Chhau Mahotsav, the lifeblood of a martial dance form fast declining under the assault of modern moves, is all set to unmask memories of Seraikela for posterity.
The state art and culture department, the joint organiser of the annual folk extravaganza with its tourism cousin, has roped in around half a dozen artisans from Nimdih block of Seraikela-Kharsawan as well as Purulia in Bengal to make masks that visitors can take home as souvenirs.
The Seraikela and Manbhum (Purulia) genres of chhau are more popular than the Mayurbhanj (Odisha) avatar because of their sheer vigour. A major difference among the three also lies in the use of masks. While Seraikela and Manbhum use masks, Mayurbhanj does not.
Seraikela's technique and repertoire were developed by the erstwhile nobility of the region who both performed and choreographed it. Hence, its masks have a soft look. Manbhum masks are bolder and exhibit the spontaneity of the folk art. This is because, unlike Seraikela and Mayurbhanj that enjoyed royal patronage, the Purulia genre was developed and sustained by people themselves.
The Swadeshi Mela, which is complementing the cultural competition and aims to promote livelihood of indigenous groups, has 300 masks on offer. These have been handcrafted by artisans for the past three weeks and are available in various shapes and sizes. While the mini-masks are made only of clay, the bigger ones are crafted from papier-mâché, flour and cloth and finished with clay.
" Mukhosh (mask) is integral to our (Manbhum) chhau dance. We have finished making 50 original masks and 100 others, which are now being displayed at the mela. People can buy them to decorate their homes," said Munna Sutradhar, a mask artisan from Charida village in Purulia, whose family has been in the profession for four generations now.
While Sutradhar is in town with three fellow artisans from Purulia, another three from Nimdih have readied around 200 miniatures of Seraikela Chhau masks for the fair.
"Usually, we don't deviate from tradition (of making masks for performances). But, here it is all about promoting our art, so, we agreed. We will feel proud if mask-making finds favour among today's generation," said Swarnath Das, an artisan from Nimdih.
Since Sunday, when it was kicked off along with the festival, Swadeshi Mela at Bhagwan Birsa Munda Stadium has witnessed a footfall of over 2,000. The organisers said five masks were sold on Monday and they expected the revenue to swell once the chhau competitions began.
Tapan Patnaik, the director of Rajkiya Chhau Nritya Kala Kendra in Seraikela, said the district administration had trained 70 girls and boys in the craft, including students of the Kasturba Gandhi residential school, for three weeks in the run-up to the fair.
"We want to promote not only chhau, but the beautiful art that adds value to every act on stage. More workshops will be conducted. We are selling the miniatures for Rs 100, the medium ones for Rs 200 and the large masks with headgear for Rs 3,000," he added.
