History of Stilts in India
Music and dance in India are among the oldest forms of classical arts with traditions that date back several centuries. Musical forms prevalent today have roots in the book ‘Samaveda’.
Indian Music has developed within a complex interaction between people of different races and cultures. Today Indian classical music can be classified into two broad traditions, north Indian and south India.
The north Indian tradition is known as Hindustani Sangeet and south Indian tradition of music is called Carnatik Sangeet. Both traditions are fundamentally similar but differ in nomenclature and the way they are performed. The source of Indian dance form is the ‘Natya Shastra’, regarded as the fifth Veda, written between 2nd century B.C. and 2nd century A.D. The uniqueness of Indian classical dance is that they are all devotional in content, using the body effectively as a medium of communication to express moods and emotions.
Gendi (Stilt)
This dance from Madhya Pradesh is usually performed during the rainy season from June to August. The dancer, who has learnt to balance himself on the Gendi, can perform the dance even in water or on marshy surfaces. Children generally perform the dance as intense balance is required. The performers are colourfully attired with belts studded with cowrie shells around their necks. The Gendis are dyed in bright colours
Gendi (Stilt) Dance: Young boys of Muria Tribal people dance very fast on stilts (Gendi) made of long bamboo. Physical balance and skills are specialty of this dance. This dance is specially performed in and out of “Ghotul” (youth club), which is called Ditong, and it is a dance without song.
Gendi or stilt dancing is fairly common among Gond children of Madhya Pradesh. The dance is popular in the Vindhyas and the Satpura ranges. This is danced in the rainy season; from June to August. The dancer, who has the balance on the Gendi (stilts)) perform it even in water or on marshy surface. The dance is brisk, and ends with a dance in pyramid formation. This is generally confined only to children and the attraction consists in balancing and clever footwork.
In the villages where the wheat seedlings festival, Bhujalia, is celebrated, children prance on their gendis, collect near the village pond or the river in which bhujalias are to be immersed. Other frolicsome children, dancing to the accompaniment of musical instrument join the group and they dance together. Sometimes, womenfolk also join them, but they do not use stilts. The Gendi season begins on the day of Bak Bandhi festival in the month of June and concludes after the
Brita or Vrita of West Bengal is one of the most important traditional folk dances of Bengal. This is an invocational dance performed by the barren woman of Bengal who worship in gratitude after their wish being fulfilled. Quite often, this dance is performed after a recovery from a contagious disease like small pox etc.
