P365 - DAY242: Chholiya (छोलिया)/chaliya(छलिया) Dance


It is a dance form practised in the Kumaun region of Uttarakhand. It is basically a sword dance accompanying a marriage procession but now it is performed on many auspicious occasions.

It is especially popular in the districts of Pithoragarh, Champawat, Bageshwar and Almora of Kumaon division and has even spread to the Garhwal division.

It has a history of more than a thousand years and is rooted in the martial traditions of the Kumauni Kshatriyas when marriages were performed at the point of the swords. It is also believed to be auspicious as it provides protection from evil spirits and demons.

The turi (तुरी), nagphani (नागफनी) and ransing (रणसिंघ) dhol (ढोल), damau (दमाऊ) and Masakbeen(मसकबीन) or Bagpipe are traditional instrument played during the dance.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

P365-Day59: Mahasu Devta (महासू देवता) Temple, Jaunsar - Uttarakhand

Image
Presenting today two of  the most famous temple of Lord Mahasu...the Lakhwar and the Laksyar The Lakhwar Temple The lakhwar temple is located in Lakhwar village which is on Mussoorie – Chakrata motor able road. It is a very famous temple in this part of Dehradun and is also the local deity of the region. The  temple has three stories of which the idol is worshipped on the top floor. The Laksyar Temple The second temple is in Laksyar village which is located at a distance of just 5 kms from lakhwar. The place is very serene and beautiful and presence of these two temples makes it divine also. I got the opportunity to visit thses two mesmerizing place back in 2013 courtesy my KTM friends. Idol of Mahasu Devta The third and most famous Mahasu Devta Temple is located on the Tuini-Mori road at Hanol (हनोल) in tuini Uttarakhand.
Read more

P365 - DAY267: Dol Aashram (डोल आश्रम)

Image
With a view to guide mankind to attain inner peace through yoga and meditation, visionary Parma Yogi Kalyandasji established Shree Kalyan Sewa Aashram in Amarkantak in 1978. Later on Shree Kalyanika Himalaya Dev Sthanam, popularly known as Dol Aashram was setup in 2005 at Kanra Dol, Block Langara in Almora district of Uttarakhand. Construction of main meditation centre, known as Shree Pitham (श्री पीठम्)  was completed in 2018 and it opened with a grand ceremony on 18th April 2018. It is a Shree yantra (श्रीयंत्र) shaped round building with 126 ft in hight and 150 ft in diameter. The Shree Pitham houses world's largest three and half feet long Shree Yantra with an appropriate weight of one and half ton. It is made up of amalgamation of eight metals (अष्ट धातु) and installed amidst spiritual ceremony held between 18 April to 29 April 2018. The Ashram takes you through a spiritual voyage where one observes a life based on the principles of Yoga and V
Read more

P365-Day 5: Pine Cones Art, Nainital-Uttarakhand

Image
It is a ctually a form of handicraft in which various decorative showpieces and articles are made by using various components of pine trees such as it cone, bark and leaves. Root and other plants are also used to give different and natural shapes. In some areas of Uttarakhand, it is also known as Baget art ( बगेट कला). But, this is very prominent in Nainital, City of lakes. You can see various street vendors and artist selling theses products in and around Mall Road & Flats area of Nainital and if lucky, you can also witness making of these beautiful piece of art live. T hese pictures were taken at Nainital on December 6, 2015. Hope you see these in your next trip to Nainital.
Read more