Types of Garba

  TYPES OF GARBA :

Traditionally garba originated from Gujarat and meant a group of women wearing traditional costumes like ghaghracholi, and dancing around the deity Maa Amba. The traditional dancing during the nine days of Navratri festival in Gujarat came to be known as garba. While garba started off with women dancing to `do taali’ and `teen tali’ steps, over the years the dance styles have evolved oover the years. Now we find men and women dancing to a large number of styles of garba in several countries wherever there is an Indian diaspora.Here we give you a peek into the distinct styles of garba that are popular with people during the festival…

DODHIYU

One of the newer and more popular forms of dancing style, young girls enjoy doing the dodhiyu style of garba during Navratri. The dodhiyu can be done in several different styles and people try and incorporate many variations in it. Dodhiyu garba includes dancing 4-steps forward and two-backward.Sometimes it includes dancing 6-steps forward and 4-steps backward dancing and then moving around once. Guys and girls generally form pairs and in groups of 6-12, perform the dodhiyu. It is fun, strenuous and involves a lot of technique and grace. Only those who really love the dance form enjoy this, while the others stick to the traditional `be taali’ and `teen taali’ garba

TEEN TAALI GARBO

Guys and girls enjoy the teen taali garbo, where they need to clap thrice to the beats and dance to the beats. The teen taali garbo is popular with middle aged women as it used to be common in the villages of Gujarat.

GARBA HINCH

Hinch is a competitive dance form where women get together in a circle, bend forward and clap while moving in circular motion. As the beat moves faster, the dance also becomes fast. The lady or gentleman who is able to dance till the end continuously without taking a break, wins the prize.

MATLA GARBO

During Navratri, a pot is ceremoniously placed and attractive designs are made on the it, with lights being placed inside. Village girls bearing these pots, also known as garbis, on their heads, go from door to door and dance around the respective house. The leader of the group sings the first line of the song while the rest repeat it in chorus. The beat is produced by clapping hands or striking dandiya sticks in unison. At every step they gracefully bend sideways, the arms coming together in beautiful sweeping gestures, with each movement ending in clap.

DO TAALI GARBO

This dancing style involves clapping twice, as you move in a circular motion swirling to the beats of the drums. This is one of the more common styles of garba, which almost anyone can learn easily and dance with their fellow partners on the ground.

DISCO GARBA

After Bollywood songs composed around the Navratri festival, and disco songs being played at navratri events, many artists have incorporated the disco garba style of dancing. Disco garba is based on fast disco beats and is generally a fusion between disco and the traditional garba style of dancing.

RAAS-DANDIYA

With two wooden sticks in hand, Raas is one of the most traditional dance forms along with garba. Performed in five simple steps, the dandia dance is enjoyed after people are done dancing to garba beats. Raas originated from the ancient cities of Gokul and Vrindavan, where it is believed that Lord Krishna used to dance in the same manner with the gopis. Within dandia and raas, people have found many other forms of variations. There is disco raas and even disco dandiya.

Dandiya dance has a very complicated rhythm pattern. While the dancers begin with a slow tempo, the dance develops in such manner that each person in the circle not only performs a solo dance with his own sticks, but also has a complex multiple relationship with both his partners on f either side and with partners opposite him in the circles. The circle keeps breaking sometimes into two concentric circles and sometimes into three or four circles within the orbit of a larger circle.t The dancers of each concentric circle then weave patterns with each other and with members of the other circle. There is a great deal of freedom in the movements and sticks are beaten in standing, sitting or lying position. Occasionally, the men weave patterns of an intertwined rope in a circle; they lie on the floor with the two sticks being beaten above their heads and chests. At times, instead of hands, the feet hold and strike t the sticks.