Eight Chhau dancers at an international event in South Korea
Kartik was among eight Chhau performers from remote parts of Purulia, and they showcased their traditional dance form at a three-day international Intangible Cultural Heritage Conference & Festival held in Jindo county, South Korea, between Sept 18 and 20. Tim Curtis, director, regional office for South Asia, Unesco, said, “Jindo County has signed an agreement with performing and folk artists from Bengal whose Chhau troupe brings that same creativity and identity to Jindo this year.
This shows me a glimmer of hope that in the future, we will get more international exposure,” said Kartik, who led the troupe. Sandip Singh Mura, another Chhau performer, said, “Now the young generations of our community are not fascinated with carrying on the legacy of Chhau that we have inherited from our ancestors. It was good to see that the people abroad appreciated our traditional dance form and we hope the lost sheen of Chhau will be revived in the days to come. ” Sourav Mukherjee, founder director of Kolkata Society for Cultural Heritage, stated, “It was a cultural discourse for the Chhau artists from Purulia as they got to see the traditional performing arts of other countries at the event. Chhau dancer Akash Mahatob called the platform a “learning experience” for him as he could explore the traditional performing arts of other countries. Phalguni Kumar, a co-member of his troupe, said, “At a time when traditional art forms like Chhau are on the decline, this international exposure is working as a positive catalyst to interest young generations of our community.”
Kolkata: Thirty-six-year-old Kartik Kumar is the seventh-generation Chhau dancer in his family at Dabnatorang village in Purulia, and he was contemplating switching over to some other profession as the traditional martial dance form has been on the wane with the onslaught of times. But a sudden breakthrough occurred to him this month, and he became the first of his family to have flown abroad and showcased the dance form on an international platform. They performed with participants from other countries like China, Indonesia and Mongolia. “Now I have again changed my decision and will carry on the performance handed down from my forefathers practising it for seven generations. Our livelihood is grappling with challenges for sustenance but on my first visit abroad, I made out that the global audience is enthusiastic about Chhau. The performers stated that the international exposure came to them at a time when many of them were thinking of looking for an alternative earning opportunity. The objective was to make cultural traditions connect communities beyond geographical boundaries.