Gidda (Himachali)

Understand

Where Gidda (Himachali) comes from

Gidda is the women's folk-dance of Himachal Pradesh, performed at the marriage and the Harela festival of the regional community. The dance is closely related to the women's circle-dance of the Pahari region and forms part of the regional women's folk-dance tradition of the state. Gidda is one of the most widely practised women's social dances of Himachal Pradesh and is regularly performed at the marriage cycle and at the cultural programmes of the state. The form is associated with the women's celebration of the marriage and with the song-cycle of the regional Pahari tradition.

How it's practiced

Gidda is performed by women of the Himachali community in a circle at the courtyard of the marriage or at the central village ground of the festival. The women sing the Gidda song-cycle in the Pahari dialect and dance in small coordinated steps to the song. The dance is gentle, with the small clapping of the palms and the swaying of the women. Music is the dhol, the shehnai and the small regional instruments (the nagara, the karnal). Costume is the colourful regional dress — the ghagra-kurti and the colourful Pahari cap. Performances are at the marriage cycle and at the cultural programmes of the state.