Gair

Understand

Where Gair comes from

Gair is a popular folk dance of Rajasthan, originating from the Bhil community and now practised across Mewar and Marwar (the historic Rajput heartland of western Rajasthan). The dance is also known as Gair Ghalna, Gair Ghumna, Gair Khelna and Gair Nachna — all names describing variants of the same circle-dance and stick-play. Documented variations include Dandi Gair (a male stick-dance of Marwar) and Geendad / Gindad of the Shekhawati region. The dance is performed at Holi and Janmashtami — Janmashtami without a Gair performance is considered incomplete in several Rajasthani districts — and at weddings and community festivals.

How it's practiced

Gair is performed in two concentric circles — the women form a smaller inner circle and the men a larger outer circle — moving first clockwise and then anti-clockwise to the rhythm of the dhol, dholak and nagada. The dancers hold wooden sticks called khanda in both hands, striking their own sticks together and then the sticks of their partners in coordinated patterns. As the dance progresses the men and women exchange circles. In some areas the men carry naked swords or swords-and-arrows, and the stick-play with swords is the dance's most spectacular variant. Costume is the long pleated Rajputi angarakha tunic with dhoti for the men and the colourful ghagra-choli for the women.