INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNOLOGY 3(2+1)

Lesson 32 :Folk Media

Various Folk Forms In India

1. Tamasha Tamasha is an extremely lively and robust form of folk theatre, going back to over 400 years. In this form, some topic is selected and then a chorus of six to eight male singers cum performers and two or more female dancer-singers make the troupe. The more vigorous form of tamasha is called song troupes and is believed to be the genuine or real form. It has a cast of three to six female dancer singers (one of whom is the star artist) a tabla player and a harmonium and tundun player. The story part is the next element. The most important is the performance. The story of tamasha in the form of agricultural dialogue, song and dance is based on stories derived from myth and folklore. It is in this section that comments are made on contemporary and social problems. Government-sponsored tamasha troupes also educate the masses on family planning. Tamasha needs no elaborate act or costumes and place and time.

2. Nautanki Nautanki is like other folk drama forms. It has a simple dramatic structure comprising small units led by a Ranga or Sutradhara- the narrator. Music is of prime importance in this folk drama. The main musical instruments used are kettle drum and dholak. As in opera, the dialogues are sung to popular folk melodies but now even to film tunes. The nautanki form is popular in the fields of agriculture and rural development. It can be in the form of Doha, Thumari, Dadra, Sher, Gazal and Quawwali which are very common among the rural people in many states. This dramatic form may easily be adopted in the social, agricultural and rural development programmes. The people can be educated through the medium to bring about desirable changes in their behaviour.

3. Keertana or Harikatha This is a religious folk theatre. The Keertana or Harikatha is a kind of concentrated drama or monodrama in which a gifted actor enters a whole series of characters. Saint Narada is believed to have invented and practised the form with great success. It is believed to have spread from Maharashtra to Karnataka and Tamil Nadu about 150 years ago. It is a mainly associated with the Bhakti movements in religion and literature. It was used by saints like Kabir, Guru’ Nanak, Farid and Tukaram to preach the faith as also to bring about social reform and political change. It is such a potent weapon in social education that Lokmanya Tilak is reported to have said if he was not a journalist, he would have been a keertankar.

4. Harikatha is also used by Central and State governments to educate the masses on family planning, developmental activities, democratic values and national integration with help of Keertankar or Kathaars. All India Radio and the Doordarshan too are using the keertan form for broadcasts aimed at industrial workers and rural audiences.

5. Street play In this form, one narrates a story which is related to a particular theme. These plays are not like theatre but they attract a large number of people. They also have some music built in by way of folk songs adopted to the theme. The only material used in this form is a number of banners on which slogans are written. It is a non-costume, no-property no--script play. It is also known as Nukad play. Street plays are increasingly used to spread messages of family planning, sanitation, adult education, etc and they create awareness against social evils.

6. Folk dance During the harvesting season and festivals, folk dances are aroused in the villages as they are helpful in collecting the people. The youth present Bhangra during the harvesting period. The folk dances reveal not only the individual talents of the people but the collective traditions of all the countries, the characteristics of the community and a love for rhythm.

7. Folk dances are mainly grouped under three heads:

1. Community folk dances held on the main religious festivals, social occasions, Kisan Melas and other occasions when special agricultural activities are carried out;
2. Folk dances’ are also preserved by hereditary, professional families and groups who perform at birth, betrothal and marriage ceremonies in the villages; and
3. Tribal dances rooted as they are expressive of their magical philosophies of life.



8. Folk song The villagers have a great fascination for their folk songs. We go closer to them if we participate with them and organize such functions during exhibitions, meeting, film shows, drama, etc. Songs connected with agriculture and rural development programmes and practices in local dialects can be composed and sung easily as they also provide entertainment. This is a good way of conveying information to the villagers. Song competitions can also be arranged.

They are a good source of attracting the people and as such help extension programmes indirectly. They are part of cultural programme. The monotony of discussion of serious nature in a meeting can be broken by light songs. The song should be composed on the subjects which are to be communicated to the people. They should be in the form of a story with some moral. The tune of the song should be popular and local to which the villagers are accustomed to. It will always be preferred if the song has just one message to convey. A few words by way of explanation will be appreciated before singing is started. The song can be followed with a little more explanations of its theme. Seasoned singers are liked by everybody but new voices are also welcome.

9. Story-telling Story-telling has been one of the best and most commonly used methods of instruction in informal education, religious propagation, rural development, etc. Over the years, certain etiquettes have been developed that are associated with story-telling. Before the story teller begins the narration, he asks, Are you ready to listen? The listeners respond with ‘Yes’ sound. This ensures proper attention when the story is narrated. The listeners often make some kind of sound at regular intervals to express attention. So important topics which help in proper development of the rural people can be touched through the stories.

10. Riddles This is also an educational device through which elders used to communicate knowledge. Sometimes these riddles are very helpful in conveying the real meaning of technology. Some puzzles are given to the rural people who help them understand the use of proper practices in the crop cultivation, home-making, etc. Some of the riddles are given below:

    Ek chhoti jaihi kudi. ohade dhidohade dhid vich lakir = wheat grain (kanak da dana)
    Hari si man bhari si,
    Raja ji de bagh main
    Dushala ohde khadi si = Maize corn (Chhali)
    Tuk hart hari
    Tuk lal lalTuk chusak chasak ap ha = Chilly (Mirch),
    Sometimes the riddles are expressed in Sawal-Jawab (question-answer) format:
    Ni pai o ki aunda chamkada (water)
    Mai pai o tu lamkda
    Maiizu ki pata o ki aunda chamkilqa
    (Brinjal and long gourd)
    (Baingar te far).

    Some agricultural games have been developed in the past few years. These games are intended to help them learn something while they are enjoying themselves. Some of the games are: (1) snakes and ladders developed by Shri D.K. Mishra, University of Udaipur on cultivation of maize; (2) Playing cards, on improved agriculture and home science practices. Some of the games are made by extension workers themselves which help develop problem solving abilities by setting situations which will prompt people in using the mental ability required for problem solving.

11. Proverbs Proverbs which predominate in oral civilization represent the essence of rural wisdom and knowledge. They are the sound symbols of culture and have survived for centuries; their use is quite frequent in oral culture. Proverbs are very creative in knowing the importance of information or idea as they also tell the meaning of the real message.

12. Bioscope This is also a popular folk medium used for entertainment and for propagation of information on education, agriculture, etc. Bioscope consists of a box made of light wood. It contains quite a number of folding doors, each like a panel hinged on one side with another panel with colourful figures and mythological episodes and incarnations of gods and goddesses painted and filed as pictures. The doors are unfolded evoking the curiosity of the audience as preceded with the narration of the story by the story teller. This is helpful in conveying the people about educational messages like vegetable preservation, mosquito control, cultivation of different crops, etc. This can be made interesting with musical narration. The narrator unfolds each door and conveys, the message to the audience accordingly.

13. Munadi (Announcements) This medium is very old. In this form, the drum is beaten and the attention of the audience is arrested and then the message is delivered. This medium is normally used to inform the people about some happenings or other important extension activities. This is mostly preferred by the rural ; people as it is used for dissemination of information followed by drum beating eg for giving message about meeting, demonstration, field-day or any other activity. In these days in Punjab, announcements are given through-mikes or public address system from religious institutions; Chowkidars of the village also do this job.

14. Wall paintings The use of this medium has possibly evolved from an age--old practice of drawing or writing on walls. They are silent unlike traditional theatre and if they use words, they make themselves meaningless also to the non-literate majority. Yet, they are near permanent. A speech or film comes to an end soon, but the wall paintings stay as long as the weather or the organization concerned allows them to last. Perhaps, the greatest advantage of the medium is the power of the picture completed with its local touch. The images used have strong emotional association with the surroundings, a feat impossible for even a “moving” visual medium like television which must use general images to cater to the greatest number of viewers. Illiteracy, of course, is no bar for the wall paintings, if the message is conveyed by the picture alone and the words are only an adjunct. Indian experience in wall paintings communication by the government can still activate its potential in rural areas.

1. Alkapa is social satire and is a popular rural drama among the West Bengal Muslims. Its themes were secular and social. The messages of women's emancipation, anti-dowry attitudes and higher education for women are quite successfully enacted in Alkapa.

2. Ballads - The range of folklore presented in the common Indian story telling forms in the ballad styles is extensive and as full of variety as the country itself. These storytelling forms have been effectively used by political parties as well as the sales promotion agencies in North India. In Tamilnadu there is such a form named as Villupattu, in which a big bow that is struck with painted sticks as it rests on the neck of a large earthen pot. It provides accompaniment to the ballad singer. The Villu singers indulge in musical question and answer contests. This folk form is also made popular in the cities by N.S.Krishnan and Kothamangalam. Radio, Television and even Cinema have adapted this to preach national reconstruction.

3. Bauls are wandering minstrels preserving the Sahajiya tradition of mysticism in Bengal. It is widely used as a medium of communication especially in rural Bengal by politicians and development workers for disseminating their ideas.

4. Bhavai is a popular folk theatrical form of states Rajasthan and Gujarat. When the Bhavai Theatre came down to the village square from the temples it became a highly popular form of entertainment for the rural communities. A performance of the Bhavai at any particular time tends to become a mirror of the prevailing society. Bhavai being a religious offering and a theatre activity of entertainment, is the carrier of information from village to village. In the absence of other media, the Bhavai functions powerfully as a creator of public opinion in the life of the village people.

5. Burrakatha is a traditional form of performing arts from state Andhra Pradesh. Its skillful with a perfect performers blend of dance, music and enactment, having social consciousness have been using the Burrakatha form to spread the messages.

6. Dasakathia is a storytelling form of state Orissa and is a popular form with development workers because it is possible to interpolate contemporary sub-stories in the main narrative.

7. Jatra is a powerful theatrical form in states Bengal, Orissa, Assam and Manipur. It has always been a powerful medium of expression and entertainment effectively used by religious and political leaders and social reformers for dissemination of their ideas.

8. Keertana / Harikatha / Harikeertan / Ramakath is a kind of concentrated drama, a monodrama in which one gifted actor enters swiftly followed by a whole series of characters, moods and manners. It is a common sight all over the country. The use of Harikatha is traditionally associated with the Bhakti-adoration or devotion that has been the inspiring element behind many of the performing art forms. Its use as an instrument of social and moral change is not new or unfamiliar in the Indian society.

The stories are communicated to the people in many forms - narratives, dramas, temple carvings, printed pictures, scrolls, books, films, radio programs and bhajans - which also express the social belief and practices of the people. Harikatha integrates the people because it includes songs and different languages which by and large help them in extending their cultural understanding beyond their own language area and the region. The reciters of Ramakatha or Harikatha are being used by politicians and development workers as agents of change. It is such a potent weapon in social education that Lokmanya Tilak is reported to have said that if he were not a journalist, he would have been a Keertankar. Harikatha is exploited by the Central and State Governments to educate the masses on family planning, developmental activities, democratic values and national integration with the help of Kathakars or Keertankars. All India Radio and Doordarshan too are using the Keertana form for broadcast beamed at industrial workers and rural audiences.

9. Karyala is a traditional theatre of state of Himachal Pradesh. They take contemporary themes such as vulgarity of films and effectively criticize it through folk songs and folk dances.

10. Kavada is from state of Rajasthan. The narrator of the Kavada gives lessons on moral and ethics through his stories. Thus, it is a medium of instruction and communication.

11. Phada is a picture story narration from Rajasthan. This form is being used by development agencies for narrating their own messages.

12. Therukoothu is a street play from the state of Tamilnadu bringing together dance and the classical literary form - prose, music and drama. It is believed to have evolved from Villupattu and Nondi - Natakam. In recent times, the form has been turned into a musical play, Sangeetha Natakam, both on stage and screen. The form is operatic and acting is highly stylized. Being a street play, it has an opportunity to establish direct link with the audience.

13. Theyyam is a ritualistic dance form from the state of Kerala. This frenzied dance form works as an important channel for releasing the tensions of the economically and socially deprived and oppressed community of the society.

14. Thullal is an interesting blend of Kuthu, Koodiyattam, Kathakali and Patayani and is a solo performance relating to current and local situations and gossip. Thullal instructs and delights the audience at the same time. This form can easily be used as a powerful satire on social and political evils.