Pandav Lila (Pandav Nritya)

Understand

Where Pandav Lila (Pandav Nritya) comes from

Pandav Lila (also called Pandav Lila or the Pandav Nritya) is the dance-drama tradition of the Brahmin communities of the Garhwal and Kumaon regions of Uttarakhand, narrating the story of the five Pandava brothers of the Mahabharata through a long song-and-dance performance. The form is performed particularly during the winter months of December-January (the Paush and Magh months), and is recognised as a regional variant of the wider Pandav Lila tradition (which exists across north India). The Garhwal and Kumaoni versions of the form draw on the local Brahminical and the regional myth-cycle of the Mahabharata, with the dance-drama of the five brothers and Draupadi being central to the performance.

How it's practiced

Pandav Lila is performed by troupes of men of the Brahmin communities in the courtyards of the temple of the village over the winter months. The dance-drama is performed in the form of a long sequence of song-and-dance episodes, with the actors (often the same men playing all five brothers and Draupadi in turn) wearing the regional Brahmin dress and the small wooden or paper mask of the character. Music is the dhol, the shehnai and the small drums, with the men singing the Pandav Lila songs in the Garhwali dialect. The dance is performed for several hours through the winter evening, with the audience sitting around the central performance. Costume is the regional Brahmin dress — the dhoti and the kurta with the small white pagdi (the Brahmin turban) of the Garhwal. Performances are at the central village square and at the regional temple-festival.