Restoring glory of folk art

Every year before the International Dance Day, NGO Lokrang Sanskritik Manch organises a workshop on Marathi folk art. This year, the organisation held thesession in association with the cultural affairs department of the state government recently.

About 70 children participated in a dance workshop whose main aim was to keep the tradition of folk culture alive by introducing the younger generation to its nuances. The highlight of the workshop was the traditional Tarpa dance that students learnt from the tribals. Rajan Vaidya, head of the Tarpa dance troupe guided the students in the intricate footsteps on the Tarpa rhythm and students also matched their footsteps.

“Tarpa is the instrument that is used in the performance and the entire performance revolves around it. It is the most ancient art form of Thane district. We have performed in Delhi, Haryana and Gujarat among other states,” Vaidya said. Apart from Tarpa, students also learnt Bharud, Jagran, Gondhal, Lavani from traditional performers from different parts of Maharashtra.