- @Amrapali #txt-anno http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhavai {u'ranges': [{u'start': u'/div[3]/div[3]/div[4]/p[6]', u'end': u'/div[3]/div[3]/div[4]/p[19]/sup[1]/a[1]/span[1]', u'startOffset': 0, u'endOffset': 1}], u'quote': u'In 14th century, Ganga, a daughter of Unjha headman Hema Patel, was kidnapped by Muslim subedar. Their family priest, Asaita Thakar who was a brahmin, went to subedar claiming Ganga as his daughter. To prove, subedar asked him to dine with Ganga as during those time, brahmins did not dine with lower castes. He dined with her to save her but upon return, he was outcaste by Brahmins. He started performing plays to earn his living which developed into specific dramatic form. Out of gratitude, Hema Patel also gave him a plot of land and financial support which mark the start of patronage of Bhavaiya, the performers of Bhavai, by villages.[1][2][3][4]\nIt is believed that Asaita Thakar wrote about 360 plays or Vesha but only 60 have survived including some with his own names. In one of his plays, Asaita had dated his composition as AD 1360.[1][2][3]\nBhavai performance appear clearly to have evolved from earlier forms of folk entertainment. The word Bhavai in the sense of show or spectacle occurs in the 13th century Apabhramsa Jain religious verse. It says: "In a tree-less tract even a bunch of eranda (caster oil plant) makes a good show (Bhavai)." Abul Fazal\u2019s Ain-e-Akbari also mentions Bhavai while mentioning some communities.[1][2]\nThe Bhavai performers belong to a caste that came to be known as Taragala .[1][2][4]\nOverview[edit]\nBhavai is partly entertainment and partly a ritual offering made to Goddess Amba. In the courtyard of the Ambaji temple near Mount Abu the Navratri festival is celebrated with Bhavai performances. Amba is the presiding deity of Bhavai.[1][2][3]\nSubtle social criticism laced with pungent humour is the speciality of Bhavai. The pompous and incongrous behaviour of high caste people is scoffed at in Bhavai. Probably the anger over injustice suffered by the originator of Bhavai, Asaita Thakar, permeated the art of Bhavai. Some of the Bhavai plays present a scathing review of the caste-ridden social structure. People belonging to different levels of social strata ranging from king to knave are portrayed in Bhavai.[1][2][3]\nBhavai plays[edit]\nBhavai Veshas portray people from all classes of society. The barbers and knife-sharpeners, robbers, bangle sellers and social and economic thieves, banjaras, odas, darjis, fakirs and sadhus. There is a Vesha depicting the story of an unsuccessful love affair of a Bania woman and a Muslim Thanedar. At the end of the play Jasma Odan, a Muslim fakir appears to whom people request to revive Jasma.[1][2][3]\nHumor plays a vital part in any Bhavai performance and comes into play even while dealing with mythological personages. This predominance makes Bhavai unique among the traditional arts of India.[1][2][3]\nThe chief of the Bhavai troupe is called the Nayak. He first marks the performing arena, then offers kumkum to the oil-torch which is a symbol of goddess Amba and sings prayer songs in her praise. Then enters an actor covering his face with a plate, he is Lord Ganesha, the remover of obstacles. Goddess Kali is the next to enter and after she departs comes the Brahmana. The Vesha actually starts only after these preliminary appearances .[1][2][3]\nThe Nayak and the jester always remain on stage and direct the course of action with their commentary and intervention. The story unfolds through songs, dialogues and speeches in prose as well as verse. There is lot of dancing and singing in Bhavai. Female characters are acted by men.[1][2][3]\nThe language of Bhavai is a blend of Hindi, Urdu, and Marwari. Veshas were published for the first time in the nineteenth century and performances were linked to their predecessors through practice and the oral tradition.[1][2][3]\nThe bhungal is a four feet long copper pipe that provides a strong note and is unique to Bhavai. The bhungals are played during dance sequences and otherwise to indicate important characters. Other musical instruments that Bhavai performances include the pakhawaj (drums), jhanjha (cymbals), the sarangi (a stringed instrument), and the harmonium. The style of music is always Hindustani music interspersed with local tunes.[1][2][3]\nBhavai is also prevalent in Rajasthan as a spectacular folk dance. The Dance form consists of veiled women dancers balancing up to seven or nine brass pitchers as they dance nimbly, pirouetting and then swaying with the soles of their feet perched on the top of a glass or on the edge of the sword. There is a sense of cutting edge suspense and nail biting acts in the dance.\nContemporary performances[edit]\nJasma Odan based on Gujarati folk tale, written and directed by Shanta Gandhi and Mena Gujari produced by Deena Gandhi are some of most popular Bhavai musicals.[', u'permissions': {u'read': [], u'admin': [], u'update': [], u'delete': []}, u'text': u'Bhavai-folk-dance is also played by men.', u'tags': [u'Gujarat', u'Bhavai-folk-dance', u'cymbals', u'drums', u'Sarangi', u'harmonium', u'brass', u'pitchers']} created: Sat, 28 Feb 2015, 11:00 AM UTC