Friday, November 16, 2007

Ahmedabad - Navratri 2007

Thanks to one of my colleagues, Sonibhai, I got an opportunity to visit Karnavati club during Navratri on October 19, 2007. I went to Chennai the previous week for some training, where I met Pu Avena, Pu Lawmsanga and several Chennai Mizo students in the Church. When I returned to Ahmedabad, Sonibhai had already arranged three club passes for me. I took along my sisters, Awmawmi and Madiki, along with Madiki's daughter Angie. We did not dance but we really enjoyed watching them dance since it was our first time.

Navratri can be considered the biggest festival of Hindus in Gujarat. In Sanskrit it means 'nine nights', and as the name suggests the festival was celebrated for nine nights. Two types of dances were performed in the club when we went there. One was 'Garba', which is a fertility dance for the womenfolk. Originally, they danced with 'garbos' (meaning earthen pots) on their heads and danced gracefully in circles to please their goddess Mataji. These days, however, pots were generally not carried and men too joined in. The other dance was 'dandia-ras' or stick dance (dandia means stick). Here are some of the videos which I had taken with my digital cameras during the festival.

Dandia


Garba


My Niece Angie

6 comments:

Puia said...

Mumbai lama i insawn tur chu tute emaw lunglawmah a tla chiang dawn hle mai. Tlangval tan chuan talent hman theihna deuh mizo awm tamna hi tlangval lai chuan a lo hlu viau dawnin ka hria. Zawlbuk lamah pawh kan lo tlangau ang e.. Mumbai Zofaleng te an lawm dawn em mai.. Mapuia erawh a reh hle mai.

Jinx said...

Bengvarthlak hle mai. "Bride and Prejudice" ka en atangin 'garba dance' hi ka hre chiang ve chauh a, mahse a film a an lam ang leh a hming i rawn sawi hi a inang ta tlatlo mai...dandia ras i tih leh movie a garba dance an tih hi a inang zok mah. Minlo hrilh chiang loks...

Maruata said...

@zorun: nia, kei pawhin let leh hlan ka nghakhlel khawp mai. helamah lah 'eng a?' han tihpui tur an awm bawk loh nen.Mapuia pawh hmaniah min rawn bia a, a dam e.

@ Jinx: 'Ras' tih chu 'dance with stick (dandia)' tihna a nia. Dandia-ras tih pawhin an sawi thin. An lam pawh hian an thiante tiang hi an va khawng leh zauh thin a. 'Garba' thung erawh chu 'clay pot'(garbos) atanga a hming hi lo kal a ni thung. Hmeichhe rual a 'circle' in an lam thin a. An lu chungah 'garbos' hi tla miah lovin an lampui thin. Goddess of fertility - Mataji (hming dang Ambika or Durga) tihlawm nan a ni ber. Pot an chhipchhuan loh pawhin an lam kual laiah 'garbos' leh mataji lim an dah thin. Tunlai ah chuan mipa pawhin an zawm tawh a, pot pawh an dah tawh leh lo a ni awm e.

Movie ami chu an tilang dik lo a nih chu. Hei thiante Guju ho pawh ka lo zawt a. An ti diklo aniang an ti.he he...An festival ni 9 chung hian a ni khatna atangin an inchhungah 'garbos' an hung bawk a, a ni10 naah mataji temple ah an return leh thin....lawm takin kan welcome a, lawm takin kan hlan thlah leh a ni an ti. Mak ve mai mai :)

Almostunreal said...

your niece is really sweet..reminds me of my nieces and nephews back home *sigh*

Puia said...

Tunlai kan buai deuh em ni? kan va reh em..:)

Maruata said...

@almost unreal: thanks, ani pawh a pa posting na bhuj lamah an kal leh tawh a, a ngaihawm thei a nia.. :)

@zorun: hna avangin kan tour a tam tunlai..fieldwork etc..2 more weeks chu la buai hmel :)

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