Hello Peeps
My letter for the Day is ‘L’
Lavani is a popular folk dance form of Maharashtra as well as the surrounding areas in the Konkan or Coastal Region. It is a combination of dance and music. The word ‘Lavani’ comes from Lavanya which means ‘beauty’.
In 18th – 19th Century, during the rule of Peshawari Dynasty, this dance form became much popular. Lavani was served to the tired soldier not only for entertainment but also to boost up the spirit of Maratha soldiers.
How to perform this dance?
Lavani has a powerful rhythm.The women wearing saree, dance with the beat of Dholak. A Lavani dance performence can be divided in two forms – The Nirguni Lavani, which deals with philosophy and Shringari Lavani which deals with sensuality. Shrinagri Lavani is more popular than Nirguni Lavani.
Based on the performance, it is again categorized into two forms – Phadachi Lavani and Baithakichi Lavani. The Phadachi Lavani is performed in a theatre gathering, in front of a large audience. The Baithakichi Lavani is presented in a closed chamber before a selected audience.
The main part of this dance is fast foot tapping tempo. Mainly, ladies perform Lavani wearing saree but male also perform and are called Nats or Kinnars.
Instruments:
The main instrument is Dholaki and apart from that there is Manjeera (cymbals), Tuntuni(a single string instrument), Daf(a tambourine like instrument with a single leather surface) and Harmonium.
Women wear ankle belt and the spine of the bells create the perfect rhythmic sound for the dance.
Costumes:
The saree worn by the Lavani dancers is 9 yards in length and is known as ‘Nauvari Saree’. The draping style is called ‘kashta drape’.
The dancers tie their hair back in bun called a juda or ambada. Sometimes they wear ‘Gajra’ (flower garland for the hair).Performers wear heavy jewelry which includes necklace, earrings, nath and bangles. The Lavani dancers have seen wearing ‘Kamarpatta’ or waist-belt too.
Sharing here some videos of Lavani Dance:
See what dance form I have shared for the letter ‘K’
What will be my next dance form for the letter ‘M’?
This post is in association with #BlogchatterA2Z
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Source: utsavpedia,wikipedia,beautyspotsofindia
This is a beautiful dance. I love the nose rings, their saree and the way they dance. I have watched this dance in youtube..