| Folk Arts - Performing Arts of India: Tradition Calls for Diversityby Ramesh Gangolli
If there is any single word that captures India’s essence it is diversity. India is a country in which literally scores of cultures, hundreds of subcultures, and nearly a thousand tongues mingle in what sometimes feels like total chaos. This variety is also mirrored in its performance traditions. A common feature of all performance traditions is that they are all essentially oral and personal; that is, they are transmitted by one-on-one personal instruction, in which notated material is almost completely absent.
From ancient times, the performing arts in India have derived their inspiration from the three locations where performances take place – the temple, the court and the village festival. Temples served as venues for performances of dance. Most of the prevalent classical forms of dance in India have their origins in the temple setting. Choreographed items are often conceived as invocations or tributes to the deity, and performed as acts of devotion. In rural India, the courtyard of the village temple was (and even today, continues to be) a social center, at which various performances were staged.
Several fold genres, based on storytelling, ballad singing, mime or puppetry are prevalent in different parts of India. For instance, Ram-Lila (celebrating the acts of Rama, an epic god/hero) and Yakshagana (a dance drama form, in which folk tales, epics, and myths are interwoven). As is often the case, certain aspects of these folk genres are seen in the classical forms in use today, both in music and dance.
A second venue was the courts of feudal kings or chieftains, or the salons of wealthy courtiers. Here the performance was oriented towards pure entertainment, for banquets, parties or other celebrations, and the setting encouraged the development of complex, highly refined genres, with themes that were more worldly. Poetic or sensuous interpretations, both in dance and music, gained prominence in this setting, and musical styles also evolved to suit a more lighthearted atmosphere. This source of inspiration was very important in the development of certain fast rhythmic aspects of the Kathak dance form, for several types of compositions that are used in the dominant classical Hindustani vocal form known today as Khayal, or the lighter classical genres of Hindustani music such as Thumri.
The third source of inspiration was through participatory performances, such as group dancing or singing for which the context was typically a folk festival in which the entire village might participate. This context is also hospitable to different types of folk dances in various parts of India. The most popular are group dances known as the Garba or Ras from Gujerat, and Bhangra from the Punjab. The former is a group dance form in which men and women dance in a circle, sometimes breaking up in smaller groups or pairs, and the recombining in a circle to resume a refrain. They use sticks that are clashed together rhythmically, and are accompanied by singers and other musicians. The Bhangra is a vigorous high stepping group dance form in which both men and women participate. The dances often take place at harvest festivals.
Towards the middle years of this century, profound change began to occur in both the performance contexts of music and dance as well as the patterns of patronage, as societal forces such as urbanization and the growth of media made their impact felt. These changes accelerated after India became an independent nation, and today the performing arts are very prominent at secular venues such as city auditoria and music conferences. Performances of classical music and dance are common in cities, and are attended by sizable audiences, although these are still very small in comparison with audiences attracted by pop musicians.
Urbanization has made inaccessible one natural venue for informal musical performance, namely the village festival. However, urban communities have adjusted to the new conditions by organizing informal social assemblies usually in coincidence with festivals such as Diwali or Ganesh Chaturthi. During such gatherings, adults and children participate in performing many different kinds of music and dance-solo items, small ensemble works, or large group dances in which essentially everyone can participate.
The strategies that have developed in India cities to keep their heritage alive have an exact counterpart in the U.S. In Seattle, the Indian community celebrates the Diwali festival towards the end of October, with many gathering organized by regional subcommunities as well as with a large public gathering. Music and dance performances from different parts of India are presented by young and old. Children’s participation was encouraged, so that by involving them they will acquire a sense of identity and continuity.
Various organizations devoted to the performing arts have taken root in the Puget Sound area, where the majority of Washington state’s Indian community lives, in an effort to preserve and present these traditions.
Ragamala, an all volunteer organization devoted to the performing arts of South Asia has been in existence for 15 years, and has presented musical dance performances, mainly from India, but occasionally from other countries in South Asia whose musical cultures are cognate. By collaborating with a network of other arts organizations in North America, Ragamala has been able to present a continuing series of high quality shows, featuring both top-notch established artists as well as younger performers at the threshold of a brilliant career. Another organization, the Music and Cultural Society of India, was formed about eight years ago, and has devoted itself to presenting performers of light music and popular styles. Their presentations have been very successful.
A third group that has done a lot for the propagation of these art forms is Leela, a small group of four or five performers, who conduct an enormous number of workshops, recitals, and lecture-demonstrations of dance and music. Over the last 12 years they have performed at diverse venues, such as community centers, schools throughout the state, senior centers, libraries and museums. The moving spirit behind this group was Prabha Rustagi, whose untimely death last year was felt as a great loss by the community (See Page 17). Prabha was also a fine dancer and dance teacher, whose legacy is now carried on by the remaining members of the group.
^ - next article: Phrabha Rustagi: A Dancer of Tales by Joan Rabinowitz |