Karma Naach

Understand

Where Karma Naach comes from

Karma Naach (also called Karma or Karam) is a traditional circle-dance performed across central and eastern India during the annual Karma festival in the month of Bhadra (August-September). In Odisha, the dance is most strongly practised in the western districts of Sundergarh, Jharsuguda and the Adivasi belts of Mayurbhanj and Keonjhar. The festival and dance honour Karam Devta — the tribal deity of fate and the harvest — and is one of the most widely shared tribal festival traditions of central India. The Karma dance is performed at the festival in communities of the Munda, Ho, Oraon, Kisan, Bhuyan and Adivasi communities of western and northern Odisha, and is closely associated with the planting of new trees in the village square during the festival.

How it's practiced

Karma Naach is performed by men and women standing in a circle, with a freshly-cut branch of the Karma tree held in the centre on the ground. The dancers hold each other around the waist and dance in coordinated steps to the heavy rhythm of the timki drum and the thumki and chhalla smaller percussion instruments. The central branch is held between the dancers during the dance and not allowed to touch the ground; at the end of the performance it is washed with rice and milk in a closing ritual. The men's steps are more vigorous and forward-moving while the women bend lower to the ground in the characteristic pattern of the dance.