Odisha: Berhampur Streets Turn Favourite Arena For ‘Bagha Nacha’ Performers

Berhampur: The streets of Berhampur in Odisha’s Ganjam district has now turned into the arena for the performers of “Bagha Nacha” or tiger dance.

The devotees in the attire of tiger skin dance on the roads as a homage to Goddess Budhi Thakurani during the continuing Thukarunani Yatra in the Silk City.

“Bagha Nacha during Thakurani Yatra is primitive, very costly and is the primary attraction here. It dates back to 1791 to 1793 according to my guru Bankanidhi Behera, a contemporary of Sursingh Martha, Senapati of the Mahuri kingdom,” said Badri Narayan Nayak, a Guru in Bagha Nata and danced three times in the past in ’24 Tala’ during Thakurani Yatra.

“Tiger is the ‘Bahana’ (vehicle) of Budhi Thakurani and when anybody gets dressed up like a tiger, the Goddess blesses him,” said Badri who stays in Nrusingha Mandir Sahi.

Though the performer does not need to be a professional dancer, Bagha Nacha requires regular practice under the guidance of a Guru. The aspiring dancer undergoes a minimum of two to four weeks of training, usually during evening hours. The date of performance for each individual is selected well in advance. A few rituals are performed by his family members before the training.

It costs Rs 7000 for painting a ‘tiger’ and it takes 4 to 5 hours to paint the entire body, said Badri. The family members of every dancer of Bagha Nata put a ‘Paunji’ (an ornament) on the leg of the man to ensure that he returns home after the dance. They put a garland of ‘Katha Champa’, a favourite of the Goddess, on him. He keeps it with him as it keeps the body cool, said Raj Kumar Behera, who has learnt the techniques of tiger painting from his father Hadubandhu Behera, a resident of Chandramanipeta Sahi here.

Each Bagha Nacha performer is usually accompanied by a minimum of 4 to 6 Dhampa drum beaters. The Dhampas need warming in short intervals between performances. For this purpose, a cycle rickshaw stacked with hay follows the drum beaters throughout the procession. The drum beaters light up hay on the roadside to warm their Dhampas.

“Bagha Nacha of Berhampur which has been performed in many national and international festivals including Apna Utsav, Festival of India and others has earned great reputation for Odisha. The Bengali film ‘Bagh Bahadur’, directed and written by Budddhadev Dasgupta, won the Best National Film Award in 1989. It mentions that the tiger dance in this film was derived from the famous Bagha Nacha of Ganjam in Odisha,” said Pradeep Mahapatra, retired professor in Journalism and Mass Communication, Berhampur University.

Unlike animal tiger, the devotee performing Bagha Nacha strictly follows vegetarian diet a fortnight before the performance. He observes strict fasting on the performance day and offers puja to the Goddesses, he said.