Ghoomar

Understand

Where Ghoomar comes from

Ghoomar was originally performed by the Bhil tribe in worship of Goddess Saraswati, and was later embraced by the Rajput communities of Rajasthan after the Bhil and Rajput kings reached peace and began regular interaction. The form grew popular during the reigns of the Rajput kings and became a celebratory women's tradition at weddings, festivals and auspicious occasions. In traditional ritual, a newly married bride is expected to perform ghoomar when she is first welcomed to her new marital home; the dance can sometimes last for hours. The art is associated with traditional songs including Gorband, Podina, Rumal and Mor Bole Re, sometimes centred on royal legends and Marwari traditions.

How it's practiced

Ghoomar is performed by veiled women (with their faces covered by the ghoonghat) in flowing ghaghara dresses, moving in and out of a wide circle and pirouetting — the word ghoomar comes from the Hindi ghoomna, meaning to spin or twirl. The dance has regional variants — faster beats and garba-like steps near the Gujarat border, slower beats in the Braj region around Dhaulpur and Karauli. Music is provided by the dhol and sahnai, with the male musicians and audience excluded from the dancing circle. The accompanying songs are sung by the women themselves, who also clap and sing while moving.