GOLF DANCE FORM

Golf dance also called "ribbon dance" is one of the popular folk dances of Goa. It is performed during the Shigmo festival in Phalgun month. Goan peasants mainly practice this dance after the harvest as a manifestation of their enjoyment. This dance has an affinity with tribal dance forms of Gujarat State. The dance is a major attraction during the festive season and it attracts audiences from various parts of the country.

Performance of Golf dance
Generally, this folk dance is performed in a group. The dance can be performed by a group of males or females. Each dancer holds a colourful cord which hangs at the centre point of the 'mand', which is the place of dance performance. The dancers start dancing intricately forming a beautiful, colourful, intricate braid at the end of the first movement. The music begins once again and the dancers reverse the pattern of dancing in such a skilful manner that at the end of the second movement, the braid gets unrevealed and all the cords are loose and single once again.

There are four different braids of Goff dance. The songs that are sung during the dance performance are mostly devoted to Lord Krishna.

Musical Instruments of Golf dance
Ghumat, Samael and Surta Shansi or melodic musical instruments accompany the dance performance.

Costume of Golf dance
The costume of this folk dance is varied however all the attires are traditional. Some male groups prefer to wear kurta - pajama and some kurta dhoti. One the other hand, some female dance groups clad themselves in ghagra-choli while some sari.

GODEMODNI DANCE FORM

                                   
Goa was the region, which was ruled by the Portuguese for many years. Hence, the European influence is very strong in folk art & culture of the State. Similarly, it is quite evident in the annual Carnival Festival of Goa.

Ghode Modni dance is named according to words -`Ghode` means `horse` and `Modni` means `gyrations and dance-like movements`. The dance is literally involving horse-like movements in its performance. It is a spectacular warrior-dance performed for the remembrance of the victory of the Ranes, the Maratha rulers of the Satari taluka in Goa, over the Portuguese.

This dance is more popular in Bicholim, Pernem and Satari talukas which was once ruled by the Marathas. It is also performed during the time of Shigmo festival in Goa. For the performance, the kshatriya dancers wear a huge head gears made up of colourful flowers. And the wooden horses are beautifully bridled and decorated with spotless white clothes, and there are tied ghungurs on the anklets. The performance begins with the simple steps of the dance. With holding the bridle in one hand and brandishing and waving a naked sword in the other hand, the dancers take forward and backward steps on the beat of drums - Dhol, Tasha and Cymbals. These instruments are used to recreate the prancing of war horses.

Basically, the brave deeds & praiseful actions of the Goan warriors are expressed in their dance named as Godhe Modni dance. This dance is also known as dummy horse presentation, where the attractively dressed dancers armed with swords perform. For three days the people are in a mood for fun and frolic during Carnival. This dance is a special attraction of this Annual Carnival season.   
                                 

DEKHNI DANCE FORM

Dekhni is a semi classical Goan dance form. It is also pronounced as Dekni or Dekni. Dekhni represents an attractive mixture of Indian melody and Western rhythm. It is mainly performed by Christian girls adorned in Indian attires. It is a song cum dance popular in Goa. Dekhni dance usually enacts the life of a Devdasi girl meaning servant of God whose job is to perform dance in temples and social ceremonies like weddings. One of the popular Dekhni songs is Hanv Saiba Poltodi Vetam by Carlos Eugenio Ferreira (1860-1926) first published in Paris in 1895 and then in Goa in 1926.

Etymology of Dekhni
The word 'Dekhni' means 'bewitching beauty' in Konkani language.

History of Dekhni Dance
It is believed that this dance has its origin in the Devadasi system of the Goans as they follow the Devadasi system. According to this system, some women dedicate their life for the service of God. They also don’t marry or have families of their own. They perform in temples and in front of God and so this dance has been around for a long time.

Theme of Dekhni Dance
The theme is of a Devdasi girl who comes to a riverbank to take a ferry to reach the other side where she has an appointment to dance in a wedding. She requests the boatman to take her to the other side of the river. The boatman rejects and says as the water is rough it would be unsafe to travel. The Devdasi keeps requesting him and is even ready to offer him her golden earring for taking her across urgently. So the dancers dance for the boatman and this time he ferries them across the river.

Performance of Dekhni Dance
It is performed exclusively by women-folk. The dance is set in combination of western rhythms and Indian melody. Some of the gestures of this dance have been borrowed from classical dances like Kathak and Bharata Natyam.

The performance becomes graceful by the conversation between the girl and the boatman in the form of a lilting song. The dancers carry pantis which are small clay lamps with a wick floating in oil or even artis. Only two or three dekhni songs that were composed and scored a long time ago are still existent. The performers dance to the beat of the Ghumat, a folk drum.

One of the first dekhni dances Kuxttoba can be dated back to around 1869. The song calls out in the song 'heir to India and terror of Goa' which implies resistance to Portuguese rule. Kuxttoba was a member of the Salekar branch of the Rane family. This dance is much performed throughout Goa.

MANDO DANCE FORM

The taluka of Salcette was one of Portugal’s early conquests when they set foot in Goa. Not many know of the ethomology of the name Salcette. Salcette which means Sassast in Sanskrit refers to the number 66. Some guess that it probably got its name after the legend of the Goud Saraswat Brahmin families who settled in the Konkan region. From their large numbers, 66 families came to Salcette.

In this taluka, one can find many so called indo-portuguese houses. Huge balconies, an imposing entrance and beautiful furniture takes us back in time. It was in the halls of these houses that mando used to be performed.

During 451 years of colonial history, catholic Goans used music as a mediator of identity negotiation. In a political context repressing musical sonority of Indian flavour, in which Portuguese was the official language, catholic Goans created their own music, sung in Konkani and performed according to Portuguese models. Mandó is a good example of this and was able to acquire an emblematic status.

It would be commonly sung at social and religious occasions of the Catholics like weddings. The songs would relate to the occasion, singing praises of the beauty of the bride, a girl pining for her lover etc but was also a reminder of love-lost.

Francisco Sardinha: “Usually the themes of the mando are love stories or tragedies but in the case of this song, is more about love than tragedy. The lady talks about her boyfriend who is away.”

The themes of the mando are varied. A jilted lover crying, young lovers making sweet promises, lovers parting are enough to make you leave your inhibitions and become one with the emotions on display. Sometimes you feel like crying and sometimes you are left amused. A lot of the mandos have many Portuguese words which have entered into the everyday parlance of the people. The mandos of the later years also speak of political events and also take on a satirical tone.

 The ghumat and violin are vital to a Mando performance. The thump on the ghumot is the cue for the Mando to begin. The guitar is also used as an accompaniment to the mando. A glance at these instruments and you will see the fine blend of the Eastern and Western influence, of the foreign and native fusion which renders the mando unique.

Francisco Sardinha: “In the past when mandos were played at parties or weddings, there weren’t any guitars. The guitar came about later but the ghumot and violin were used since the beginning. Now a lot of other instruments are used like the bass guitar and other types of guitar.”

The women wear a panu baju or ‘torhop-baz’, made of silk and velvet, and a long sleeve blouse. The hair in neatly tied up in a bun with an embellishment stuck in. The look is completed with a fan in hand. The men wear suits with a bow tie or a necktie.

Two rows, one of women and one of men are formed. Sometimes it’s a combination of a pair of couple standing alongside each other. The women gently sway in their places. The men standing at a distance from the women eye the women, pretending to court them.

Francisco Sardinha: “In the old days the mando was composed and sung by a certain social class, generally the elite. Today all sing the mando. That this happens, is good and makes me happy. This is how we will be able to keep our culture alive.”

The mandos which have a  slow beat have fast paced ditties sung at the end of it which are called as dulpods. Apart from having a faster rhythm, the dulpods differ from the mando in the content of the songs. While the mandos represent a class living a sophisticated elegant lifestyle, the dulpods are more rustic in nature.

Francisco Sardinha: “The dulpods portrays different aspects of life. Sometimes they sing about politics, other times about village life or mock each other…In this dulpod we sing about a fisherwoman who is on her way to Mapusa. Then also refers to a flower basket. Instead of saying the flowers are flying with the wind, it says that the basket flew.In the dulpod’s last part, the man takes out his handkerchief  to show that he has won the women’s heart.”

Whether the Mando can be classified as a traditional folk performance has been debated often. One argument states that since the Mando has no indigenous links to Goa and since it began much later than other Goan traditional folk performances, the Mando cannot be considered a traditional folk performance. But the other side of the argument says the Mando’s music may have a Western flavour but the contents of the songs and the purpose for which they were sung are outright indigenous. 

Disputes aside, the mando still remains a much loved dance form of Goa.

FUGDI DANCE FORM

Fugdi dance is a Goan  folk dance performed by women in the Konkan region. This is an art form that can be traced back to the primeval cultural traditions of Goa. Fugdi is usually performed in the month of Bhadrapada which is an occasion for the women to take a break from their daily schedule and engage in dancing and merrymaking. The women sing and dance while enacting varied formations. Fugdi dance is also performed in many Hindu religious festivals like Ganesh Chaturthi, Dhalo and in other social and religious occasions.

Meaning and Themes of Fugdi Dance
While performing, the dancers blow air through the mouth at maximum pace. This sounds as 'FOO' hence the name Foogdi or Fugdi is kept. Fugdi songs are innumerable and the songs relate Puranic stories, family life, complaints, rivalries or people.

Variations of Fugdi Dance
Usually, Fugdi has two major variations; it is danced in a circle or by rows of dancers. Broadly, villages have a dance in a circle but forest settlements have it in rows. The dance is performed by enacting few fixed steps, hand gestures and hand laps. The dance begins with invocation to Hindu Gods. The pace is slow in the beginning but soon gains momentum finally reaching climax. The dance is not accompanied by any musical instrument.

Kalashi Fugdi is performed before Goddess Lakshmi during the vrata. This form of dance is performed to break the monotony of the routine work of fetching water from long distances. The dance is not accompanied by any songs. The women would carry the large vessels called kalashi or ghagar and blow into them rhythmically as they spin around. Katti Fugdi is another popular form, performed with coconut shells in their hands.

A distinctive style of Fugdi is found among the Dhangar (shepherd community) women. No songs are sung to accompany the performances. Two women cross their hands and join with each other. They then spin around together, bending and swaying to a distinct rhythm. Altogether, twenty-seven types of fugdi have been found in Goa so far. Girki, Cycle, Rahat, Zimma, Karvar, Bus Fugdi, Kombda, Ghuma, and Pakhwa are among the popular forms of Fugdi dance.

PHOTO COURTSY-INTERNET