Folk Dance Vs Classical Dance

• Folk dance is common people's dance.

• Folk dancing is a simple dance form meant for group performances created for
a recreational or celebratory reason such as agricultural harvest, weddings etc.
• Folk dancing doesn’t have strict rules, its main aim is fun and brotherhood.
• Folk dances are all about energy, enthusiasm and power.
Chhau
• The word Chhau originates from ‘Chhaya’ meaning shadow. It is a form of
mask dance that uses vigorous martial movements to narrate mythological
stories.
• There are three main styles of Chhau dance –
Saraikela Chhau in Jharkhand
 Mayurbhanj Chhau in Odisha
 Purulia Chhau in West Bengal

• Of these, Mayurbhanj Chhau artists don’t wear masks.

In 2010, UNESCO inscribed Chhau in the
Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of
Humanity.
Jharkhand
• Dumkaach
• Sarhul
• Karma Munda
It takes place during the Karma festival when the God of fate or ‘Karma’ is worshipped.
• Agni
• Jhumar - Janani Jhumar & Mardana Jhumar
This dance is performed mainly during the harvest season.
• Paika
This dance is performed by males. This dance has a high degree involvement of martial
arts. Paikas are the groups of soldiers who served to protect the safety of the kingdom
and hence the name.
• Fagua
It is performed during the festival of Holi.
 • Ghoomar
It is a traditional folk dance of Rajasthan. It was
Bhil tribe who performed it to worship Goddess
Sarasvati which was later embraced by other
Rajasthani communities.

• Bhavai
The male or female performers balance a
number of earthen pots or brass pitchers as
they dance nimbly, pirouetting and then
swaying with the soles of their feet perched on
the top of a glass, on the edge of the sword or
on the rim of a brass thali (plate) during the
performance.
• Kalbelia
It is a sensuous folk dance performed by the
women of the Kalbelia community of
Rajasthan.
‘Been’ (wind instrument played by snake
charmers) is the popular musical instrument
of this dance form.
• The UNESCO has inscribed Kalbelia folk
songs and dances in the Representative List
of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of
Humanity in 2011.
Rajasthan

• Ghoomar
• Bhavai
• Kalbelia
• Kathputli
• Chari or Pot dance – Women from
Gujjar community in Kishangarh and
Saini community in Ajmer
• Kachchhi Ghodi – Stories of Bandits
• Chakri – Women of Kanjar tribe
• Gair – Men & Women of Bhil tribe
holding sticks
Rajasthan

• Gavari – Men of Bhil tribe, expression

of devotion to Lord Shiva & Parvati
• Terah Taali - The dancers’ community,
Kamad (listed as a Scheduled Caste)
performs it as a tribute to a local folk
hero, Baba Ramdev
Uttar Pradesh

• Charkula Dance - Popular in the Braj region. It’s a tough act of

balance where a veiled woman dancer performs with a 108
oil lamps on her head placed on a wooden pyramid platform.

• Nautanki - In this dance, the story in lyrical form is narrated

by the actors on the stage, who also dance simultaneously.
The story is often related to the contemporary social
problems or national feelings.

• Raasleela – It is actually a Natya (Drama) belonging to the

region of Braj in which the stories of Lord Krishna and his
consort, Radha, are enacted.
• Khayal
• Dadra
• Kajri – During Monsoon
• Ramlila
Madhya Pradesh

• Jawara - Bundelkhand area of MP, harvest

dance
• Matki – Malwa region
• Naurata - popular folk dance performed by
unmarried girls of Bundelkhand region
• Maanch is a lyrical folk drama and a form of
operatic ballet that is very popular in Malwa
in Madhya Pradesh.
• Grida Dance - When rabi crops sway in the
fields in full bloom
Chhattisgarh

• Gaur Maria is an important ritualistic dance form of the Bison Horn Maria tribes who live in the Bastar
region of Chhattisgarh.

• Saila Dance: Tribal dance, post harvest

• Raut Nacha – It is performed by yadava/yaduvanshis, a caste which considers them to be descendants

of Krishna.

• Panthi Dance - Dance of Satnami tribal community in Chhattisgarh on the occasion of Maghi Purnima
which marks the birth anniversary of Satnami Guru Ghasi Das.

• Soowa Dance – Parrot dance, dancers keep a parrot in a pot made of Bamboo and form a circular
shape around it.

• Pandavani - It portrays the account of Pandavas

• Jhirliti
• Gendi
Himachal

• Nati – Harvest, new year (Kullu, Shimla, Kinnaur)

• Demon/Rakshasha dance - from Kinnaur, it is performed with demon masks. It

represents the attack of the demons on the crops and their ritual pursuing away
by the forces of good.

• Dalshone and Cholamba – Ropa valley

• Shand and Shabu – Lahaul valley
• Dangi - This dance is performed during the harvest season in the temple of
Goddess Naina Devi.
• Kayang Mala
Gujarat

• Dandiya - This dance stages a mock-fight between the

Goddess Durga and Mahishasura. The sticks (dandiyas)
of dance represent the swords of Durga.
• Garba – derived from the Sanskrit term Garbha (womb)
and Deep (lamp). Traditional garba is performed
around a central lamp or around Goddess Shakti.
• Padhar
• Hudo dance - Bharwad Tribe, the shepherd community
of Gujarat
• Tippani – From Chorwad, Junagadh district. It has
women from seaside striking the floor with sticks and
chanting, while other women dance.
Assam

• Bagurumba - Performed by Bodos,

practiced during Bwisagu, a Bodo festival
in the Vishuva Sankranti (mid-April).
Bwisagu begins with cow worship; then,
young people reverentially bow down to
their parents and elders.

• Bhortal – Barpeta district, The dancers

are equipped with cymbals.
• Ojapali
• Jhumur – Tea community in Autumn
Bihu
1. Rongali or Bohag Bihu – April, celebrates spring festival, and new year
2. Kongali or Kati Bihu – October, related to agriculture, people light lamps or
candles
3. Bhogali or Magh Bihu – January, Harvest festival
Odisha
• Gotipua – Widely regarded as the precursor to Odissi
dance, the dance form involves acrobatic moves
performed by young boys dressed as feminine
characters. The dance form is famous in Puri and the
heritage craft village of Raghurajpur, which also houses
the Gotipua Dance Academy.

• Chhau Dance – Typical of Mayurbhanj district of Odisha,

this dance form essentially depicts the movement of a
soldier involved in the battlefield, albeit in rhythmic and
synchronized way. The dance was believed to have been
the dress rehearsal of Paikas, the warrior clan of Odisha.

• Ghumura Dance –Kalahandi district,

Odisha
Ranappa – Meaning dancing on a stilt. The dance is
prevalent in Ganjam district especially in the villages.
Usually, the dancers enact chapters from Lord Krishna’s
childhood during the performance.

Chaiti Ghoda Dance – Popular amongst the fishing

community in the coastal belt, this dance form involves
dancers dressed in elaborate costumes, besides being
seemingly mounted on a dummy horse.

Dalkhai Dance - The Dalkhai dance is performed on

festive occasions such as Phagun Puni, Nuakhai,
Dussehra, Dalkhai and Durga Puja. The unmarried
young women known as ‘Kuanris’, start the
performance with a folk song, which is followed by the
Dalkhai dance.
Odisha
Danda Nata is one of the most important traditional
dance festivals organized in different parts of South
Odisha and particularly in the Ganjam District, the
heartland of ancient Kalinga Empire.

Medha Nacha is another type of mask dance

performed mainly in the coastal districts of Odisha.
Oversized masks of kings, queens, and devils made
by paper pulp are used by dancers to perform this
beautiful dance form in India.