Folk art, culture and tradition are the attractions of rural tourism in India. Many foreign scholars and travelers take to off-the-beaten paths of villages in quest of the folk art forms of India every year. Indian Eagle connects them with Indian culture and heritage to promote rural tourism as its social responsibility. Like the previous article,”The Art and Craft of Raghurajpur in the State of Orissa”, our take on the Madhubani Painting of Bihar is an effort towards achieving the goal.

Connection with legends ?

Madhubani Painting is a famous rural art of Madhubani, a village in the Mithila region of Bihar State, India. The origin of this art form is traced to the time of the Ramayana when Lord Ram was the King of Ayodhya in North India. If the legends are to be believed, a group of artists was commissioned to decorate the wedding venue with beautiful paintings on the occasion of the marriage of Ram and Sita by Janak, the King of Mithila.

From tradition to profession

Madhubani Painting has been an age-old tradition that women in the countryside perpetuated as a practice to decorate their huts from outside as well as inside on social and religious occasions. It has evolved from a folk culture tradition into a popular form of Indian art with the wheeling of time. In the bygone times, signs and symbols of sexual pleasure used to be painted on the walls of the rooms where newlywed couples spent the first night of marriage. With menfolk in the villages of Bihar having taken up Madhubani Painting as a profession, women have lost the monopoly over it.

Themes with religious bearings ?

The theme of Madhubani Painting is mostly influenced by the religious motifs and beliefs of Indians. Both practitioners and professionals of this traditional Indian art form are driven by love for nature and devotion for the Hindu deities. They depict the popular legends of Rama, Krishna, Durga, Kali, Shiva, Lakshmi, Saraswati and Indra, the abstract scenes from the courts of kings, and the familiar objects of day-to-day life through a palette of colors on cloth as well as canvas.

Close to the world of nature?

Lively illustration of natural objects such as the sun, the moon, flowers, birds and herbal plants like tulsi is popular with the artists of Madhubani Painting. The artists of the past years used organic colors derived or made from natural things like cow dung, charcoal soot, turmeric, flowers, plants, leaves, rice powder, sandalwood and indigo. The paintings on the walls and floors were close to simplicity and far from sophistication. Though the beauty of themes, the delicacy of sketching, and the flamboyance of colors are the mainstay of Madhubani painting even today.

Poetic and trantric connection

According to some art curators, Madhubani Painting was associated with the tantric culture of ancient India though it is still debated. The Mithila region of Bihar has been a seat of tantric practices for the Saiva and Sakti communities. References to the tantric connection of Madhubani Painting are found in the literary work of the poet Vidyapati who belonged to the 12th century.

Role of rural womenfolk ?

When the female members of Brahmin and Kayastha families were instructed to abide by the rules of the Panji System in 1326, differences appeared in the theme and style of Madhubani Painting based on their socio-economic status, lifestyles, creative levels and exposure to the outer world. The women from the upper reaches of society hardly experimented with themes, styles and motifs due to lack of exposure into the world beyond their confined existence. So their thought and imagination was limited to religious motifs and household rituals. Their Madhubani paintings became stylistic and intricate though variety was missing.

Socio-economic differences?

The paintings made by the women of lower castes like the Harijan exuded raw originality. Their paintings were less intricate and sophisticated than the works of the women of higher castes. They put emphasis on depth and beauty rather than ornamentation. Evidently, the socio-economic differences were apparent in the Madhubani Painting of? the previous eras. Gobar, Godana, Bharmi, Geru, Kachni and Tantric are some of the popular styles of this traditional art form.

International contributions?

With art-loving tourists from around the world having taken interest in the rural tourism and heritage of India, Madhubani Painting has gone beyond the confines of Mithila to touch international heights. India owes the worldwide popularity of Madhubani Painting to Japan, Germany, France and America in particular. The Mithila Museum in Tokamachi, Japan, exhibits some 900 paintings of different styles from Madhubani. ?The Women Painters of Mithila?, a book on Madhubani Painting by a French journalist was adapted into a film. The Master Craftsmen Association of Mithila, founded by an American in 1977, helps the artists of Madhubani with the sale of their creations through exhibitions.

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The Jodhpur Flamenco and Gypsy Festival is held at the Mehrangarh Fort in Rajasthan every year. The festival celebrates the music culture of the gypsy of Rajasthan by bringing alive their folk songs and dance on stage. This 3-day musical extravaganza in collaboration with the gypsy men and women of Rajasthan will commence on April 3 in 2019. It has lent a new lease of life to the gypsy culture of the desert. On Travel Beats, Indian Eagle explores the most interesting facts about the gypsy culture of Rajasthan in this article.

The gypsy tribe of Rajasthan is one of the nomad or vagabond communities in India. The origin of the tribe dates several centuries back. The people of this Rajasthani tribe belong to the lowest step of the socio-cultural and socio-economic ladder. They live a nomadic life and travel like a caravan from place to place. There is no permanent residence for them. They sleep under the open sky some times and in the shade of trees at times.

The Bopa and the Kalbeliya are two surviving groups of the gypsy tribe. The Bopa is a group of musicians and singers, whereas the Kalbeliya is a group of dancers and snake charmers. In the royal era of India, the kings of Rajasthan used to admire and patronize the people of the Bopa and the Kalbeliya for their performing arts. The musicians, singers and dancers of these two gypsy groups were often hired for entertainment on festive occasions in the royal families.

With the disappearance of royalty from Rajasthan, these tribal people have stooped to utter poverty. They have lost patronage and consequently, their traditional and decent livelihood that is live performance for entertainment at majestic palaces as well as forts. Today, they are street performers on the move. They perform to entertain a common lot, not a royal audience, in the fairs and festivals of Rajasthan. That is why the gypsy men and women of the Bopa and the Kalbeliya have become a common face of Pushkar Camel Fair in the sands of Rajasthan.

INFOGRAPHIC  The Story of Chittorgarh Fort

The Kalbeliya has many female dancers who perform and entertain on any occasion of joy in their community. Dancing is unique to their socio-cultural identity. Once a matter of cultural pride and recognition of the communal identity, dancing helps the Kalbeliya women make their ends meet. The Kalbeliya men became snake charmers for the sake of survival in the changing socio-economic scenario.

The swirling moves that gypsy women make while dancing resemble to the movements of snakes. The serpentine style of their dance is sensuous at times. They gracefully spin around themselves putting the entire body weight on their ankles. The way the gypsy women of Rajasthan are dressed is a kaleidoscopic magic of embroidery in different hues. Their red, black, yellow and orange outfits camouflage with the colorful milieu of Rajasthan. They are often referred to as queens of the desert.

READ  The Haunting Stories of the Haunted Fort

The gypsy men are accomplished masters of folk music. They have genetically inherited the art of playing different musical instruments including dholak, been, khanjari, pungi, morchang, and khuralio. The been is played to enchant and tame snacks. The khanjari is a percussion instrument, and the pungi is a woodwind instrument. The women perform in rhythm of the music produced by the men. The harmony of their performances is amazing!

The gypsy men are no less wonderful than their counterparts in look and appearance. They cover their heads with colorful turbans, which steal the show even from a distance. The piece of the garment that they wear on the upper part of the body is richly embroidered and embellished with delicate mirror work. Both men and women of the gypsy tribe wear plain silver jewellery.

The theme of the Kalbelia songs is inspired by the stories from the folklore of Rajasthan. Some in the gypsy tribe are blessed with the rare talent of composing lyrics for songs. The gypsy music passes through generations like an art of inheritance. In 2010, the UNESCO incorporated the folk songs and dance forms of Rajasthan from the Bopa and the Kalbeliya into its Intangible Heritage List.

A majority of the gypsy population in Ajmer, Chittorgarh and Udaipur belongs to the untouchable caste, which keeps them off from the mainstream society. The Satiyaa group of the gypsy men and women from Rajasthan celebrates death and mourns birth, contrary to the normal system of society. The death of any family member calls for celebration among these gypsies of Rajasthan. A procession of dancers, singers and drummers is organized to take the dead to the funeral ground for crematorium.

About Indian Eagle

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Recently, the New York Times was in trouble for having published a cartoon, which depicted an Indian farmer / villager with a cow knocking on the door of an Elite Space Club, in response to India’s successful Mars Mission. The severe flak from Indians on ground that the cartoon depicted India as a backward land of farmers and mired modern India’s current image made the New York Times apologize for hurting the sentiments of Indians. If the cartoon is taken in an altogether different sense other than what irked Indians, it conveys the progress of India’s rural economy, which encourages the farmer to enter the Elite Space Club. In support of this assumption, we collected some stories of India’s rural development from a few villages which rub shoulders with metros in confidence, education, modernity, economy and technology.

Pothanikkad, a village of the literate in Kerala  

Pothanikkad in Kerala is the only Indian village to have achieved 100% literacy rate. The village boasts of its literate population in contrast to the rest of India. There are high schools, primary schools and private schools in Pothanikkad. It is a quintessential example of achievement in education.   

Chappar in Haryana where birth of girls is celebrated  

Chappar is the only village to celebrate the birth of girls in Haryana, a North Indian state, which is infamous for crimes against women. When a girl is born, sweets are distributed in the entire village. The unexpected improvement in the status of women and the shift in the attitude towards them are all because of Chappar’s Sarpanch (local head) who is a woman with liberal outlook. 

Punsari, a village of technology in Gujarat 

Punsari, a village in Gujarat, competes with metro cities and towns in technology. The public places in Punsari are under CCTV coverage. The village has access to Wi-Fi, which is still not available in many tier II and tier III cities of India. With AC classrooms, the village is much ahead of its time.

Hiware Bazar, a village of millionaires in Maharashtra

Hiware Bazar is a village of millionaires in Maharashtra. The credit for Hiware Bazar’s surprising transformation from a village of poverty to a village of riches goes to Popatrao Pawar. He called for banning of addictive substances including tobacco and alcohol in the village, which helped the villagers to curtail expenses and invest in various projects. Today, Hiware Bazar has 60 millionaires. There are only three families living below the poverty line.

Mawlynnong, the cleanest village in India  

Mawlynnong is the cleanest village not only in India but in Asia. Discover India Magazine awarded Mawlynnong the prestigious title “Cleanest Village in Asia” in 2003. A small village in Meghalaya, one of the seven northeast Indian states, Mawlynnong does not tolerate littering of rubbish.

Bekkinakeri, a village without open defecation in Karnataka

Bekkinakeri in Karnataka has put an end to open defecation, which is still a regular practice in the rural backwaters of India. When the modest attempts failed to curb open defecation in the village, the council of Bekkinakeri came up with an idea to greet “good morning” to the perpetrators at the defecation sites. Thus, the mission was possible in Bekkinakeri.

Shani Shingnapur, a village without doors in Maharashtra  

Shani Shingnapur in Maharashtra has come to be known as the safest village in India. There is no single house with doors in the village. What is more surprising is no police station in Shani Shingnapur since theft or robbery is unheard of here. UCO Bank has its only lockless branch in this village.

Dharhara, a village with natural assets for girls in Bihar  

Dharhara in Bihar has set an example of how to respect both women and nature. This village in the Bhagalpur District of Bihar has mandated the families to plant 10 fruit trees whenever a baby girl is born in any house. Thus the villagers have found a carefree way to build an asset, which will help them finance their daughters’ education and marriage. The girls are supposed to inherit the trees later on.

Dharnai, an energy-independent village in Bihar       

Dharnai is India’s first energy-independent village. Yes, this village in Bihar has developed its solar-powered electricity supply system, with the support of Greenpeace. The 30-year long age of darkness came to an end. In Dharnai, students no longer depend on the sun for studies, and women can go out on errands after sunset.

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READ MORE  Rabindranath Tagore’s Inspirational Quotes about Life

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If you are in search of an offbeat India, make your way to rural areas in Indian states. Some remote villages in each state of India have their own offbeat culture, traditions, fairs and festivals. The rural backwaters of Rajasthan present a micro picture of the offbeat India. Gogamedi Fair in rural Rajasthan is one of the most offbeat festivals in the country. Indian Eagle penetrates through Gogamedi village to explore the origin, legend, religious value, social significance, offbeat aspects and other interesting tidbits of the fair.

Gogamedi Fair, one of the folk events in the state of Rajasthan, gives an offbeat picture of India. The fair is held in honor of the Serpent God Gogaji, every year. One of the possible reasons behind the initiation of Gogamedi Fair is an age-old belief that chanting of Goga Ji Maharaj’s name puts an end to one’s suffering from snakebite and heals the wound. The fair is nothing but a ritualistic tribute to the Serpent God in rural Rajasthan.

What makes the Gogamedi Fair an attraction to outsiders including visitors and tourists is the charm of ceremonial preparations and the spell of performances by folk artists. The natives of Gogamedi village in Hanumangarh district, Rajasthan make special culinary offerings to Goa Ji Maharaj as a ritual of worshipping the deity. The food items are cooked with a mix of sugar, coconut, honey and other local ingredients.

Apart from the ceremonial and culinary aspects of the fair, the cultural performances appeal to the visitors. The folk music and dance performances give a micro picture of Rajasthan’s regional culture. Handicraft artists and rural craftsmen from the neighboring villages sell their merchandise in the fair. The cattle exhibition is an offbeat but interesting part of Gogamedi Fair. Local animal traders visit the fair and deal in camels.

Who was Goga Ji Maharaja? Was he a king or a hermit who has been consecrated as a god? There is a legend behind the fame and popularity of Goga Ji Maharaja. He was a revered king of the Chauhan clan in Rajasthan. Jaharveer is believed to be his original name. Jaharveer is believed to be his original name. His evil brothers Archan and Sarchan kidnapped Jaharveer’s wife and tried to kill him.

Jaharveer got a sniff of their evil intentions and put his brothers to death. Out of the shock on hearing the news of her two younger sons’ death, his mother ordered Jaharveer to leave the kingdom. He obeyed her offer and took shelter in a forest. But, he would meet his wife at times. Unfortunately, he could not keep his meetings with wife a secret to his mother. She discovered it eventually. Jaharveer overwhelmingly felt guilty of disobeying her order, and he therefore got himself buried in the soil at Gogamedia.

Jaharveer was known for his love for livestock and devotion for cows (cow is a sacred animal according to the Hindu scriptures). His dedicated service to cows earned him the title “Goga Ji”. He commissioned the construction of 7 colossal cowsheds for more than seven thousand cows during his regime. Thus, Goga Ji was consecrated to the status of a god for his good deeds.

The temple of Goga Ji Maharaja makes an interesting sight to behold during the fair. Devotees from all over Rajasthan, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh visit the temple to offer tributes. They wear yellow clothes on this occasion. The way they come to the temple holds an attraction. They perform a folk dance and chant hymns in praise of Goga Ji Maharaja all the way to the temple from where they start walking in the village. Surprisingly, some devotees bring snakes along with them.

A socially interesting aspect of the Gogamedi fair is that the celebration of worshipping the Goga Ji deity is supposed to be an ideal opportunity for girls and boys to choose their life partners. Matchmaking is done through fun activities which are sure to amaze and amuse tourists. The cultural performances will fill you with euphoria, and the offbeat rituals will feel you with awe during the fair.

The Gogamedi Fair is scheduled to be held from August 18 to 20 this year. Gogamedi Village is 350 to 360 km away from the capital city Jaipur. Many foreign tourists, photographers, documentary makers and story writers in search of an offbeat India visit the Gogamedi Fair in Rajasthan every year.

Most of them log on to IndianEagle.com and book their cheap flights to Jaipur online. Indian Eagle offers cheap airfares to India throughout the year. Why not check it yourself?

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