Sangeet Natak Akademi celebrated Rang Swadheenta

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About Rang Swadheenta-

• It is a festival to cherish the memories of freedom fighters who laid down their lives to free India from the shackles of imperialism. 
• This year’s festival was unique in that it focused on folk singing styles. It showcased folk musical traditions from across the country. 

Details of  folk musical & dance traditions-

Following are some of the folk musics/dances performed during this festival:

Keherwa taal-

• Keherwa, along with dadra, is the most popular taal played on songs. 
• Due to its popularity, it is played on a variety of instruments, including tabla, dholak, naal, khol, etc.  
• Keherwa has many variations including dhumaali, “bhajani”, and qawwali.

Alha Gayan–

• It is performed usually at the end of monsoon, and is sung in the Alha chhand. 

Dhimaryai-

• It is a dance form belonging to the Dhimar community(north India). Their main occupation is fishing and they also occasionally serve as water carriers.
• A Dhimaryai dancer usually plays a handheld Sarangi, who is also accompanied by other musicians. 
• Dhimaryai songs touch upon religious, mythical, social and patriotic themes.  

Panduan Ke Kadde-

• It is a very specific and significant art form of the Meo community of Mewat region. 
• The narrative (on which the tradition is based) written by Saddalah Meo in the 16th Century, originally consisted of two thousand five hundred couplets and took approximately forty eight hours of musical rendition. 
• The main instrument Bhapang remains the core instrument for the exposition of the narrative but choruses use Harmonium, Dholak and Khanjari too to encompass the performance.
• The existence of Panduan ka Kada, traditionally performed by the Jogi Muslims, is at stake as its patronage has declined.
• Its origin can be traced to 17th century Mewat, which usually centers around episodes from the Mahabharata. 

Oggukatha-

• Oggukatha comes from the compound ‘oggu’ meaning a damarukam (pellet drum) and ‘katha’ meaning tales.  
• Oggu Katha or Oggukatha is a traditional folklore singing, praising and narrating the stories of Hindu gods Mallana, Beerappa and Yellamma. 
• It originated among the Kuruma (Kuruba)and Yadava communities, who devoted themselves to the singing of ballads in praise of Lord Shiva (also called Mallikarjuna).
• This tradition-loving and ritual-performing community moves from place to place, narrating the stories of their caste gods. 
• Oggus are the traditional priests of the Yadavas and perform the marriage of Mallanna with Bhramaramba.

Dhadi singing-

• The Dhadi singing tradition of Punjab was begun by Guru Hargobind to inspire bravery among armed men in the battlefield. 
• Dhadi, also spelled as Dhadhi, is one who sings ballads using Dhadd and Sarangi, the folk instruments of Punjab. 
• The word is used several times in the Sikh religious text, Guru Granth Sahib, in the meaning of humbleness. In his compositions, Guru Nanak Dev Ji called himself a Dhadhi of God. 
• The word also appeared in the writing of the third, fourth and fifth Guru and Bhagat Namdev.

Dastangoi-

• Dastangoi is a 13th century Urdu oral storytelling art form.
• It is a compound of Persian words ‘dastaan’ meaning a long tale and ‘goi’ meaning to narrate. 
• The Persian style of dastan evolved in the 16th century. 
• One of the earliest references in print to dastangoi is a 19th-century text containing 46 volumes of the adventures of Amir Hamza.
• At the centre of dastangoi is the dastango, or storyteller, whose voice is his main artistic tool in orally recreating the dastan or the story.

Ragini-

• Ragini is a Kauravi folk song form which is very popular throughout northern India—particularly western Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.  
• It was popularised by Lakhmi Chand.  
• These songs are based on day to day themes and injecting earthy humour enlivens the feel of the songs

Powada- 

• Powada is a rich traditional style of singing ballads popular in Maharashtra. 
• Powada, which means ‘to glorify’, is a traditional Marathi ballad.
• Its origin is considered to be from the time of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
• Powada singing has also played an important role in the socio-cultural and political development of the region. 
• Powadas were also used as a medium to create awareness during the Samyukta Maharashtra movement.

Further reading: https://journalsofindia.com/sangeet-natak-akademi/

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