Mark your calendar for Namaste Canada 2018 on Sept 1, 2018; 2PM-8PM. India Cultural Association (ICA) Vancouver is proud to represent Rajasthan at Namaste Canada this year. Our group is performing Kalbelia Folk Dance form from Jaisalmer, Rajasthan.
India is synonymous with numerous cultures, traditions and ethnicity. Like food, language and customs there are numerous dance forms that represent different states, tribes or groups. Namaste Canada is an annual event organized by the Consulate General of India in Vancouver to celebrate this diverse culture. This year the event specifically focuses on the variety of dance forms representing different states.
India Cultural Association of Vancouver – an organization which has endeavored to promote awareness of Indian culture in the Greater Vancouver- is proud to represent Rajasthan in Namaste Canada 2018. The team of 9 girls is working tirelessly to showcase the rich culture of Rajasthan through a Kalbelia folk dance.
About the dance form – Kalbelia
Kalbelia dance is closely associated with the Kalbelia tribe of Rajasthan. The Kalbelia tribe are a nomadic tribe and prefer to live in paces just outside of villages and cities in makeshift camps. One of the most well known aspects of the Kalbelia tribe is their expertise as snake charmers and snake catchers. This connection to snakes can be seen in the Kalbelia dance as the costume, as well as the swirling dance movements, resemble those made by serpents.
The Kalbelia dance, performed to celebrate any joyful moment in the community, is an integral part of Kalbelia culture. Their dances and songs are a matter of pride and a marker of identity for the Kalbelias and they represent the creative adaptation of this community of snake charmers to changing socioeconomic conditions and their own role in rural Rajasthani society.
Kalbelia songs are based on stories taken from folklore and mythology and special dances are performed during Holi. The Kalbelia have a reputation for composing lyrics spontaneously and improvising songs during performances. These songs and dances are part of an oral tradition that is handed down generations and for which there are neither texts nor training manuals. In 2010, the Kalbelia folk songs and dances of Rajasthan were declared a part of its Intangible Heritage List by the UNESCO.
ICA Performance at Namaste Canada 2018
The song that the ICA team of girls is performing is “kalyo kud padyo mela mein” which tells a story about a boy named Kalyo who jumps into the fracas of a fair. The song accompanied by different musical instruments like the been and dhapli speaks about how a punctured cycle, delays in sending a woman to her in-laws as she is busy threshing bajra (millet), the promise the boy makes to buy his love a red blouse with floral print etc.- all punctuated by the defining, intense exclamation of the song- ‘arrrrra raaara rrra’.
The dance moves require a lot of flexibility and energy which the team has been working on. The dance has been embellished with a lot of twirling movements and the use of props like khanjar, thali, matkas that make it even more graceful. The team is all excited about the performance and looking forward to showcase their talent and hard work.
Choreography Credit: Neha Verma From Team Bollybaaz
Article Credit: Prerna Misra Sohal
References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalbelia#Kalbeliya_Dance
http://www.craftsofindia.com/cd/indian-folk-music/fmcd025.shtml