1,200 artistes and a melange of traditions

Marking a picturesque finale to the ten-day celebrations commemorating World

Folk

Day across the 31 districts of Telangana, over 1200 folk artistes paid a fitting tribute to the cultural riches of the soil at

Ravindra Bharathi

on Friday. Hundreds of artistes lit up the stage with eclectic performances in front of a packed auditorium at the event titled ‘Janapada Jatara’.

Traditional artforms are indeed a reflection of what the State represents. As Telangana shares its borders with states like Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, it’s folk artforms are a unique blend of regional traditions. With men dressed in their dhotis, pagdis unique to different regions, women wearing the Banjaran costumes, turmeric rubbed on their faces, with crimson red ‘bottu’ on their forehead, the atmosphere was a connoisseur’s delight.

Oggudolu performance, a devotional and a musical ode to Lord Shiva, marked the commencement of the ‘jatara’. Featuring an interesting mix of dance performances on peppy percussion beats, a group of artistes used myriad postures to symbolise various physical attributes of the deity — from the snake wrapped around on his neck to his meditative postures, et al. The highlight of the performance was the remarkable display of a balancing act where one member of the group stood atop another to sculpt a colossal outline of the deity on stage.

Ghusadi, a folk dance form predominant among the

Adivasi

community around the Adilabad region, too was a grand spectacle. Performed by a group of artistes flaunting headgears made of peacock feathers, this ethnic dance form is considered to be a symbolic gesture to cement connections between various communities and foster brotherhood among the villagers. The next performance was a Banjara dance performance by the Lambadas settled in Telangana who danced their hearts out and won over the audience with their infectious energy on stage. Their colourful costumes with diverse intricacies and dazzling hues were a sight for the sore eyes. Other traditional folk dance forms such as Dappu Nrityam and Kolatam too were performed and were appreciated by the gathering.

Recreating

Bonalu

on the stage is no mean task and the artistes left no stone unturned to depict the zeal with which people of state usher in its festivities every year. Beating of the Rajanna Dolu, a unique percussion instrument made by adjoining together two instruments with a colourful cloth on both ends, set the ball rolling. It was followed by a Chindu Yakshaganam performance, that narrated tales from Bhagavat Gita with artistes (who were also dressed as women at times) singing and dancing live to percussion instruments. No discussion on Telangana art forms is complete without Tolu

Bommalata

, and the artistes narrated Myravanudi Katha through the shadow puppetry at the do. Dhimsa, Burra Katha and Hari Katha performances continued as the morning turned into noon. The highlight of the event however was the coming together of all the artistes outside the venue to welcome various dignitaries to the event. It was indeed a spectacular event that highlighted the rich folk cultural traditions of the state under one roof.