Phagun Madai: Dantewada's riot of colours linked to Spring-time fruits, flowers

Gaur dancers on the streets of Dantewada

By Deepanwita Gita Niyogi
While the rest of India soaks in the spirit of Holi to welcome spring, Dantewada district in southern Chhattisgarh takes pride in its own carnival involving music, revelry and celebrations.
The 10-day long Phagun Madai festival of Dantewada, which is over 700 years old, coincides with the festival of colours observed across the country. Grand processions are a common sight on the district’s roads packed to the full with curious onlookers. Bison horn dancers from the Dandami Maria tribe of south Bastar perform on the streets of Dantewada during the festive season. The Phagun Madai witnesses the coming together of royalty, Adivasis and non-Adivasis of the entire Bastar region comprising seven districts, including Dantewada.

Devotees walk holding their gods and goddesses

The bison horn dance, also known as the gaur dance, is a visually vibrant spectacle with male dancers wearing headgears made of gleaming bird feathers, cowrie shells and bison horns. The long pole carried by the women is called gujri, which is struck on the ground, as they move rhythmically to the beats of drums and flutes. The dance is an integral part of Phagun Madai. The festival is actually celebrated over a month but the 10 days hold the key attraction.
Suresh Karma, who heads the Sarva Adivasi Samaj in Dantewada, said that for the entire 10-day period, various types of customs and rituals are performed in the midst of dance and music. Decorated processions are taken out in the form of dolis or palkis (palanquins) during the evenings. There are 42 tribal groups in Chhattisgarh. So, there is a Sarva Adivasi Samaj to give them a proper platform.

Nagada, a main attraction of the festival

“Phagun Madai is an annual festival organised from March 9-March 19 which is linked to nature. It hails the spring-summer season’s fruits and flowers like the mango as well as mahua and palash. Mahua is an important minor forest produce in Chhattisgarh which is collected by tribals and reddish palash flowers dot the rural landscape during March-April. As part of the festival, people from all walks of life bring their own gods and goddesses to Dantewada,” Karma added. Immediately after the Phagun Madai, the mango festival is celebrated.
Some of the rituals are interesting like the traditional drama or nukkad natak showing the hunting of the rabbit which takes place at night. According to Karma, it symbolises the great hunting tradition observed in the olden days. People still remember it and carry on the tradition with great fervour on the stage. A man essays the role of the rabbit. Once, there was dense forest all around and many animals were found. So, it is basically a remembrance.

Palkis are taken out decorated daily

Amidst the din of musical instruments like the flute and the nagada a type of drum, assistant sub-inspector Asha Singh said almost 5,000-10,000 people arrive in Dantewada on a daily basis during these 10 days. In totality, over 10 lakh people descend on the place bringing 750 gods and goddesses from far-flung villages of the district and even from outside. The madai concludes with a fair. Security is ramped up for almost a month keeping in mind the festivities and 2000 police personnel are deployed throughout the night at sensitive places.
Nandlal Rathore, who is associated with the Banjara Samaj, said devotees perform rituals with great fervour. Phagun Madai is also linked to the observance of pandum, a Gondi word which means festival.

Comments

Justice for Zubeen Garg: Fans persist as investigations continue in India and Singapore

By Nava Thakuria* Even a month after the death of Assam’s cultural icon Zubeen Garg in Singapore under mysterious circumstances, thousands of his fans and admirers across eastern India continue their campaign for “ JusticeForZubeenGarg .” A large digital campaign has gained momentum, with over two million social media users from around the world demanding legal action against those allegedly responsible. Although the Assam government has set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT), which has arrested seven people, and a judicial commission headed by Justice Soumitra Saikia of the Gauhati High Court to oversee the probe, public pressure for justice remains strong.

New RTI draft rules inspired by citizen-unfriendly, overtly bureaucratic approach

By Venkatesh Nayak* The Department of Personnel and Training , Government of India has invited comments on a new set of Draft Rules (available in English only) to implement The Right to Information Act, 2005 . The RTI Rules were last amended in 2012 after a long period of consultation with various stakeholders. The Government’s move to put the draft RTI Rules out for people’s comments and suggestions for change is a welcome continuation of the tradition of public consultation. Positive aspects of the Draft RTI Rules While 60-65% of the Draft RTI Rules repeat the content of the 2012 RTI Rules, some new aspects deserve appreciation as they clarify the manner of implementation of key provisions of the RTI Act. These are: Provisions for dealing with non-compliance of the orders and directives of the Central Information Commission (CIC) by public authorities- this was missing in the 2012 RTI Rules. Non-compliance is increasingly becoming a major problem- two of my non-compliance cases are...

Urgent need to study cause of large number of natural deaths in Gulf countries

By Venkatesh Nayak* According to data tabled in Parliament in April 2018, there are 87.76 lakh (8.77 million) Indians in six Gulf countries, namely Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). While replying to an Unstarred Question (#6091) raised in the Lok Sabha, the Union Minister of State for External Affairs said, during the first half of this financial year alone (between April-September 2018), blue-collared Indian workers in these countries had remitted USD 33.47 Billion back home. Not much is known about the human cost of such earnings which swell up the country’s forex reserves quietly. My recent RTI intervention and research of proceedings in Parliament has revealed that between 2012 and mid-2018 more than 24,570 Indian Workers died in these Gulf countries. This works out to an average of more than 10 deaths per day. For every US$ 1 Billion they remitted to India during the same period there were at least 117 deaths of Indian Workers in Gulf ...

History, culture and literature of Fatehpur, UP, from where Maulana Hasrat Mohani hailed

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* Maulana Hasrat Mohani was a member of the Constituent Assembly and an extremely important leader of our freedom movement. Born in Unnao district of Uttar Pradesh, Hasrat Mohani's relationship with nearby district of Fatehpur is interesting and not explored much by biographers and historians. Dr Mohammad Ismail Azad Fatehpuri has written a book on Maulana Hasrat Mohani and Fatehpur. The book is in Urdu. He has just come out with another important book, 'Hindi kee Pratham Rachna: Chandayan' authored by Mulla Daud Dalmai.' During my recent visit to Fatehpur town, I had an opportunity to meet Dr Mohammad Ismail Azad Fatehpuri and recorded a conversation with him on issues of history, culture and literature of Fatehpur. Sharing this conversation here with you. Kindly click this link. --- *Human rights defender. Facebook https://www.facebook.com/vbrawat , X @freetohumanity, Skype @vbrawat

Celebrating 125 yr old legacy of healthcare work of missionaries

Vilas Shende, director, Mure Memorial Hospital By Moin Qazi* Central India has been one of the most fertile belts for several unique experiments undertaken by missionaries in the field of education and healthcare. The result is a network of several well-known schools, colleges and hospitals that have woven themselves into the social landscape of the region. They have also become a byword for quality and affordable services delivered to all sections of the society. These institutions are characterised by committed and compassionate staff driven by the selfless pursuit of improving the well-being of society. This is the reason why the region has nursed and nurtured so many eminent people who occupy high positions in varied fields across the country as well as beyond. One of the fruits of this legacy is a more than century old iconic hospital that nestles in the heart of Nagpur city. Named as Mure Memorial Hospital after a British warrior who lost his life in a war while defending his cou...

Epic war against caste system is constitutional responsibility of elected government

Edited by well-known Gujarat Dalit rights leader Martin Macwan, the book, “Bhed-Bharat: An Account of Injustice and Atrocities on Dalits and Adivasis (2014-18)” (available in English and Gujarati*) is a selection of news articles on Dalits and Adivasis (2014-2018) published by Dalit Shakti Prakashan, Ahmedabad. Preface to the book, in which Macwan seeks to answer key questions on why the book is needed today: *** The thought of compiling a book on atrocities on Dalits and thus present an overall Indian picture had occurred to me a long time ago. Absence of such a comprehensive picture is a major reason for a weak social and political consciousness among Dalits as well as non-Dalits. But gradually the idea took a different form. I found that lay readers don’t understand numbers and don’t like to read well-researched articles. The best way to reach out to them was storytelling. As I started writing in Gujarati and sharing the idea of the book with my friends, it occurred to me that while...

N-power plant at Mithi Virdi: CRZ nod is arbitrary, without jurisdiction

By Krishnakant* A case-appeal has been filed against the order of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) and others granting CRZ clearance for establishment of intake and outfall facility for proposed 6000 MWe Nuclear Power Plant at Mithi Virdi, District Bhavnagar, Gujarat by Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) vide order in F 11-23 /2014-IA- III dated March 3, 2015. The case-appeal in the National Green Tribunal at Western Bench at Pune is filed by Shaktisinh Gohil, Sarpanch of Jasapara; Hajabhai Dihora of Mithi Virdi; Jagrutiben Gohil of Jasapara; Krishnakant and Rohit Prajapati activist of the Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued a notice to the MoEF&CC, Gujarat Pollution Control Board, Gujarat Coastal Zone Management Authority, Atomic Energy Regulatory Board and Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) and case is kept for hearing on August 20, 2015. Appeal No. 23 of 2015 (WZ) is filed, a...

ArcelorMittal faces global scrutiny for retreat from green steel, job cuts, and environmental violations

By A Representative ArcelorMittal is facing mounting criticism after cancelling or delaying nearly all of its major green steel projects across Europe, citing an “unsupportive policy environment” from the European Union . The company has shelved projects in Germany , Belgium , and France , while leaving the future of its Spanish decarbonisation plan uncertain. The decision comes as global unions warn that more than 5,500 jobs are at risk across its operations, including 4,000 in South Africa , 1,400 in Europe, and 160 in Canada .

Licy Bharucha’s pilgrimage into the lives of India’s freedom fighters

By Moin Qazi* Book Review: “Oral History of Indian Freedom Movement”, by Dr Licy Bharucha; Pp240; Rs 300; Published by National Museum of Indian Freedom Movement The Congress has won political freedom, but it has yet to win economic freedom, social and moral freedom. These freedoms are harder than the political, if only because they are constructive, less exciting and not spectacular. — Mahatma Gandhi The opening quote of the book by Mahatma Gandhi sums up the true objective of India’s freedom struggle. It also in essence speaks for the multitudes of brave and courageous individuals who aspired to get themselves jailed for the cause of the country’s freedom. A jail term was a strong testimony and credential of patriotism for them. The book has been written by Dr Licy Bharucha, an academically trained political scientist and a scholar of peace studies and Gandhian studies, who was closely associated throughout her life with those who made the struggle for India’s independence the primar...

Search This Blog