dances, for that matter like all Indian art forms, it has its initiation in Religion and Philosophy. It has its origin in the temples of Odisha. The Rhythm, Bhangis and Mudras used in Odissi dance have a distinct style of its own. Odissi dance is performed mainly with the theme of infinite love of Radha and Krishna. It is the most lyrical and graceful classical dance form of India. Evolved over the centuries this unspoilt and carefully preserved dance of Odisha is characterized by a fluid grace and captivating beauty exposed through its elegant postures, charming, gestures, and sensuous bends of body.
GOTIPUA
Gotipua-the earlier form of Odissi dance, is a fascinating folk dance of Puri where boys below 14 years ,clad in female dress ,dance to the tune at the music.In Oriya language, “Goti” means “single” and “Pua” means “boy”.For centuries, the Gotipua dance has been performed in Orissa by young boys who dress up as female to praise Lord Jagannath and Lord Krishna.The actual form of the dance is executed by a group of boys who perform acrobatic figures inspired by the life of Radha & Krishna. The boys start to learn the dance at an early age until the adolescence, when their androgynous look is fading.It is largely from the Gotipua dance that the present form of Odissi dance has been inspired. Most of the present-day Gurus of Odissi dance (like the famous Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra from Raghurajpur village) were Gotipua in their young days.
MAHARI
Maharis are the holy brides of Lord Jagannath. A piece of cloth taken from the idol is tied around the head of the initiate danseuse by the temple priest to symbolize her marriage to the deity of the shrine.Maharis are vowed to chastity thence. The Maharis were the temple dancers who performed for Lord Jagannath in the Jagannath temple in Puri, Orissa. Early Maharis performed mainly nrittya (pure dance) and abhinaya (interpretation of poetry) based on mantras & slokas, later Maharis, especially, performed dance sequences based on the lyrics of Jayadeba’s Gita Gobinda.It was a custom for Maharis to adopt daughters and train them for dance service in the temple. Thus the dance retained its artistic purity and sanctity for at least six hundred years.
DALKHAI
Dalkhai dance is the most popular folk dance of Western Orissa. It is known as Dalkhai because in the beginning and end of every stanza the word is used as an address to a girlfriend. The love story of Radha and Krishna, the episodes from Ramayana and Mahabaharata, the description of natural scenery are represented through the songs. The young women dance and sing intermittently. It is performed in various festivals such as Bhaijiuntia, Phagun Puni, Nuakhai, etc. This is mostly danced by young women of Binjhal, Kuda, Mirdha, Sama and some other tribes of Sambalpur, Balangir, Sundargarh, Bargarh, Nuapada and Kalahandi districts.The women generally dress themselves with the colourful Sambalpuri Sari and wear a scarf on the shoulders holding the ends below in both the hands.
GHUMURA
Ghumura Dance is a form of folk dance of Kalahandi district of state Orissa. The artists attach Ghumra or a typical drum to their chests and beat it with their hands, along with dancing. Therefore, the performer and the musician are the same in this dance.The typical mixed sound that comes out of the musical instruments like Ghumura, Nishan, Dhol, Taal, Madal etc. and the expressions and movements of the artists make this dance to be a “Heroic Dance”. Since thousands of years Ghumura dance has evolved from a war dance to a dance form for cultural and social activities.During the pre-independent era, the warriors were enticed by the Ghumura music and dance to enhance the spirit of fighting in them. It also helped them exercise and uplifted their spirits to fight for their rulers.
CHHAU
It is also called the Paiku nratya (battle dance). It is a tribal, martial dance form prevalent in the states of Orissa, Jharkhand and West Bengal. In fact, the name Chhau is derived from Chhauni (military camp). It has three sub genres based on location and is mainly performed during a regional festival, especially during the Chaitra parva,where they perform it in honor of the Cosmic God Shiva, known for his dance form Tandava.The three representative styles of Chhau are named according to the places where they developed, thus they are known as Seraikela Chhau, Mayurbhanj Chhau and Purulia Chhau. Mayurbhanj Chhhau of Orissa is the ultimate martial dance and one of its distinguishing feature is that it has discarded the use of masks as opposed to the prior two. This gives more freedom for movement and elaborate personal expression of the characters portrayed. Thus, this style has developed an exquisite utilization of the complete body language and it excels in choreography with movements that are said to be ” visual poetry.”
BISON HORN MARIA DANCE
This is a tribal dance of the Bison Horn Maria's of Chhattisgarh . The name of the tribe is derived from the head gear worn by the men when they dance. Made out of Bison horn and ornately hand crafted with beads, it is a very colourful dance. Men and women perform the dance together. While men wear their colourful head gear, women wear colourful dress with silver jewellery. Men beat drums as they dance. Women sing and join them in dancing. The dance is rhythmic in circles with easy steps. The women carry iron rod like structure and they hit the ground with it along with their steps! The dance is performed in festivals or during social occasions. .It is also connected to fertility cult and symbolizes the arrival of spring season which brings in greenery all around.