Chhau Dance Group
Chhau Dance Group
We provide Chhau (Bihar) Dance Troupe throughout India. The simple tribal people of Bihar express their creative joy through the Chhau dance, which was originally a war dance, preformed in order to perfect fighting techniques. It has, over the years, evolved into a narrative ballet. Chhau is the folk dance of Bihar depicting enormous vitality and virility. The word ‘Chhau’ comes from the Sanskrit root ‘Chhaya’ meaning shade. Since masks forms an important feature of this dance, it is thence called ‘Chhau’, which means mask. The dance form includes certain steps from ‘Pharikhanda’ which is a system of exercise. This system of exercise has been an important part of training of Sipahis. The three main elements of classical dance, namely Raga (melody), Bhava (mood) and Tala (rhythmic timing) forms an important aspect of Chhau dance as well. An expression of a mood, state or condition, this folk dance depicts nature and the animal world, which can be confirmed with the various forms such as Sagara Nritya (ocean dance), Sarpa Nritya (serpent dance) and Mayura Nritya. Themes taken from mythology and everyday life also form an important aspect of Chhau dance.