Poush Mela :
Poush Mela is one of the important festivals in the Birbhum District. The Mela
is celebrated on the 7th Day of the Poush month of Bengali Calendar (23rd
December). The fair is an amalgamation of different cultures and traditions. It was
started as a tradition of the Tagore family in connection with the adoption of Brahmo
Dharmo but it has later transformed into an international cultural event of Bengal.
Rabindranath Tagore started the mela with the idea of promoting local Artisans
and Weavers and even today sale and promotion of Handicrafts and Handloom are an
integral part of the fair. At the dawn of 7th Poush, Santiniketan wakes up to the soft
music of shehnai. The first to enter the scenario is the “Baitalik” group, who go round
the ashrama complex singing songs. It is followed by a prayer-meeting at Chhatimtala. Then the entire congregation moves on to Uttarayan singing songs. Each day of this festival is filled with different activities. The Mela is characterized by live
performances of Bengali folk music, especially the baul music. It includes folk songs,
dances, recitation and tribal song and tribal sports. This fair offers a perfect insight of
true heritage of the state.
Basanta Utsab :
Tagore was truly fond of colours and celebrated the joyous festival with much
fanfare. On the day of Dol Purnima (Full moon day of Falgun), Basanta Utsav is
observed. There is a procession of music and dance in the morning followed by
Tagore’s music, rhymes and dance by students of different Bhavanas (Departments) of
Visva Bharati University. On that day, Boys and girls, dressed in yellow (basanti)
color, welcome spring – the season of hope and love, in a very elegant manner.
The cultural programme presented by the students is of a superlative aesthetical
degree. Beautiful songs appear euphonious to ears and mesmerizing dance
performances are a visual retreat. Tapping to the tunes of great music in groups,
students as well as the audience welcome the spring season wholeheartedly Later in the day, the students as well as the teachers apply abir on each other to
mark the festival of colours.
Jaydeb Mela
Kenduli Mela, also known as Baul Mela,is a devotional fair in Birbhum District.
The mela is held at Jaydev-Kenduli on the occasion of Makar Sankranti, known for
congregation of ‘Bauls’ or wandering minstrels of Bengal whose songs convey
profound philosophical viewpoints of life using simple expressions.
Patharchapuri Mela
Every year, a Fair called “Data Baba Mela” is held in the monh of Chaitra of
Bengali calendar (March-April) in Patharchapuri Village, Suri, to commemorate the
death anniversary of a famous Muslim saint named Hazrat Data Meheboob Shah Wali
famously known as “Data-Baba”. During this week long fair, lakhs of people gather at
the tomb of Data Baba to pay obeisance from different parts of the country.
Baul
Bauls are religious singers of Bengal, known for their unconventional lifestyle
and traditions, and for the freedom and spontaneity of their mystical verses that depicts
love, generosity and devotion. Their songs frequently deal with the love between the
human being and a personal god, who resides within the individual.
Adivasi Naach
Adivasi Naach is a traditional dance of the Santhal tribe. It conveys both happy
and mournful notes. Female participants in the dance are uniquely dressed in the
tribes’ traditional attire &carry pitchers of brass upon their heads while dancing.They
also use colourful umbrellas, Tirio (Flute), Madal(Tumda), Lagra, Khartal are the
musical instruments used in it by both male and females. This dance is distinguished
as a socio-cultural feature of this tribe.
Bhadu
Bhadugaan is a kind of folk song popular in this part of Bengal. Generally,
around 10 to 12 people with Harmonium, Khanjani, Dhol, Ramcoki or Premjuri,
sing the songs. Their songs are based on the tale of Bhadu.
Bhadu was a princess whose would be husband was killed by dacoits when he
was coming through a forest to marry Bhadu. As she heard the news, Bhadu fainted
and eventually died. Her father became very depressed as his one and only daughter
was no more, Then, some singersfrom the village composed songs in remembrance
of their dearest princess Bhadrabati to provide relief to their king from depression.
The king told them to preach Bhadu’s name far and wide. These songs are sung only
during the Bengali month of Bhadra.
Raibenshe
This is an Indian folk dance that belongs to the martial arts genre. It is a “Bir
Rasa Nritya”, the one which displays courage and valour. Performed only by males, this dance involves vigorous movements of the body along with the acrobatics of a
raibansh (a long bamboo stick), from which its name originated. During the
performance, the performers enact the actions of drawing a bow, throwing a spear
and waving a sword. The performers wear a brass anklet (nupur) on their right ankle.
This dance is accompanied by dhols (drums) and kanshis (cymbals).
Raibenshe was traditionally performed by Bagdi community, who worked as the
bodyguards of the zamindars (landlords) in medieval Bengal.
Bahurupi
The Bahurupies are wandering folk performers who portray several hundred
characters which are mostly mythological in nature – like Lord Shiva, Lord Krishna
Goddess Kali etc. They are street dramatists who assume disguises to entertain rural
and urban masses. They wear glittering, eye-catching costumes of mostly Hindu
gods and goddesses and adorn their faces with elaborate make-up. They wander
from village to village to perform and in return get contributions from the audience.
The rhythm of wordings and dialogues catch the attention of the audiences in a blink of moment. Nowadays, Bahurupies also highlight the socio-cultural scenario of
present times in their acting.
Pater Gan
Prevalent in Birbhum,
Patua Sangeet or Pater Gan
is a cultural tradition related
to the art of Bengal
Patachitra (a paper-based
scroll painting) performed by
Patuas (an artisan
community). Patachitra art
form is known for its
intricate details as well as
mythological narratives and folktales inscribed in it. The colourful painting, the song
of singer with step by step vivid descriptions of the scrolls and the rolling method of
pictures presented together creates the condition which mesmerizes the viewers.
They are the component of an ancient Bengali narrative art. Patua Sangeet describes
the inner meaning and thought of the Patachitra, which gives always social messages
and thus both are inherently connected to each other.
Terracotta
Terracotta is a form of artistry made out of soil and Adityapur in Birbhum is famous
for such forms. Black and brown Terracotta is made by burning the mud at different
degree of temperature. For example Black pottery is made by burning the items for
four times. No colors or chemicals are used for this purpose.
Kantha Stitch
Simple run stitches at the hand of
skilled artists create a magical artwork
called, Kantha embroidery. This
embroidery was a means of self
expression by rural women of Bengal.
The origin of Kantha traces its history to
a period not less than a thousand years.
Its images reach back to even earlier
sources, pre- and post- Vedic period.
Some symbols such as the tree of life, the
swirling cosmos and the sun are taken
from the primitive art. The brilliance of
the women artists have found expression
in lifestyle products like sarees, dress
materials, bed and cushion covers etc.
Kanthas meant for use as quilts are called
lep-kanthas, and those designed as
counterpanes are called Sujanikanthas.
Kantha stitch embroidery is also used in
covers for boxes and mirrors, pillow
cases, stoles for women and shawls for
men.
Batik
Batik is a technique of wax-resist dyeing applied to whole cloth, or cloth made using
this technique. Batik is made either by drawing dots and lines of the resist with a
spouted tool called a canting, or by printing the resist with a copper stamp called a
cap. The applied wax resists dyes and therefore allows the artisan to colour
selectively by soaking the cloth in one colour, removing the wax with boiling water,
and repeating if multiple colours are desired.
Leather Goods
Leather Goods are made especially at Amar Kutir, Santiniketan and
surrounding areas in Birbhum. These aremade using vegetable-tanned leather and
hand painted with natural dyes, the bags, pouches, notebooks and other products
made in Santiniketan are known for their traditional painting and nature-inspired
motifs. Its artistic leather bags are popular in foreign markets and are exported to
many countries including Japan and the U.S.A. In 2008, Santiniketan leather goods
got a Geographical Indication (GI) tag, a form of certification given to a particular
product or good that is unique to a particular region by the Controller General of
Patents, Designs and Trade
Marks. All of these are
popular across the globe
for their cultural touch.
| Place | BIRBHUM |
- Official Website : https://birbhum.gov.in/
