Monsoon Festivals of Chhattisgarh

in Module
Published on: 08 November 2018

Anushka Rose

Anushka Rose is the Coordinator for Research and Documentation at Prayas- Center for Labor Research and Action. With a background in action research, she has worked with diverse communities of Central India to foster critical thinking around the idea of development.

Monsoons are a season that mark and define the intense and intimate relationship between agricultural societies and nature. In Chhattisgarh, referred to as dhan ka katora, or paddy bowl, this season is marked by several festivities that celebrate a pastoral and agricultural way of life. This module seeks to document various rituals and festivals that are anchored around this season. The celebration of Hariyali, marks the culmination of ‘jutai’, when farmers come together to worship ancestors, the soil, the seeds that have been carefully sown. Teeja, mainly a Hindu festival, has been adopted across communities and celebrated as a day of fasting and prayers.

 

 

This content has been created as part of a project commissioned by the Directorate of Culture and Archaeology, Government of Chhattisgarh, to document the cultural and natural heritage of the state of Chhattisgarh.