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Tarpa comprises a range of footwork patterns hand gestures - or what are known in classical dance as mudras - are rare. Starting with slow, droning intonations of the same note, the performers warm up with a simple footwork - two steps forward and one step back. The tarpakar introduces the first musical strains, a sound akin to a bagpipe, and the dance begins. The performers then rest their hands at the back of the person in between, near the waist, and effectively lock the circle. Women hold each other’s hands (skipping the man between them), and the men do the same. The dance is usually performed with men and women standing alternately. This enhances the sentiment of unity and togetherness,” observes Vaishnavi Nimbalkar, a classical and folk dancer and performer. “The tarpa as a loknritya (folk dance) pulls together each and every person of the community as opposed to a choreographed act performed by a select few.
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They rely on the tarpakar - who stands at the centre of a clearing with the performers around him - for the music, and on the udvya (or the leader of the group) for indicating a change in formation or a variation in the footwork. It is free-flowing and minimally choreographed, yet coordinated and synchronised.Įarlier paintings of the Warli community depict men and women banded together in a helix, symbolic of the eternal circle of life, with the tarpakar playing the instrument in their midst while today, every other Warli tote bag and embroidered fabric carries the imprint of this age-old folk art.įor small clusters of agrarian communities and forest dwellers, it is a wordless expression of happiness and fulfilment. Performed by both men and women from the tribal communities, the folk dance is named after the wind instrument - known simply as tarpa nritya.Ĭelebrated among most indigenous cultures as the king of folk dances, tarpa is the primary entertainment at social gatherings in the settlements of the Warli and Kokni tribes along the coastal strip of the Palghar district (around 200 km away from Mumbai), and for a few communities along the Satpura hills, as well as certain regions in the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli.Ĭomparable to a Scottish reel, an eightsome or a Dashing White Sergeant, tarpa is like a country-dance that is seldom taught and often just observed, as it is passed on from generation to generation. Warlis, Malhar Kolis and on occasion, the Bhil tribes of Maharashtra, thus usher in bountiful harvests, festivals and marriages by dancing to the high-pitched tunes of a tarpa. Hand in hand, these silhouettes move in a circle along the narrow lanes of a village, hopping forward and backward to the music emanating from a severely nasal-sounding instrument. On an auspicious night, under a shimmering moon and amidst the glow of many lamps, dark shadows fall against the fractured walls of small cottages.
#Marathi koli dance costume series
Editor's note: This article is the first in a five-part series documenting the folk dances of Maharashtra.