{"id":95439,"date":"2022-08-28T10:19:00","date_gmt":"2022-08-28T08:19:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/magikindia.com\/?p=95439"},"modified":"2023-08-26T17:28:07","modified_gmt":"2023-08-26T15:28:07","slug":"gavari-le-theatre-mystique-des-bhils","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/magikindia.com\/en\/gavari-le-theatre-mystique-des-bhils\/","title":{"rendered":"Gavari, the mystical folk-theatre of the Bhils"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The indigenous people of India (adivasi) are guardians of many ancient traditions expressed during festivals that can transport us to other worlds.\u00a0<\/b>Simultaneously<\/span>, these <\/b><\/span>traditiona<\/span>l <\/b>activities<\/span> can evoke something somehow familiar, perhaps common roots echoing within us. Gavari is one of these festivals. This mystical folk-theatre of the Bhil people of Rajasthan is expressed through several acts composed of incantations, sacred songs, social satire and ecstatic dances.<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

\"Gavari\n\"
A Gavari troupe in a village near Udaipur singing a song dedicated to Ganesha at the start of the play<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The origin of Gavari (\u0917\u0935\u0930\u0940) still remains mysterious,<\/strong> some believe that it may have been created in the 16th century in reaction to the oppression of the Rajput rulers gradually depriving the Bhil people from their ancestral lands. Others believe that this festival is as old as the Bhil people<\/a> themselves, i.e. millennia. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Gavari\n\"
Some of the “actors” of the troupe<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The festival starts every year in August, a few days after <\/strong>Rakhi<\/strong>,<\/a> the brother and sister festival and lasts for 40 days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although many characters evolve throughout the play Gavari is, in the first instance, dedicated to the Hindu goddess Gauri<\/strong> or the “Shakti”<\/a><\/strong>, the primordial force of creation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This adivasi theatre, originally spiritual and mythological, has evolved and been adapted in the context<\/strong> of historical moments by the inclusion of social and political events such as the British colonisation.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Gavari\n\"
Gavari musicians, drum and thali <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Gavari is restricted to the Mewar-Vagar region<\/strong> and mainly to the districts of Udaipur, <\/a>Rajsamand, Chittor<\/a> and Dungarpur. It brings together up to thirty Bhil communities, dispatched in groups of 20 to 50 members, who go on tour to different villages in the region. More than 500 performances take place annually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Highlights <\/strong><\/strong>of Gavari<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\"Gavari\n\"
The Bhopa (shaman) invoking the goddess Gauri before the start of Gavari<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In order for Gavari to take place each village must receive permission from the goddess Gauri <\/strong>who intervenes approximately every five years. When, after invoking the deity, one of the villagers enters  a trance, as if possessed by the Shakti, this is a sign that the village has been chosen to host the festival.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Gavari\n\"
The village square usually acts as an open stage<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The newly constituted troupe, composed mainly of Bhil farmers, will then set off to play in about thirty villages.<\/strong> More specifically, in those villages where the sisters or married daughters of the members of the troupe live. In India women live with their in-laws after their marriage, this festival thus helps to maintain and consolidate family ties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gavari is also a time of austerity for the temporary actors.<\/strong> They must abstain from sexual intercourse, alcohol and non-vegetarian food and even from green vegetables. Some also choose not to wear shoes and to sleep on the floor. These are forms of purification found in several other Hindu festivals such as Navaratri <\/a>or Mahashivaratri.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Gavari\n\"
The center of the stage where a Trishul is planted and offerings are made<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The village square acts as a circular open stage. The audience all gather round.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before the play begins a Bhopa (a kind of shaman) invokes Gauri with prayers and pujas (rituals) with an idol representing the deity. A Dhuni, sacred fire,<\/strong> is lit and a Trishul (trident), symbol of Shakti and Shiva, is placed in the center of the stage, after which various offerings are made.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Gavari\n\"
The idols of Gauri and Shiva placed in a palanquin on an elephant<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The piece consists of fifteen acts and can last up to 5 hours a day,<\/strong> with a series of incantations, mimes, parodies, devotional songs and ecstatic dances. The maddal (drum), the thali (gong) and cymbals are the only instruments that accompany the songs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Apart from the start and end of the play, the content is not fixed <\/strong>(there is no script), but it constantly evolves and relies on the improvisational skills of each actor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the last days of the tour the play lasts late into the night. The forty days ends with a “visarjan”<\/strong> ceremony where the statue of Gauri is immersed in a pond.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[ Watch! One of Gavari’s acts invoking Ganesha, the god of auspiciousness]<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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