Jamshedpur, Feb. 7 (Source - The Telegraph): The Republic Day has opened new avenues for local tribal dancers.
A group of 22 Santhal dancers from Karandih, on the fringes of the steel city, are flooded with offers from Kerala, Bengal and Nepal following their performance on Rajpath.
The dancers got the opportunity through Kalamandir, a city-based social organisation.
“We never thought that we will ever get this opportunity. Most of us have hardly performed on a stage. Life has changed after the performance in New Delhi. We are getting offers to perform and promote Santhali culture across the country,” said Stephen Soren, one of the dancers in the group named Madais Artiste Association of Tribals.
Invited by the International Santhali Council, the dancers will put up Santhali folk numbers — arlangde, performed after a day’s hard work; dong, wedding dance; baha, performed at festivals and donger, a dance put up after hunting — at a seminar in Nepal in April.
They will also perform in Kerala and Adim Gaonte, a socio-cultural outfit in West Midnapore, have invited them to perform in Lalgarh.
“We are keen on performing at Lalgarh but it will be more of a dance drama or theatre to promote Santhali culture. We will try to influence people to give up arms and live in peace,” said Sushil Soren, another dancer in the group.
The dancers, most of them students of Lal Bahadur Shastri Memorial College, are working hard to maintain the standard of tribal dance.
“While rehearsing for the performance in New Delhi, we have learnt technicalities of dance and are now trying to improve the standard of our show,” said Nisom Hembrom, another tribal dancer.
“The boys had worked hard for the Republic Day function and now it is paying of,” said Amitava Ghosh, secretary of Kalamandir.
