Dilli ka Nautanki

Understand

Where Dilli ka Nautanki comes from

Dilli ka Nautanki is the local Nautanki tradition of Delhi, the regional expression of the larger north Indian Nautanki (which is more strongly associated with Lucknow and the UP). The Delhi tradition is documented as one of the earliest urban-Nautanki variants, with the form having emerged in the 19th century among the Bhayan communities of the Sadar Bazar and the old Mughal city. The Delhi Nautanki differs in some respects from the UP variant — a particular emphasis on the dance sequences, the use of the smaller courtyard-stage and the inclusion of the city's cultural references. The form was widely performed in the 19th and 20th centuries and is documented as one of the distinctive cultural traditions of Old Delhi. Today Nautanki is performed at the cultural programmes of the city and at the small courtyards of Old Delhi.

How it's practiced

Dilli ka Nautanki is performed by a troupe of men and women in the courtyard of the host's home or in the small courtyard of the older city. The dance is a folk-opera format, with the song-and-dance interleaving of the dialogue, the comic skits and the romantic interludes. Music is the dholak, the shehnai, the small cymbals and the regional drums. Costume is the everyday Old Delhi dress — the dhoti-kurta for the men, the colourful sari for the women. Performances run for several hours through the evening at the cultural programmes of the city.