Gotipua will be one of the top draws at Kharsawan Utsav

Jamshedpur, May 8: Kharsawan Chhau will match steps with other tribal dances from the state and Orissa at the Kharsawan Utsav in Seraikela-Kharsawan to be held on May 26 and 27.

The district administration has rechristened the Kharsawan Mahotsav as Kharsawan Utsav this year. It is one of the few platforms where Kharsawan Chhau is promoted.

The dance has the same body language but does not use masks like its more popular cousins Seraikela Chhau and Purulia Chhau. Chief minister Arjun Munda will be the chief guest on the occasion.

The two-day show would also showcase Orissa’s Gotipua dance form. This unique dance form is performed at the Jagannath temple in Puri. Other tribal dances like Pyka, Jhumar and Sambalpuri will also be a part of the show.

“The Seraikela-Kharsawan district administration has taken up the cudgels to promote Kharsawan Chhau among the local people as well as artistes from neighbouring states. This year, people will get to see a new form of dance, the Gotipua from Orissa,” said Sachinder Das, secretary of the organising committee of Kharswan Utsav.

In the Oriya etymon goti means single and pua means boy. The Gotipua is a dance performed by young boys dressed up as girls.

The Gotipuas sing and dance to classical Vaishnava music in praise of Lord Krishna.

The dance often depicts various stories from the puranas as well as Krishna with his gopis in Vrindavan.

The budget for the dance festival is Rs 5 lakh. Singers from reality shows will also add some spice to the event. Shraddha Das, Deepak Tirkey, Sanatan Deep and others will sing at the Utsav.

The festival started last year after a gap of five years. Around 250 artistes from 24 groups across eight villages of the district will perform.

The district administration is keen to keep up the tradition and organise this festival. Post-independence, there was an agreement between the royal dynasties and the then Bihar government to preserve local culture.

The Seraikela-Kharswan district administration also organises the Seraikela Chhau Mahotsav during the Chaitra Parva in mid April.

The Seraikela-Kharswan district administration has planned to promote its art and culture in a grand manner and its glimpses will be seen at the 'Kharswan Utsav' scheduled on May 26 and 27. The local administration has rechristened the festival from Kharsawan Mahotsav to Kharsawan Utsav. Chief minister Arjun Munda has confirmed his participation as the chief guest. Munda's presence would add glitz to the cultural extravaganza.

This 'Kharswan Utsav' is one of the very few platforms to promote Kharswan Chhau and other regional dances. The two-day show would also showcase one of the rarest and fresh forms of dancing from Orissa known as 'Gotipua', a unique dance form performed at the Jagannath temple of Puri. Other tribal dances like pyka, jhumar and sambalpuri also to be a part of the show. The Kharsawan Chhau is different as it does not include mask but retains the same body language.

”The district administration of Seraikela-Kharsawan has taken the cudgel to organise such Kharswan chhau among people and other artistes from neighbouring states so that the latter too knows about the form of dancing, which is too very rich in tradition. This year, people will get to see'goti puo, a uniue form of Devdasi dancing merged with Odissi style,” said Sachinder Das, secretary of the organising committee of Kharswan Utsav.

Gotipua, the Oriya etymon of which literally means �Goti' �single�and �Pua�, which means �boy�.As the name indicates this sacred dance is performed only by boys dressed up as girls. Normally the Gotipuas dress up themselves as girls to sing and dance in the rhythm of ancient classical vaishnava music meant for the pleasure of the Supreme Lord Krishna. Their songs depict various stories from the great historical 'puranas' of India as well as the 'Rasaleela', pastimes of the Lord with the Gopis in Vrindavan.

The budget for the Kharsawan Utsav is Rs 5 lakh and reality shows well-known singers too will grace the occasion. Shraddha Das, Deepak Tirkey, Sanatan Deep and others will also perform at the Utsav.

The festival started last year after a gap of five years. Around 250 artistes from 24 groups across eight villages of the district will perform at the festival.

The Seraikela-Kharswan district administration is keen to organise such festival as after the independence in 1947, there was an agreement between the royal dynasties and the then Bihar government to preserve the local culture and tradition. The Seraikela-Kharswan district administration also organises the Seraikela Chhau Mahotsav during the Chaitra Parva in mid April.