National 6 (Spotlight Weekly)

MITHILA CULTURE
Dances In Danger

The twin assault from the modernism and insecurity hit the Mithila cultural dances in the country

By SANJAYA DHAKAL

The insecurity has affected the occasional show of ancient cultural dances in the Mithilanchal region of south-eastern Nepal, which was already under siege from cultural invasion by alien values that have penetrated through modern media.

The region of Mithila located north of Indo-Nepal border is rich in culture and heritage and is home to a number of ancient cultural dance sequences like Bideshiya, Jhinjhiya, Samachakwa, Jatjatin, Jhumar, Rani Saranga, Runajhuna, Gopichanda, Krishna Lila, Ram Lila etc.

Most of the dance sequences have to be performed in the evening and at night. But due to growing activities of Maoists in the southern plains of the country, the incidents of clash between the government forces and the rebels have increased in this area, particularly after the breakdown of ceasefire in August 27.

In most of the places, night-time curfews are imposed making it virtually impossible to hold traditional dances.

“These dances, which are performed at night on particular occasions and on particular season have almost stopped due to the insecurity. Come evening and villages sport a deserted look. How can anybody engage in entertainment at a time like this?” said Kamal Narayan Jha, a local from Mahottari district, some 300 kilometers south-east of Kathmandu.

There was a recent news report that the District Administration Office of Siraha, another south-eastern district, has banned the dance show at different parts of the district, citing security reasons. Similar orders are enforced in other districts as well.

This has directly hurt the culture. That apart, this has also affected a number of dance and drama companies that used to organize dance shows and dramas in villages with commercial motives.

“Normally, we used to earn around US$ 7000 a year from the shows of folk-dances, but this year it’s hard even to earn one-fifth of that,” Rhani Ram Majhi, proprietor of a dance company at Thalahatilashi village of Siraha district was quoted in a recent news report.

The Siraha district alone has about 100 such dance companies. Thousands of people involved in such dance companies including the artistes from neighboring Indian districts are losing their earnings.

The massive security operation in the hilly regions are said to have forced the rebels to flee towards the southern plains. The high level security meeting held in Kathmandu on October 15-16, too, concluded that the Maoists have stepped up their activities in southern plains and decided to intensify their operation there.

“The ancient dances are, in fact, on the verge of extinction. The insecurity has forced people to abandon their dances even as the growing influence of satellite television was already wooing the people away from their traditions,” said Dr. Ram Dayal Rakesh, a member of the Royal Nepal Academy and a well-known intellectual from the Mithila region.

The Mithila region consists of a number of districts like Morang, Sunsari, Saptari, Dhanusha, Siraha, Mahottari and Sarlahi on the Nepalese side. The culture also is prevalent on the Indian side of the border.

The tradition folk dances of the region have religious, social and historical significance. In a dance called Bideshiya, a lady dances reflecting her painful emotions after her husband leaves for foreign land to make his earning. Likewise, Jhinjhiya dance involves a group of young ladies going from door to door dancing with clay-utensil on their head. They dance without losing balance and with the utensils intact on the top of their head. “This sequence of dance is based on tantric cult and people believe this dance wards off evil spirits from their village,” said Dr. Rakesh.

Another sequence called Samachakwa is a religious dance while Jatjatin is a form of dialogue-based dance. And then there are ritual dances like Ram Lila and Krishna Lila, which resemble drama. Most of these dances are held at night time.

Experts say that in the past, these dances were participated mostly by people from downtrodden and Dalit (untouchables) community. But now people from other communities also participate for the sake of entertainment.

Apart from security reasons, these dances have been facing increasing assault from the modern culture. The inroads made by western values have gradually detached young people, who are the backbone of the culture, from their ancient traditions.

Just after the ceasefire broke down, the cultural activities even in Kathmandu Valley were affected. The festivals like Indra Jatra were also hampered by insecurity as the government was not too comfortable with gathering of crowds.

“The cultural activities like dance are an integral part of our lives. It depicts our rich civilization. But due to assault from alien culture, there is a clear and present danger that we might lose our culture,’ said sociologist Dr. Rishikeshab Raj Regmi.

Experts feel there is a need to institutionalize the folk dances to revive them. Till now, these dances have survived only because of individual and community attention. There are no formal training centers for such dances. “If we want to preserve these dances, the government will have to launch special campaign to institutionalize them and also open training centers and organize competitions,” said Dr. Rakesh.