Folk Song

Displaying 1 - 10 of 28
Mitali Trivedi
Pandit Om Prakash Sharma is considered to be the face of maach folk theatre form in India. He belongs to the Ustad Kaluram school of maach. Ustad Kaluram was his grandfather, and he has been practising the folk art of maach since his childhood. His contribution to maach is not restricted to its…
in Interview
Mitali Trivedi
I regard the theatre as the greatest of all art forms, the most immediate  way in which a human being can share with another the sense of  what it is to be a human being. —Oscar Wilde In the social structure of India, living traditions hold a prominent position. Any form of living tradition has…
in Overview
Mitali Trivedi
Since the early eighteenth century, maach, a musical folk theatre form of Madhya Pradesh, has been an integral part of the local culture of the Malwa region. Performed mostly by men who also don female roles, the performance art form uses satirical humour in its songs and dialogues to make…
in Module
Kadiguang Panmei
He is 81 years old and is a practitioner of the nrah (cup violin), which he learnt to play and construct from his time in the khangchius (Ruangmei men’s dormitories). In this interview, Daimei recounts the days growing up in the khangchiu in his village of Thalluan where he learnt most of the songs…
in Interview
Kadiguang Panmei
The Ruangmei Nagas, like other Naga tribes, are known for their rich cultural heritage. Their traditions are rooted in their origin as part of a conglomerate of tribes called the Zeliangruang, which comprise of the Zemei, the Liangmei, the Ruangmei and Inpui tribes. Zeliangruang Naga people are…
in Overview
Soumik Datta
It addresses the historical origins of the modern solo bhawaiya form, the influence of nature and Rajbanshi culture on the development of the songs, and its gradual dissemination from early theatrical roots through the itinerant moishals (buffalo keepers) and gariyals (cart drivers) to the…
in Video
Soumik Datta
He has authored numerous books and essays on different aspects of the sociocultural history of North Bengal as well as ethnomusicological studies of bhawaiya songs. He is also a retired IAS officer and currently an elected representative of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly.  In this interview,…
in Interview
Soumik Datta
Bhawaiya is an iconic genre of folk song practised throughout the sub-Himalayan belt of northern West Bengal, southern Assam and north-western Bangladesh. There is an approximate consensus that the origins of the form may be dated back to at least the sixteenth century, during the reign of Raja…
in Overview
Chandrica Barua
Tai is a large ethnic group consisting of various subgroups currently scattered mainly across parts of Southeast Asia and South Asia (especially, Northeast India) having followed different patterns of migration from their original homeland, believed to be in Yunnan, China. The meaning of the word ‘…
in Overview