Chaita (Chaiti)

Understand

Where Chaita (Chaiti) comes from

Chaita (or Chaiti) is a women's song-and-poetry tradition of the Braj region of Uttar Pradesh — sung and danced in the spring month of Chaitra (March-April) at the Holi festival. The form belongs to the Braj Bhakti literary tradition that flourished from the 16th century onward, with its texts celebrating the reunion of Krishna and Radha on the spring festival and the divine love of the Holi festival. Chaita is closely related to the Hori (Holi) songs of Braj and is part of the broader Hindustani vocal-classical lineage of Braj. Today Chaita songs are performed by women of the Braj region and at cultural programmes in cities — sometimes as a stage dance form with classical Kathak-influenced movements.

How it's practiced

Chaita is sung and danced by groups of women in a circle during the spring Chaitra-month days before and during Holi. The songs are slow, melodic and lyrical — describing the love of Radha for Krishna, the pain of separation and the joy of reunion. Dance movements are typically soft hand-gestures and gentle footwork, often with the women swaying in a circle. The accompanying instruments are the dholak, the manjira and the bansuri. Costume is the colourful Braj spring dress — the white and yellow sari with phulkari-embroidered dupatta, the flowers in the hair, and the heavy silver jewellery. Performances are held in courtyards and on Holi gatherings of the village, and the form is occasionally restaged as a chaiti folk-dance festival in cities of UP and abroad.