 Culture of Sheopur District consists of many folk dances and festivals. Hindi language is one of the most spoken languages in Sheopur District. The main cultural festival of this district is Tansen Festival. The most popular folk dances are Ahiri Dance, Baredi or Yadav dance of Bundelkhand, Saharia Dances, Lur dance of Saharias, Lanhgi dance of Saharias, Dul-Dul Ghori dance etc. They use the Mridanga, Ramtula, Dholak, Dhapli, Manzira, Jhanz are the musical instruments in these dances.
Yadav Dance of Bundelkhand Yadav dance of Bundelkhand has been associated with the biggest Hindu festival "Diwali". On the night of Diwali people worship Goddess Laxmi, the Hindu goddess of wealth and cattle. Next day, on the day of "Padva" or "Parva" cattle are sent to jungles or ranches after being decorated with flowers and garlands. They are given special dishes as food. Yadav dance is performed on the same occasion of Diwali with splendid and grandeur. The dancers dance in a circular path while singing songs. Sometimes they sit or lie down on earth and suddenly they restart their dance. The rhythm of the song is very low in starting and increases with time. They used to play the musical instruments like dholak, Mridanga etc when two lines of the song are finished. Primarily these are two line couplets. Sometimes these are in form of questions and answers. This dance continues until Kartik Purnima. Saharia Dances Saharias are tribal people who live in jungles. They work in farms and collect medicinal plants from jungles. There are several dances of Saharias. Some of the important branches of the Saharia Dance are Lur Dance, Lanhgi Dance, Dul-Dul Ghodi Dance, Raya Dance, Ada-Khada Dance. Lur dance of Saharia Community Lur dance of Saharias is performed on the occasion of marriage starting from the day of ritual of "Haldi" (In this ritual whole body is pasted with turmeric and after sometime it is removed with pure water so the body is cleaned) till the arrival of "Barat" (Bridegroom comes to the house of the bride with his relatives and friends for marriage ceremony). Lanhgi dance of Saharia Community This dance is also known as "Danda" (baton) dance because the people of Saharia community dance with small batons in their hands with which they strike at each other and perform Lanhgi dance. Only men are allowed in it. This dance is performed on the occasions of Bhujarias, Teja ji puja and Aekadashi etc. Dul-Dul Ghori dance of Saharia Community Dul-Dul Ghori dance is performed on the occasion of marriage by males. In this dance, a hollow case of ghori (mare) is prepared of bamboo sticks. The dancer stands in the hollow place and dances. There is also a joker in women clothing. People sing folk songs during the dance. Ahiri Dance Ahiri Dance is related to rural people of Sheopur district. This dance is the traditional dance mostly performed who are in the business of cattle herding. In different parts of the state, these people are known by different castes such as Ahir, Baredi, Gwal, Rawat, Raut, Gawala etc. Dress of the Dancers Dancers, instrument beaters and their associates have to wear a clean colourful turban on head. Some people like to put on dhoti up to knees (Dhoti is a long oriental cloth wore by men enwrapping their waist). Some people specially dancers wear colourful shorts. Dancers also keep bunch of peacock feathers. |
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