Table Of ContentThe Chhau Dance ofMayurbhanj: I
D.N.PAlNAIK
C~audance~sprevalentin acontiguous tribal beltofOrissa(Mayurbhanj),
BIhar (Seraikella) and West Bengal (Purulia) in three distinctive styles.
The Purulia Chhau is a folkish dance, full of vigorous movements. In
Seraikella and Mayurbhanj, on the other hand, this dance has developed into an
artof great sophistication and expressiveness, through years ofcultivation under
royalpatronage. While the Seraikellaand Puruliastyles use elaborate masks, the
Mayurbhanj style has dispensed withthem.
Various opinions have been expressed explaining the origins ofChhau dance,
andindeed its name. In Seraikella it is said that Chhau takes its name from the
Sanskritwords chhiiyii (shadow) and chhadma (False, sirnulatory)becauseofthe
masksused in the dance. Sunil KothariwritinginMarg (Vol. XXII,1968)opines
thatchhadma rather than chhaya is likely to be the source of 'Chhau' since in
Assam dance-masks are called chhau, and the Assarnese word is derived from
chhadma. In Mayorbhanj the interpretation is that 'Chhau' derives from chhiiuni
- military camp-i-because the dance is related to martial arts which were
practisedin militarycamps. Ashutosh Bhattacharyainhis book Chhow Dance of
Purulia(RabindraBharati University,Calcutta)opinesthat thewordderivesfrom
sang(late Sanskrit)--onewhodresses torepresentanotherperson, oraclown.P.
P. Mahto in an article writes that 'Chhau' comes from chho, an Austric word
,meaning gesture or movement imitating verbal and non-verbal signs ('Whose
Chho Is it Anyway?', The Telegraph, Calcutta,31January 1992). Some scholars
ofMayurbhanj claim that the wordcombineschha tabka (sixgaits) anduphli,the
basictechniques ofChhau dance (chha +u). On the other hand Girish Chandra
Mahanta, a Chhau activist of Bamanghati subdivision of Mayurbhanj (who
~rganizes an annual Chhaudancefestival at Rairangpur),believesthat 'Chhau' is
simplyfrom the Oriya word for six. There are six basic movements or djvision~
10 Chhau: cool (gaits), chakkar (circling movement). digbiiji (vault), ghura
(Whirling movement), uphli (jump) and rangbaji(costumeand make-up). .
These arguments seem untenable and unnecessary when we note.the mean~ng
oftheOriyaword chhauas well as words etymologicallyrelated10It.Chhau." a
pure colloquial word in Oriya meaning skill, dexterity. as well as crouching,
POuncing, etc., as recorded in the Pumachandra Oria Bhasakosh (Vol. 3) and
Song..,Na1QJcNos. 125-126Juty-December1997
ZO D.N.PATNAIK
Pramod Abhidhan (Vol. 2). the two most authentic Oriya lexicons. Words and
phrases related to chhau are: chhau mariba, to pounce upon prey; chhauri,
armour.coatofmail;chhauka,clever.cunning.dextrous;chhiiuni,militarycamp.
As these words'are connected with martial practice. it can be said withsome
degree ofcertaintythat 'chhau' connoted skill and dexterityin battle.referring10
the martial arts of the communities of the region from which the dancehas
sprung.
PharikhandaandSiidhan
According to the princely chronicle Bhanjavamsamiilikii, there weretwenty·
twofeudatorychiefsunderthe rulerofMayurbhanj. whichiscorroboratedby!he
followingextract froma letterdated 24 September 1803 from Mr Earnst,oneof
the Commissioners of Cuttack, to the Chief Secretary to the Government "II
appears that the Zarnidary of Mayurbhanj consists of twenty-two Estates,the
proprietorsofwhichpaytribute totheRajahand are bound toaffordhimmiliury
aid whenever he may require it." These twenty-two 'estates' were underthe
control ofchiefs of the Bhuiyan, Bathudi and Gond tribes who weretheearliest
settlersofMayurbhanj.The first two are the most hinduized tribesoftheregion;
Oriya is their mother tongue. The Gonds, also known as Dharuas, and the
Bathudis, mainly made up the militia of Mayurbhanj. The chiefs (sardars)of
these tribes maintained combat forces. In the first three decades of thiscenlUl)'
therewasalsolarge-scaleimmigrationofSanthal,Bhumij,Kolandothertribesto
this territory from neighbouring areas; eventually the immigrants carne to
constitute themajority of the tribalpopulation. .
ThecensusreportofMayurbhanj for 1931 (Vol.I). published in1937.records
that the Bathudishad a number of honorific titles given by therulersofthesute
for their prowess in battle. Occupational titles. military and civil. arealso
w~
recorded in the report. Some of these titles are: Jarndalia, i.e.. .of
blackberry foliage in token of victory; Kusumalia, winner oflaurels; BiigbjUl1J,
onewhoyokesatiger(atitleforbravery);Bagh, tiger; Biswiil,herooftallstawre;
al cr
Dalabehera, headman of troop; Dandasena, court-martial officer; Parih .
Padhial,armycamp-maker;Khandei,swordsman;Patra, steward;BaghCbiirDPJ3.
one who attacks like a tiger; Sandhan Gharia, military intelligence offica;
Sirnil~ly
Phudkar, army leader; Ranasingha, trumpet-blower; Singha. lion. !he
GondshadtitleslikeMohapatra (zamindar),Phudkar,Dalei, Dandiipat,AJarnb3r.
Khandapatra, Ranabaj, Dhaunia,ete. • •
~
These men serving in the Mayurbhanj forces had their centres.called
s~
for physical culture and swordplay. The physical culture was known_1lS
and swordplay pharikhanda (literally, shield and sword). Both sadban
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Pharikhanda - with heroic dance movements - were performed withintense
drumming of the Dhol and Dhurnsa, which are still the basic percussion
instruments of Chhau, played by drummers of the Dom community, Onthe
occasion of Makar Sankranti (in late January) the Bathudis of villages
neighbouring Baripada, the capital of Mayurbhanj, converged at the palaceto
demonstrate their art and pay their respects to the Maharaja, who usedtoreward
them with money. Likewise, the Dharuas would perform Pharikhandabeforethe
king inthemonthofOctober.
SolidersadeptinPharikhandaweregiventhe title ofSardar(chieforleader)by
the rulersofMayurbhanj. The namesofGulamSardarand Lula SardarofJaroda
village, and Matei Sardar, Madhav Sardar and Munda Sardarof Manbirvillage
are still mentioned. In the second half ofthe nineteenth century thereweretwo
great us/ads (teachers), Harihar Dhaunia and Dhananjay Ranabaj, whousedto
impart intensive training in Pharikhandato village youths.
Pharikhanda has a repertoire of one hundred and eight varieties of gaits,
movementsandjumps. The initial sword-practiceis with sticks; whenthelearners
attain~degreeofproficiencytheyaregiven the swordand the shield.Therhythmic
accompanimentisprovidedbythe Dhumsaand Tibtibi (a small kettledmmplayed
with two lean sticks);the Singa, Bheri and Kahali are the wind instrumentsused.
The Pharikhanda akhada generally starts in October. The students firstpaytheir
obeisancetoBhairav,Hanumanandguru Dron.Thevillagedeity isthenpropitiated
withthesacrificeofabird or animal,usually a male goat.
Piiik Akhiidii
In this preliminaryaccount ofthe origins of Chhau dance one mustalsotJ1e
intoaccount the influence ofthe Paik akhada, the gymnasium and themartial~
of the Paik soldiers who made up the armies of the kings of Orissain theu
conquestofJharkhand, and eventually settled there.
(Jharkhand,the vaststretchofhilly terrain along the Chhotanagpurplateau,was
~s
originally inhahited by various tribes. The Gajapati kings of Orissa annexed
te~tory establish~
inthe 14thcentury andeventuallyvarious Oriyachieftains th<rr
'kingdoms' here. These rulers _ the Maharajas of Mayurbhanj, SeraikeJ].1,
Chho.tanagpur, and the Rajas of Dhalbhum, Manbhum (1'\u;UIia), J(harsU3lIo
Kashipur, etc. - were feudatories of the king' of Orissa, who for that r:asoo
PanJ~
assumed the title of 'Jharkhand Patisha', as corroborated by Madala the
chronicle ofthe temple ofJagannath at Puri.) _
~
'Piiik'isderived from theSanskritpada/ik-infantryor foot-solider. pailS
were thepeasant militia ofthe Orissa kings and belonged to the Khandayalcaste
ikhanda, sword). In peacetime they used to cultivatelands given tothemfittfor
AboJ'e:SwordplayataMayurbhanjakhiid.i,Below:Ritual,ofthebhaktasonChaitraParva,
24 D.N.PATNAIK
rendering hereditary military service. At the same time they kept themselves
ready for combat through physical exercises, swordplay and other martial arts
cultivatedin the Paik akhada,
The Paiks were divided into three categories. In the first category were the
Pahlidi (pahiid, mountain), soldiers who defended forts, palaces and military
camps. Theirweapons were the swordand shield.Inthe secondcategorywerethe
Banua (one who uses biina, the ammunition), Their weapons were bows and
arrows, sword and shield, the bajratamta (javelin), trishul (trident) andsluJkti
(club). The Banuawere the infantry, and were at theforefront of battle.Thethird
category of Paiks were the Dhenkia, who guarded important places andalso
fought in wars. Theirweapons were swords and shieldsofsmallersize.
We have more information on the Paik tradition of Orissa from a 1622text
titled Piiik Khedii by Kanhai Champatiray, where he mentions that though
generally the hereditary Paiks were Khandayats, Paiks also came to berecruited
from all castes except the Brahmins, Paiks were recruited by arecruiting officer
known asBhoimula, who was also in chargeofthe Paikakhadas offourvillages.
The minimum age ofrecruitment was twenty, and the retirement age wasforty.
These retired soldiers were in charge of training young recruits in the village
akhadas, The only sonofafamily or anewlymarriedman was neverrecruitedas
aPaik,
The lastrecruitmentofPaiks in Mayurbhanj wasmadeby MaharajaKrishna
ChandraBhanjain the 1870s: he recruitednine hundredPaiks and sixhundred
Dalais (group leaders). Their descendants still bear Paik titles such as Palla
Singh, Bagh Singh, Balbir Singh, Dagara Samantaray Malla, Bahubalendra.
etc.
Though swords and shields and bows and arrows became obsolete withthe
Warfar~, re~ained
introduction ofguns in the Piiik akhadas a living traditionin
Orissa, and thrivedinMayurbhanj and Seraikellawherethe Paikshadsettled.The
martial art gradually took root in this new soil.
The daily training in an akhada is divided into four categories of exercises:
danda (ground exercises), which are of twenty-five varieties; suna, (aenal)
acrobatic exercises; kusti-kasrat (wrestling and weightlifting); and khela (play
with weapons).
Suna includes various exercises like miinkadchiti (front capriole), HanurrWn
ulti (back capriole), sun chiti (somersault in the air), niiga-phiisa (literal1Y,
serpent's noose), etc. In the latter exercise the performer holds three canenngs
·'ed· '! ~
jo.m together, takes a quick somersault and puts his head and legs 100
' ~~
nngs, In the exerci,se calledmundi, twopersons lockthemsel,ves at theWaI
TIlEOIllAUDANCEOFMAYURBHANJ 25
performcaprioles.Varioussizesofhuman pyramidsarealsoformed,fromthetop
ofwhicha performer takes a vault.
In kusti and kasrat the trainees lift heavy round stones, heavy iron chains
(niz{im)and iron balls,and work with mudgars,wooden clubs.
The last category ofexercises, khela, is play with sticks and swords. Various
techniques of wielding the sword and stick are taught. To gain control and
precisionin handlinga weaponthere areexercises suchascutting agreenbanana
witha single stroke ofthe sword placed on theabdomenofaperson lyingon the
ground,breakinga coconutplacedonthehead ofapersonwithasinglestrokeof
abigstick (lalhi)oran axe, and breakingastoneplacedonthechestwithasingle
strikeof a hammer. These and otherexercises with weaponsare performed with
dance movements and the utteranceofrhythmicsyllables.
Ifwe closely study the techniquesofChhau danceand compare themwith the
exercisesand movementsofthe Paik akhada,itiseasytoseetherelationbetween
thetwo. The Hanumiin ulti and miinkadchiti of the Paik akhiidii are the two
important acrobatic stunts of Purulia Chbau. The paintiiriis (sideways
movements)ofperformerswhentheyconfronteachother)havealsobeenadopted
fromthe Paik tradition.The paltiis (turns and flings)and hana (action ofkilling
witha sword) movements of the Paik akhada are two important movements in
MayurbhanjChhau. Moreover, the basic gaits and movements (tabka and uphli)
arepractised with sword and shield in both traditions, and the movements with
weaponsare called hiiiiar-dharii (holding arms). The placeofpractice ofChhau
iscalledakhadaafterthePaiks' gymnasiumandtheteacherisnotcalledguru,but
ustiid, after the teacher at a Paik akhiidii.
All the paik akhada 'exercises-gymnastics, swordplay, mock-fighting,
acrobatics-areperformed withintensedrumming oftheDhol whichisthebasic
percussioninstrumentofall thestylesofChhau dance.TheDhumsaisessentially
awar-drum which is again used in all the three forms of Chhau. (II should be
mentioned that the Piiiksalso have their own dance, Paikali, whichis performed
with Jhoomar music and bears a resemblance to Chhau; it is still prevalent in
Singbhum, Ranchi and Purulia districts. The dancers, dressed in traditional
Costume, perform with swords and shields in theirhands.)
In the old days the Paiks used to worship the terrific aspects of gods an.d
godesses- Mahadav, Kali, Chandi, Durga-and even now they pay their
obeisancetothe mothergoddess before practice. They worshipped their,armson
Dussera day. Likewise in Mayurbhanj Chhau the dancers worship Bh.31rav, the
I~ Se~ella
terrific aspect of Shiva, and Ambika. the mother goddess. the
dancers worship Bhairav as well its goddess Paudi, a female tnbal deity of the
26 D.N.PATNAII(
Bhuiyans. Only Purolia Chhau, which is a later variant of Chhau dance,isnot
associated with the worshipofany deity.
Once the akhadii became a part of the social milieu of Mayurbhanjand
Seraikella, the indigenous dance and music ofthe region began to be cultivated
there. Physicalculture and dance made an ideal combination, becausethemartial
anhadelements ofdance.Gradually themartialexercises transformedintodance
movements, freely borrowing from folk dances like Jhoornar, Narua, Nac!mi,
Kathinat ,Changunat, etc. Through this processofassimilation,Chhauemerged
as adistinctdance style.
DibakarBhanjBabu,aChhau guruwho publisheda reportontheChhaudance
of Mayurbhanj ('Mayurbhanjare Chhua-natar Bibaran') in Bhanja Proottp
(Aswin [347, 1934 A.D.), a literary magazine, gives us a great dealofuseful
information on the growth and development ofChhau at Mayurbhanj.Hewrites
that during the rule of Maharaja Krishna Chandra Bhanja one Ramhari Jed
Bebarta went to Seraikella where he chanced to see Chhau dance. Onhisrerum
he approached the Maharaja and requested him to introduce the dancein
Mayurbhanj. The Maharaja agreed and appointed Upendra Biswal, a gurufrom
Seraikella,intheUttarSahiAkhada.He was givenalandgrant.Aftertwoorthree
years anotherguru from Seraikella,Banamali Das, was appointed intheDakshin
Sahi Akhadii. He too was given land in Mayurbhanj. At that lime Brundavan
Chandra Bhanja, the Maharaja's brother, was in charge of UttarSahi.Hewas3
guru as well asdancer. Gokul Chandra Bhanja, another brother, was inchargeof
Dakshin Sahi. He too was a proficient guru and dancer. During this periodlbe
dancers in Mayurhhanj wore masks. But while Seraikella refined the)Ilaskasa
means of expression, developing exquisite artistry in the making of masks, it
would seem Mayurhhanj droppedthe maskandcarne to lean more heavilyonlbe
martial arts,
The Chhau of Purulia is rustic in character-a village an-and has a single
pert:0rmance standard. But in Seraikella and Mayurhhanj the dance has,beeD
cullJvaled at two levels-the rural standard of village amateurs, and thehighly
sophisticated an of professional dancers under royal patronage. Afterroyal
pa~onage ceased, professionaldancers have sought audiences outsidetheChhau
region,
Chaitra Parva
Chhau in its rudimentary forms was never associated with Chaitra Parva.
Rather, it had a religious and ceremonial association with the Dusserafestival,
Even now, when young boys are initiated into Chhau dance, the sacred'thread
28 D.N.PATNAIK
ceremony (niidii biindhii) isheld on Dussera day. Barring Seraikella, Baripadain
Mayurbhanj, andBonai,Chhau isstillrarely performedduring Chaitra Parva.But
in these three erstwhile princely states, the dance is closely associated withthe
festival.
Chaitra Parva iscelebrated onthe last three days ofthe month ofChaitra(the
first halfof themonth of April) inSeraikella,Mayurbhanj and Bonai. Inthepast
Chhau dance used to bepresented in the palace premises under thepatronageof
the rulers of these Slates, together with the rituals of devotees (bhaktas) inthe
daytime.On thethreenightsof thefestival,the gatesofthepalacesopenedtothe
public. Besides Chhau there were also arrangements to provide all-night
entertainment tothepeopleon the streets: Pala, Daskathiii, Suang,Jatra,Gotipuii
dance, etc. But Chhau was the most prestigious entertainment during Chaitra
Parvaasitwasperformed on thepalace grounds inthe presenceof therulers,the
royal families and guests. When royal patronage ceased, the entertainmenton
ChaitraParvaalsostopped-allexceptforChhau, which is stil1performedduring
thefestival under thepatronage of the State Governments of BiharandOrissa.
Chaitra Parva was original1y a festival of the tribal people, especially the.
Bhuiyans , Bathudis and Dharua Gonds, the early settlers of the region,who
inevitably influenced the other migrant tribes. On this day the'tribespeople of
Mayurbhanjandneighbouring areas propitiate their vil1agedeities inthejiihirii,a
grove where the deity is represented by a stone, perform animal sacrifices,and
arrange feasts in which the whole village participates. In other places too, for
example in the tribal district of Koraput (Koraput, Nabarangpur,Malkangiriand
Rayagada) wherethere isnoChhaudance, Chaitra Parva isa month-longfestival
celebrated by all the tribal communities. People wear new clothes, propitiate
villagedeities bysacrificinganimals and birds,go out hunting,andcelebratewith
drinking, feasting, singing and dancing. In Rayagada, a smaIl town of Koraput
distict, Chaitra Parva is the occasion to honour Majhighariani. There isahuge
con~egation of tribal people to propitiate the deity.
AmdaIia-JlimdaIia, Sadhan, Paikali, and various mask-dances are perfOlll1ed
a
t
On the occasion of Chaitra Parva AmdaIia-Jlimdalia is dance of jubilian
soldiers, the performers holding bunches of green leaves in both handswhich
han~,
conceal indigenously prepared gunpower, When they dance, waving their
the gunpowder is ignited by a cloth wick. producing fiery sparks. The dance IS
generally performed in the night.
SadhanorPharikhandaisswordplaywithdancemovements.InPiiika!istraight
double-edged Paik swordsand shields are used.Specialturbans arewornandthe
body of the performer smeared with white clay; geometrical designs arethell
