Jhumair or Jhumar, is a folk dance from the
Indian states
India is a federal union comprising 28 states and 8 union territories, for a total of 36 subnational entities. The states and union territories are further subdivided into 800 districts and smaller administrative divisions by the respe ...
of
Jharkhand
Jharkhand (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in East India, eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north ...
,
Odisha
Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...
,
Chhattisgarh
Chhattisgarh (; ) is a landlocked States and union territories of India, state in Central India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, ninth largest state by area, and with a population of roughly 30 million, the List ...
,
Assam
Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...
,
Bihar
Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...
and
West Bengal
West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...
. It is a traditional dance of the
Sadan, the Indo-Aryan ethnic groups of
Chotanagpur.
It is also performed by Adivasi communities and is mainly associated with the harvest season.
The musical instruments used in Jhumair include the
Mandar,
Dhol
Dhol () can refer to any one of a number of similar types of double-headed drum widely used, with regional variations, throughout the Indian subcontinent. Its range of distribution in Indian subcontinent primarily includes northern areas such ...
,
Nagara, and
Bansuri
A bansuri is an ancient side-blown bamboo flute originating from the Indian Subcontinent. It is an aerophone produced from bamboo and metal-like material, used in many Indian and Nepali Lok songs. A ''bansuri'' is traditionally made from a ...
.
The dance involves performers standing in a row, holding hands, singing couplets, swaying their bodies, clapping their hands, and occasionally performing timed jumps.
Varieties
The Jhumair/Jhumar dance varies in style across different regions.
In the Chotanagpur region, there are various types of Jhumar, such as:
*
Khortha Jhumar
*
Kurmali Jhumar
*
Panch Pargarnia Jhumar
*
Nagpuri Jhumar
**
Mardani Jhumar
**
Janani Jhumar
Notable exponent
*
Govind Sharan Lohra, folk artist from Jharkhand
*
Mukund Nayak, folk artist from Jharkhand
See also
*
Circle dance
Circle dance, or chain dance, is a style of social dance done in a circle, semicircle or a curved line to musical accompaniment, such as rhythm instruments and singing, and is a type of dance where anyone can join in without the need of Partne ...
References
Folk dances of Jharkhand
Nagpuri culture
Folk dances of Chhattisgarh
Folk dances of Odisha
Folk dances of Bihar
Folk dances of West Bengal
Circle dances
Folk dances of Assam
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