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Arwa Teej
The festival is
particularly observed by the unmarried girls in Chhattisgarh and it is
held during the month of Vaisakha. The occasion is noticeable by making
a small canopy of mango twigs, decked according to individual taste. |
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Saila
Dance Festival
Young boys of the plains of Chhattisgarh
bring life to the post-harvest time by the Saila dance. Saila is a
stick-dance and is popular among the people of Sarguja, Chhindwara and
Baitul districts. |
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Bhagoria Festival
Ever heard of a
festival where you are officially allowed to elope with your lover?
Check this one out, guys. Held in the Jhabua district, the Bhagoriya is
to the Bhils what the Madai is to the Gonds - a festival of fun and joy. |
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Sanja Festival
Unmarried girls of
north-western Madhya Pradesh annually worship a legendary girl called
Sanja. The ritual is associated with figures and designs made by girls
on smeared portions of mud walls through the medium of cattle-dung. |
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Suwata
The Suwata of
Bundelkhand relates to the Ghadlya of Malwa. Girls, in this form of
celebration prepare a tiny platform along the wall with clay. The three
sides of this platform are provided with steps. On the platform an image
of a devil is made to stand.
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Bhojali Festival
This major festival
of Chhattisgarh is observed in the month of Bhadra. About a week before
the actual Bhojali day, i.e. on the day of Nagpanchami, wheat, gram,
rice or kondo seeds are sown in earthen pots and manured to grow into
green shoots. |
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Shivaratri
A festival usually
falls in March, dedicated to the worship of Lord Shiva. The Bundelkhand
region is a stronghold of shasivities and many devotees travel hundreds
of kilometers to worship at the Matangeshwar Temple.
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Chaitra Fair
In the Chaitra fair
held at Biaora (Malwa), the Dhup Dehi ka Mela of Hirapur (Rewa
Division), the Ram Navami fair of Naya Gaon, the Bhilat Baba ka Mela of
Seoni and the Gal Yatras held at over two dozen villages of Malwa are
worth mention. |
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Songs of Bhils
Big Part of Malwa
and Nimad is populated by the Adivasis. The songs of the Bhils, which
accompany their dances and the songs of their festivals and nuptial
ceremonies give a glimpse of the life-pattern they hold.
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Sugga
Dance Festival
The Sua or Sugga
dance of the women of Chhattisgarh and the Mikal Hills is significant
for its elegance and grace. The word 'Sua' means a parrot. The women
take recourse to this dance a month in advance of the festival of
Diwali. |
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Chaitra
Festival Dance
The Chaitra
festival dance is another famous dance of the Gonds of Bastar district;
it is performed after the harvest to thank goddess Annapurna for the
harvest already gathered and to seek her blessings for the next crop.
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Tansen Music Festival
A pillar of
Hindustani classical music, the great Tansen, one of the 'nine jewels'
of Akbar's court, lies buried in Gwalior. The memorial to this great
musician has a pristine simplicity, and is built in the early Mughal
architectural style. |
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Tejaji Fair
A good number of
fairs are held in the 10th day of the month of Bhadra, to mark the birth
of Tejaji. Many tales are present about this legendary figure. In
Tejaji's fairs rituals are made to cure snake-bite.
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Chethiyagiri Vihara Festival
A Buddhist festival
held at Sanchi at the end of November, Chethiyagiri Vihara Festival is
attended by thousands of Buddhists monks and pilgrims. |
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Karma Dance
Among the Gonds and the Baigas of Chhattisgarh and the
Oraons of the north-west fringes of Madhya Pradesh, the Karma
dance is very common.
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Chherta Festival
The festival of
Chherta falls on the last day of the month of Pausa. The ploughmen cease
their work on this day and all their accounts are settled as the
succeeding day. i.e. the first day of the month of Magha. |
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Costume
The costumes used in
Maanch are locally equipped. Each character actor has a set of
well-known clothes. The main character has to wear more nice-looking
angarkha or a long coat with multi-hued safu, adding Kaldi to it.
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Dhankul Song
The land of Bastar
is identified for the Chait Parah and the Dhankul songs. The previous is
of the seasonal category while the latter is connected with the
invocation to the goddess Danteshwari. |
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Dusshera of
Bastar
Celebrated by all
Hindus of India on the tenth day after Navratri (September or October),
Dussehra is celebrated as the day of Rama's victory over king Ravana, or
as a day on which the Goddess Kali destroyed the buffalo-demon and
liberated the world.
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Gana-Gour Festival
The Gana Gour
festival is celebrated with much gaiety in Madhya Pradesh. The people
believe that Gour, wife of Shiva, was married to Shiva and they stayed
in Rajasthan. She could come home only once a year. This coming back is
celebrated by these people here. |
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Ganga Dashmi
The Festival falls
on the tenth day of the second fortnight of Jyaistha (May-June). In
Surguja region, the occasion is practical by the Adivasis and the
non-Adivasis. The classes of the Hindu fold celebrate it because on this
day the river Ganges had its descent on the earth.
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Gaur Dance
The most liked among
the Madhya Pradesh dances, is the Gaur dance of the Sing Marias or
Tallaguda Marias (bison-horn Marias) of South Bastar. This spectacular
dance symbolizes the hunting spirit of the tribe. The word 'Gaur' means
a ferocious bison. |
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Ghadlya
Girls have their own
feature in this festival. They gather in the evening in groups and visit
every house of the village carrying earthen pots with holes for the
light to come out, made by a wick oil lamp kept inside.
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Ghaila
Ceremony
Ghaila is the
earthen pot ceremony of the Gonds. It is a ceremony identical to the
Akhadi or Akadhi (Akshya Tratiya) of the Hindus.
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Gobardhan
Gobardhan festival
is celebrated on the sixteenth day in the month of Kartika i.e. just on
the day following Diwali. Gobardhan means 'prosperity for cows' and
seems to have its source in the Krishna cult.
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Grida Dance
When rabi crops sway
in the fields in filled bloom, the parties from different villages join
together and perform the Grida dance. It continues from morning till
evening. |
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Hareli or Hariri
Hareli or Hariri
falls on the day of Sravana Amavasya. In Mandla, it is celebrated on the
new-moon day of the same month.
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Jhansi Festival
The Jhansi Festival
is a lively arts and cultural event held in February/March. A recent
introduction to Madhya Pradesh`s festival calendar, it is a locally
organized program of music, arts and dance. |
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Kajri Navami
On the ninth day of
the waxing-moon fortnight of the month of Sravana, falls the Kajri
festival. In the Bundelkhandi-speaking area only those women, who are
blessed with sons, observe this festival.
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Kaksar Dance
The dance of the
Hill Marias of the Abujhmar Mountains is quite different. In one of
their dance-forms they carry dummy horses on their shoulders and move
slowly into a wide circle. |
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Karam Festival
The festival of
Karma,a religious festival, calls for a huge celebration every year
among the Korba tribals of MP. On the day of worship, devotees fast from
morning till the next day - a good 24 hours.
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Khajuraho Festival of Dances
One of the most
popular cultural e`vents in India, Khajuraho Festival of Dance is a
memorable affair that is held over a week (February and March) and is
watched by locals, tourists and celebrities alike. |
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Koqsar
Koqsar is one of the
important festivals of the Abujhmarias. It comes as the concluding
festival when people care little for privacy. Koqsar is characterised by
ceremonial exchange of visits of boys and girls.
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Kujlaya Festival
On the full moon day
of Bhadra, the festival of Kujlaya is celebrated to commemorate the
get-together of the legendary queen, Malhana Devi, with her daughter who
had been married to the son of a hostile king. |
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Laru Kaj Festival
Laru Kaj is the
festival of Gonds which is related with the pig sacrifice. The ceremony
is considered the pig's wedding in honour of Narayan Dev.
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Lavani
Festival
The Lavani came to
Malwa along with the Marathas in the opening of the eighteenth century.
The Nirguni Lavani (philosophical) and the Shringari Lavani (erotic) are
the two types which is well-liked in the south of Nimad.. |
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Leja Song
In the surrounding
villages of Jagdalpur, the Leja song has a significant place. The Leja
has its origin with the 'send off ' ritual to some dear one. Literally,
the Leja means 'take it'. Many of the Leja songs are lengthy.
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Maanch
Maanch which is a
form of operatic ballet is very popular in Malwa. The word Maanch is
derived from the Sanskrit folk-form, Manch i.e. the stage. As an
indigenous folk-form, Maanch seems to have its beginning in the
seventeenth century. |
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Madai Fair
In the tribal
villages of Bastar the Madai fairs record their social consideration as
of vital importance to all the ethnic groups of the area. The Madai
fairs of Narayanpur, Kondagaon, Dantewara and Dhanara, falls within
February, March and April every year.
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Malwa Festival
A festival of music,
dance and gaiety, held for the period of the month of September at Mandu
is a riot of color, melody and song.. |
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Marriage Songs
The marriage songs
of the Kamars are usually short. Many of them are addressed to the
trumpeter Moharia. The Dadaria of this region has a pattern of rhyming
lines.
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Matki
Dance Festival
The tableland of
Malwa has comparatively very few dances. On wedding occasions, the
countryside women of this part execute the 'Matki' dance with an earthen
pot unbiased on the head, the Matki is mostly danced solo. |
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Meghnad
It
is a festival of the Gond tribe, usually held within the first half of
Phalguna. The dates for celebrating the festival are different at
different places but all falling in the first fortnight of Phalguna.
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Music
The couplets are
sung in three styles namely, Ikhari Rangat, Dokadi Rangat and Langdi
Rangat. The intact melody of Jhela is introduced in between the Dohas,
whenever the singing pattern needs a change. |
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Musical
Instruments
The drums are of
various types and the technique of drumming among the tribals is
fascinating. In Bastar there are big drums played by sticks. The Bhils
use heavy Dhols and Mandals. There are small -sized drums.
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Navanna
As soon as Diwali is
over, the gorge of Navanna is celebrated. It depends on the full
ripening of corns; only then is the day for Navanna fixed. In
Bundelkhand, it is performed on the eleventh day after Diwali. |
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Navratri Festival
Ujjain and its
temples come alive during the fair season of Navratri (Dusshera) that
typically falls in the month of September or October.
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Pandum
Festival
Confined to the
Abujhmarias of Bastar, the Pandum festival is observed through the
community hunt. Before starting for the hunting expedition, donations
are made by the Hill Marias for a rich game and the safe return of the
hunters. |
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Performance
A play opens late in
the evening with an invocation of gods and goddesses by the players. It
begins quite often with a tribute to the founder of the Maanch mandal
(group) and the script-writer.
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Phulpati Dance
The Phulpati is
another dance, exclusively for unmarried girls. It is a dance of the
semi-rural womenfolk. The agriculturist class of Malwa is not very much
inclined to any dance by nature. |
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Rang Panchami
Around March) On the
fifth day after Holi, an yearly music festival was held for the period
of the Holkar reign. Even today people celebrate this festival with
eagerness and gaiety .
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Ras-Nawa Festival
Ras-Nawa is a
particular festival of the Baigas of Mandla district. Ras-Nawa means
ceremonial eating of honey. The festival falls once in every nine years.
The Baigas associate this festival to their legendary ancestor Nanga
Baiga. |
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Murias
Dance
The Murias of North
Bastar are educated in the Ghotul for all types of their
society dances. Before any dance is commenced at a wedding or a festive
occasion, the
Murias First worship their drums.
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