Post on 15-Aug-2015
Chhattisgarh is famous for the rich cultures of
Chhattisgarh amidst crusty cuisine, vivacious dances,
great religions, melodious music, kind people, amiable
languages, sparkling fairs & festivals and marvellous arts
& crafts. Its unique approach towards dance, cuisine, and
music which make it different from others.
It also has India's oldest tribal communities and the
earliest tribals have been living in Bastar for over 10,000
years. Since the time, the Aryans occupied the Indian
mainland and the rich plains became war-infested and
de-forested for agriculture.
Dances are the chief means of the celebration of
the tribals. These folk dances also represent the
community affairs, characterized by robustness and
earthiness.
The dance groups are mainly the group dances
which involve complex footwork. It is always
wonderful to watch the dancers moving are in a
line, gyrating in a circle, always in the anti-clock
direction.
The Maria Tribes are the most spectacular dances. The
men lace a strip of cloth round their torso, wear head-
dresses of peacock and cock feathers, and tie bells
around their wrists and ankles. Some also wear stag
and bison horns on the head. In all the dance forms,
singing is important.
In case of Bison-horn Marias, the boys and girls dance in
separate sub-groups, with the steps of girls being simpler.
Drum-beats are central to the dance. In case of Hill-Marias,
the group is often mixed with a girl between two boys. The
men wear heavy buttock-bells.
During the festivals and celebrations, the cultures of
Chhattisgarh can be easily reflected through their
dressings and the special accessories.
The men and the women wear ornaments. The
ornaments are made of beads (made from bones, seeds,
wood) worn as laces, ropes, fillets and collars. Earlier
the armlets were made of iron, brass and copper wires,
but today silver and gold are used.
Gold is worn mainly on the ear, nose and neck (men wear gold
collars to indicate their standing in the village) instead of
wearing them on hands and legs. Silver is worn on the neck (as
a hoop); on the wrist (as a loose, hollow, twisted tubular
bracelet); on the legs (as a solid, square-bar anklet, arched
below the ankle-bones).Conical twin-tops are common in the
nostrils and ear lobes. Rings are worn on the helix of the ear.
Red and green coloured precious stones are preferred which
are famous for their bright colours.
The men and the women of the Hill-Maria Tribe still
use tassels of red wool. Cockfights are a favourite
sport of the tribal here. The males of the region make
a crowd in the region on Sundays, in shady areas
under the trees.