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Dandiya raas dance by children during Navratri in Bangalore

Raas or Dandiya Raas is the traditional folk dance form of Gujarat & Rajasthan India, and is associated with scenes of Holi, and lila of Krishna and Radha at Vrindavan. Along with Garba, it is the featured dance of Navratri evenings in Western India.

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Hindu Classical Arts
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Etymology[edit]

The word "Raas" comes from the Sanskrit word "Rasa". The origins of Raas can be traced to ancient times. Lord Krishna performed Rasa lila" (Lila means Lord Krishna's playful dance. The word "Laika" also refers to things that God does that we fully understand).

Forms of Raas[edit]

The Dandiya Raas dance

There are several forms of Raas, but "Dandiya Raas", performed during Navaratri in Gujarat is the most popular form. Other forms of Raas include Dang Lila from Rajasthan where only one large stick is used, and "Rasa lila" from North India. Raas Lila and Dandiya Raas are similar. Some even consider "Garba" as a form of Raas, namely "Raas Garba".

In Dandiya Raas men and women dance in two circles, with sticks in their hands.

Origin of Dandiya Raas[edit]

Mers of Saurashtra performing Dandiya Raas

Originating as devotional Garba dances, which were always performed in Durga's honour, this dance form is actually the staging of a mock-fight between the Goddess and Mahishasura, the mighty demon-king, and is nicknamed "The Sword Dance". During the dance, dancers energetically whirl and move their feet and arms in a complicated, choreographed manner to the tune of the music with various rhythms. Dhol is used as well as complementary percussion instruments such as dholak, tabla, bongos and others.

The sticks (dandiyas) of the dance represent the swords of Durga. The women wear traditional dresses such as colorful embroidered choli, ghagra and bandhani dupattas (traditional attire) dazzling with mirror work and heavy jewellery. The men wear special turbans and kedias, but this varies regionally.

Garba is performed before Aarti (worshipping ritual) as devotional performances in the honor of the Goddess, while Dandiya is performed after it, as a part of merriment. Men and women join in for Dandiya Raas, and also for the Garba. The circular movements of Dandiya Raas are much more complex than those of Garba. The origin of these dance performances or Raas is Krishna. Today, Raas is not only an important part of Navratri in Gujarat, but extends itself to other festivals related to harvest and crops as well. The Mers of Saurastra are noted to perform Raas with extreme energy and vigor.

History[edit]

The Dandiya Raas dance originated as devotional Garba dances, which were performed in Goddess Durga’s honor. This dance form is actually the staging of a mock-fight between Goddess Durga and Mahishasura, the mighty demon-king. This dance is also nicknamed ‘The Sword Dance’. The sticks of the dance represent the sword of Goddess Durga.

The origin of these dances can be traced back to the life of Lord Krishna.^[1] Today, Raas is not only an important part of Navaratri in Gujarat but extends itself to other festivals related to harvest and crops as well.

Format[edit]

Dandia dance

Raas is also performed at social functions and on stage. Staged Raas can be very complex with intricate steps and music. Raas is a folk art and it will change with the times. When African slaves and ship workers (who were Muslims) arrived on the coast of Saurashtra, they adopted Raas as their own and used African drums. While it originated from Hindu tradition, it was adopted by the Muslim community as Saurashtra. Singing entered the Raas scene later on. Initially, most songs were about Lord Krishna, but songs about love, praise of warriors who fought gallant wars, and the Goddess Durga, and even Muslim Raas songs were born.

The motif is also found represented in trade textiles as early as the 15th century in the prestigious double ikats woven with silk threads (known as patolas) that were traded by Indian (and later European traders) for Southeast Asia's spices. Most originated in Gujarat, the most famous of all of India's patola centres. Because of their rarity and perceived value, we are lucky to have some still in existence today emerging from Indonesian collections.

It is common to think that Raas has to be fast, but that is not the case. Grace and slow movements are just as important. With the advent of C-60 cassettes came the pre-recorded "non stop" Raas music. Soon it overtook the individual Raas items which are rarely recorded nowadays. The disco beat and use of western drum became popular, but you can still visit fine arts college in Vadodara during Navaratri where the musicians sit in the centre and play while people dance around them.
Gujarati movies entered the scene in late 50's and 60's. Raas took on a different form as it borrowed heavily from the film industry.

There are other unique forms of Raas such as one in the town of Mahuva where men would tie one hand to a rope extending from above and hold a stick in the other hand. This was strictly in praise of Goddess Durga. If you use broader definition, even "Manjira" can be used to do Raas. There are communities that specialize in Raas with "Manjira". Just like the British police, some men dancing at "Tarnetar" used to wear colourful bands of cloth around their legs, resembling socks. The city of Mumbai developed its own style of Dandiya Raas. Now, during Navratri people use Dandiya, but make it more like a free style dance. "Head bobbing" during Raas is popular in USA among youngsters, but that arrived from the Gujarati movies. Head bobbing was for the singers, not for the dancers.

Costumes and music[edit]

The women wear traditional dresses such as colorful embroidered choli, ghagra and bandhani dupattas, which is the traditional attire, dazzling with mirror work and heavy jewellery. The men wear special turbans and kedias, but can range from area to area. The dancers whirl and move their feet and arms in a choreographed manner to the tune of the music with a lot of drum beats. The dhol is used as well as complementary percussion instruments such as the dholak, tabla, et cetera. the true dance gets extremely complicated and energetic. Both of these dances are associated with the time of harvest.

Difference between Dandiya and Garba[edit]

The main difference between Garba and Raas is that Raas is played with Dandiyas (pair of colorfully decorated sticks), while Garba consists of various hand and feet movements. Most of the Dandiya steps require even number of people while in Garba there is no such requirement on number of people. There are many popular Dandiya Songs available in Gujarati and Hindi.

For Dandiya, sometimes instead of sticks, people also use "Swords". The circular movements of Dandiya Raas are much more complex than that of Garba. As people play with sticks, it is important to be careful while playing Dandiya.

References[edit]