Dandiya

 

The Great Indian Social Dances: Dandiya Raas

Indian culture has been shaped by its long history, and its diverse geography. The ancient heritage of the Indus Valley Civilization has been preserved even while absorbing customs, traditions, and rituals from both immigrants and invaders.

India’s different religions followed by its vast populace have contributed to making its culture as diverse and unique it is. The epics of Hinduism the Ramayana and the Mahabharata which serve as folk epics have greatly influenced Indian culture.

The fabric of Indian folk culture has been spun with yarns from different cultures; the Persian, Arabic, Turkish, and English cultures. And it is this cultural diversity that makes Indian folk culture interesting and colourful.

Indian folk culture is so varied that it would be difficult to generalise it. However, as with all folk cultures it has been handed down by oral tradition, and has a strong sense of community. In a country whose cities boast of contemporary dancing classes, it is refreshing to see folk dance continue to hold its ground. It remains an integral part of India’s culture.

Folk dance is a traditional dance of the common people of a region. The folk dances of India are as high in number as the dialects spoken in the country. Each state has its own folk and tribal dances. From the north to the south and from the east to the west, the folk and tribal dances have rich and vibrant hue. Indian folk dances have relatively greater free play, expression of feelings, emotions and sentiments than classical forms.

Generally very fast moving and energetic, these dances are the main attractions of every festival or fair in villages as well as in the cities. The theme is connected with the performer's life, daily activities, environment, various moods and seasons. Folk dances are also based on the religious mythologies and are performed in groups. Like the Raas or Dandiya Raas of Vrindavan, India, where it is performed depicting scenes of Holi, and lila of Krishna and Radha. Along with Garba, Dandiya Raas is also the featured dance of Navratri evenings in Gujarat, India. Folk dances imbibe new influences and at the same time maintain tradition and continuity.

The Inception of Dandiya

The word “Raas” came from Sanskrit word “Ras”. The origins of Raas can be traced back to ancient times. According to Hindu mythology, Lord Krishna spent the early days of his life in Gokul. There, he charmed the natives by playing the flute and dancing. He performed Raas Lila with the Gopis, which is remembered till date. After he became the ruler of Dwarka, he patronized folk songs and dances in his kingdom.

Since then, the Gujaratis have maintained the tradition and preserved the heritage of “Raas” in all its glory. There are several forms of Raas, but “Dandiya Raas”, performed during Navaratri in Gujarat is the most popular of them all. The name “Dandiya” came from the plural of the Hindi word “dandi” meaning a stick. The main feature of this raas is the sticks that are used rhythmically in the dance. These sticks are called “Dandiya” hence giving the name of to this particular dance. Other forms of Raas include Dang Lila of Rajasthan where only one large stick is used, and “Rasa Lila” from North India. Some even consider “Garba” as a form of Raas, namely “Raas Garba”.

The “Dandiya Raas” dance originated as devotional Garba dances, which are performed in Goddess Durga’s honor during Navratri. Navratri as per meaning signifies Nine Nights which are dedicated to the Divine Mother or “Ma Shakti”. This festival is celebrated in the month of Ashvin Sud from 1^st to 9^th September or October. Navratri is the longest celebrated Indian festival.

The Nine different incarnations of Durga those are worshipped during Navratri are;

·        Durga :- goddess beyond reach.

·        Bhadrakali :- the auspicious power of time.

·        Amba or Jagdamba :- mother of the world.

·        Annapurna :- giver of food and plenty.

·        Sarvamangala :- auspicious goddess.

·        Bhairavi :- terrible, fearful, power of death.

·        Chandika or Handi :- violent, wrathful, furious.

·        Lalita :- playful.

·        Bhavani :- giver of existence.

The Dandiya Raas dance form is actually the staging of a mock-fight between Goddess Durga and Mahishasura, the mighty demon king. This dance is also nicknamed ‘The Sword Dance’. The two sticks used by the dancers for the dance represent the sword of Goddess Durga. During the dance, dancers energetically whirl and move their feet and arms in a complicated, choreographed manner to the tune of the music with various rhythms. The dhol is used as well as complementary percussion instruments such as the dholak, tabla and others.

While Garba is performed before Aarti i.e. the worshipping ritual as devotional performances in the honor of the Goddess, Dandiya is performed after it, as a part of merriment. Men and women join in for Dandiya Raas, and also for the Garba. The circular movements of Dandiya Raas are much more complex than those of Garba. Today, Dandiya Raas is not only an important part of Navratri in Gujarat, but extends itself to other festivals related to harvest and crops as well. 

The Vibrancy of Dandiya Raas

Dandiya is a mesmerizing poetry of human movements in tune to captivating rhythmic beats, intermittent jingling sound of bells and clattering of sticks, with electrifying flow of colours and light. Dandiya is usually played in a group, by both men and women. The special feature of the dance is the colorful attire such as embroidered choli, ghagra and bandahni dupattas, dazzling with mirror work and heavy jewellery worn by the women and special turbans and kedias worn by the men. The colorful sticks carried by them are used as prop and are beautifully decorated. It is for this reason the dance is also called the 'Stick Dance'. These sticks are usually made of bamboo, painted in different colors to make them look attractive. The performers hold sticks in both their hands and strike them together on the beats of the musical instruments. Dandiya Raas involves a huge number of people at a time, making the festive nights more colourful and vibrant.

According to the dance setting, two circles are formed by the dancers. One of the circles revolves clockwise, while the other revolves anti clockwise. The dance is a very energetic and fast paced activity, which leaves no scope for lethargy.  Traditionally the dancers are accompanied by an instrumentalist, playing a conventional drum. The person stands in the center of the two circles and leads the dancers with his beats. The site of hundreds of people swaying on the beats of folk music is awe-inspiring. The sticks or the Dandiyas, when struck together in a rhythm, produce foot tapping musical waves.

Singing entered the Dandiya Raas scene much later. Initially, most songs were about Lord Krishna, Goddess Durga, but gradually songs about love and romance started getting more importance. With the advent of cassettes and CDs the pre-recorded ‘non stop’ music came into the ambit of Dandiya. However, now it has been overtaken by the individual performances for singers like Phalguni Phatak along with other Bollywood singers with DJ’s beats and western music. Movie’s trend entered the scene in late 50's and 60's. Dandiya Raas took on a different form as it borrowed heavily from the Gujarati and Hindi film industry both in terms of fashion and music. Now, during Navratri people enjoy the dance in its new evolved form named as “Disco Dandiya”.

Modern Dandiya: discretion of culture?

Dandiya Raas is a folk art and it will change with the times. When African slaves and ship workers who were primarily Muslims arrived on the coast of Saurashtra, they adopted the art as their own and used African drums. While it originated from Hindu tradition, other communities all across the world have started adopting this tradition as well in recent times. These days, modernization, commercialization and glamour have entered into this century old Hindu tradition.

According to some critics, in modern Dandiya fun and pleasure have taken the central stage these days leaving god, spirituality and the fundamental social spirit behind. For instance, presently Dandiya is played on the tune of film songs and the deafening sound of modern musical instruments instead of the traditional songs composed by saints, combined with the tune of traditional instruments.

It is necessary that certain rhythmic movements of the body occur during the dance. But presently there is quenching of one's dancing raucousness by diverse motions. In such dances as there is more of rowdiness, incidents of dashing each other, intentional body touching occur.

In recent times, young boys and girls who are sexually attracted to each other consider “Dandiya” a medium to come in contact. This results in immoral acts. After performing “Dandiya”, these boys and girls loiter on the roads and indulge in drinking and misbehaving on the streets instead of going home. A Gujarati periodical brought out the shocking news that there is a significant rise in the incidence of abortions by girls in Mumbai, Gujarat and other cities a few months after the “Navratri” festival.

Talking in terms of commercialization of the tradition, the entry fees for a “Disco Dandiya” may vary from Rs. 100/- to Rs. 1,000/- per day. In cities like Mumbai, Kolkata and New Delhi popular actors and actresses are invited for “Dandiya” to participate. “Dandiya” organizers earn rupees almost 25 to 30 crores of rupees through this medium. People who accumulate wealth through wrong means have also viewed “Dandiya” as a medium of earning quick money these days.

Even if there has been a minor perversion of the tradition. Still large section of people enjoys the sprit of Dandiya in the traditional way. For the Dandiya nights at the Fine Arts College of Vadodara even today the musicians sit in the centre and play while people dance around them.

Spread of Dandiya

The story of Dandiya is like no other folk art. It has charmed people all across the world successfully traversing the bounds of all human boundaries of nationality, religion, and other sectarian interests. What marks out Dandiya from the rest is its use of colourful musical sticks, its dress code, the scope it offers for improvisation, innovation and creativity, and the massive number of dancers in any single program. Further, Dandiya offers much room for extemporization and experimentation everywhere, in its rendition of songs, dance steps and so on.

The Gujarati communities living all across the world have successfully spread out the tradition of Dandiya amongst the people of other caste and creed. It is not uncommon now to hear stories about Dandiya celebrations in places far away from India where there are no Indian participants. People across the globe, not necessarily Indian faces, pay hefty entry fee to enjoy and revel Dandiya nights.

In the United States and elsewhere, Dandiya has evolved to incorporate other forms of music and dancing style. This is mostly a show item where college students of Indian origin mix non-stop Dandiya music with strong drum beats and stunts, coordinated with various themes. They freely mix traditional steps with other modern steps. Though head bobbing is suppose to be for the rock singers, but during Dandiya it is very popular in USA among youngsters. Indian cities like Mumbai, New Delhi and Kolkata developed its own style of Dandiya Raas. Now, during Navratri people use Dandiya, but make it more like a free style dance.  

In the bigger context it is all about people’s participation to this social dance.  Generally there are no professional performers in this art, no special artists. It is performed not for someone else and not on stages.  It is a performance that asks nothing in return.  Following the experienced or skillful anyone can join the group, and there is only dance. It is a general thing for any Dandiya dancers to have the euphoria and the must-go-on-spirit, even after three or four hours of non-stop fast dancing.

Perhaps, it is the spirit and ecstasy together with the vibrant colours and energetic music makes “Dandiya” what it is today to the people – ‘The Great Indian Social Dance’. 

Time to tap the feet

Dandiya - Indian folk dance