Chhattisgarh
Folk Music, Dance, Theatre and Crafts
Folk Theatre: Nacha and Pandavani
Nacha (Gammat, Joker, Dau Mandraji), Pandavani (Vedmati and Kapalik styles), Habib Tanvir's Naya Theatre, Chandaini Gonda, Rahas, Bhatra Nat and Maopata.
Prerequisites
- Folk Songs and Musical Instruments: Pandavani is a sung ballad, and Nacha is built on folk songs
- Folk Dances: to keep Nacha (theatre) apart from Raut Nacha (dance)
- Art and Culture of India: the national picture of folk theatre (Jatra, Tamasha, Nautanki, Yakshagana) that Nacha belongs to
The Hook: One Woman, One Tambura, the Whole Mahabharata
Connect
On 5 July 2026, Teejan Bai (तीजन बाई) died at AIIMS Raipur, aged 70. She was the Pandavani singer from Ganiyari near Bhilai who, holding a single tambura decorated with tassels, could become Bhima, Draupadi and Duryodhana in one night. She was also the first woman to perform in the vigorous Kapalik style. Two generations earlier, in village Ravéli near Rajnandgaon, Dau Mandraji had gathered farmers and labourers into a Nacha party that would later feed actors to Habib Tanvir’s world-famous Charandas Chor.
What exactly are Nacha and Pandavani, how do they differ, and who shaped them?
Why it matters: Pandavani’s two styles, its exponents and Nacha’s structure are high-frequency Prelims facts. Teejan Bai’s death (2026) makes Pandavani a likely current-affairs-linked question. Mains GS-IV asks about folk theatre as a tool of social reform.
Pandavani (पंडवानी)
What It Is
- A solo narrative performance of the Mahabharata in Chhattisgarhi, mixing singing, narration, acting and dance. “Pandavani” literally means stories of the Pandavas; Bhima is the favourite hero.
- Traditionally performed by communities such as the Pardhan and Devar; Teejan Bai learnt it from her grandfather, Brij Lal Pardhi.
- Popular in Chhattisgarh and spilling over into neighbouring parts of Madhya Pradesh and Odisha.
Structure of a Performance
| Element | Role |
|---|---|
| Lead singer (कथावाचक) | Narrates, sings and acts all the characters |
| Tambura (तम्बूरा) | Drone instrument held by the singer; it becomes Bhima’s mace, Arjuna’s bow, a chariot or a weapon as the story needs |
| Kartal (करताल) | Clappers, sometimes in the singer’s other hand |
| Ragi (रागी) | The main accompanist, who responds (“हाँ”), asks questions, and gives the singer breath and cues |
| Supporting musicians | Harmonium, tabla/dholak, manjira |
The Two Styles (शैली)
| Vedmati (वेदमती) | Kapalik (कापालिक) | |
|---|---|---|
| Basis | A written text: the Chhattisgarhi Mahabharata of Sabal Singh Chauhan, in doha-chaupai verse | Kapal = memory/experience: the performer improvises from memory and oral tradition |
| Manner | Closer to the text; traditionally seated and more restrained | Free, dramatic, with energetic acting and movement, traditionally standing |
| Leading names | Jhaduram Devangan (झाड़ूराम देवांगन), who popularised it; Punaram Nishad | Teejan Bai, the first woman in this style; Usha Barle |
One-line memory
Vedmati = Veda-like = by the book (Sabal Singh Chauhan) = Jhaduram Devangan.
Kapalik = from the head (kapal) = improvised = Teejan Bai.
Nacha (नाचा)
What It Is
- The popular folk theatre of the Chhattisgarh plains: an all-night, open-air performance mixing song, dance, comedy and short plays, staged on a bare ground lit by lamps or petromax, with the audience on all sides.
- Traditionally performed by men only; female roles are played by men (the Pari, परी, female-role dancers).
- Performed by a Nacha party (नाचा पार्टी) at fairs, festivals and weddings, often after the harvest.
Elements of a Nacha Night
| Element | What it is |
|---|---|
| Gammat (गम्मत) | Short comic plays on social themes; the heart of Nacha. Topics: untouchability, alcoholism, dowry, greedy moneylenders, hypocritical priests, the oppression of women |
| Joker / Jokkad (जोकर / जोक्कड़) | The clown-narrator who links scenes, improvises, mocks the powerful and talks directly to the audience |
| Pari | Male dancers in female costume who dance between plays |
| Music | Harmonium, tabla, dholak, mandar, nagada, manjira; the night opens with a devotional invocation |
The People Who Shaped Nacha
| Person | Contribution |
|---|---|
| Dau Dulal Singh Mandraji (दाऊ दुलार सिंह मंदराजी) | “Father of Nacha” (नाचा के पितामह). A landlord of village Ravéli (Rajnandgaon area) who organised the Ravéli Nacha Party (the founding year usually cited is 1928) and turned scattered troupes into an organised, socially pointed theatre. The state’s Dau Mandraji Samman for folk arts is named after him |
| Dau Ramchandra Deshmukh (दाऊ रामचंद्र देशमुख) | Founded Chandaini Gonda (चंदैनी गोंदा) in 1971, a cultural troupe and stage production that used folk songs and Nacha to awaken pride in Chhattisgarhi identity and portray the farmer’s life |
| Mahasingh Chandrakar (महासिंह चंद्राकर) | Created the cultural production Sonha Bihan (सोनहा बिहान), in the same Chhattisgarhi cultural-revival stream |
| Habib Tanvir (हबीब तनवीर) | Took Nacha artists to national and world stages (below) |
| Govind Ram Nirmalkar | Nacha actor of Naya Theatre; Padma Shri 2009 |
Habib Tanvir and the Naya Theatre
- Habib Tanvir (1 September 1923 – 8 June 2009), born in Raipur, was a playwright, director, poet and actor.
- He founded the Naya Theatre (नया थियेटर) in 1959 (later based in Bhopal) and worked with Nacha artists from Chhattisgarh villages as his core actors, combining folk performers with urban theatre.
- Key works: Agra Bazar (1954), Charandas Chor (चरणदास चोर, 1975) (based on a Rajasthani folk tale by Vijaydan Detha), Gaon ka Naam Sasural, Mor Naam Damad.
- Charandas Chor won the Fringe First award at the Edinburgh International Festival in 1982.
- Honours include the Padma Bhushan (2002).
Why Habib Tanvir matters for this chapter
He proved that a “village” form like Nacha, performed in Chhattisgarhi by farmers and labourers, could be world-class theatre. Charandas Chor, a thief who never lies, is still Chhattisgarh’s best-known play.
Other Folk-Theatre Forms
| Form | Where / who | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Rahas (रहस) | Plains (Bilaspur region) | Dramatic enactment of Krishna-leela (the Raas of Krishna) |
| Raas / Ramleela | Across the state | Krishna and Rama stories in song and drama |
| Bhatra Nat (भतरा नाट) | Bhatra tribe of Bastar | Dance-drama of epic and Puranic stories, influenced by neighbouring Odisha |
| Maopata (माओपाटा) | Muria of Bastar | A drama of the hunt (traditionally of the gaur/bison), performed with dance and song |
Analysis: Folk Theatre and Social Change (Mains GS-IV)
- Social criticism with laughter. Gammat attacks untouchability, liquor, dowry and exploitation in a language villagers share. Satire is safer, and more persuasive, than a lecture.
- Moral education. Pandavani teaches dharma, courage and loyalty through the Mahabharata to people who never read the epic.
- Breaking barriers. Teejan Bai, a woman from a Pardhi family, entered the male, improvised Kapalik style and became the state’s most honoured artist (Padma Vibhushan 2019).
- Identity and the statehood movement. Chandaini Gonda (1971) and Sonha Bihan used folk forms to build pride in Chhattisgarhi language and peasant life, part of the cultural ground for the later statehood demand.
- From village to world. Habib Tanvir’s Naya Theatre, Teejan Bai’s tours and Shyam Benegal’s TV series Bharat Ek Khoj, in which Teejan Bai performed, took these forms to global audiences.
- Challenges: cinema and television, loss of patronage, few women performers in Nacha, and stage versions that cut all-night forms down to 20 minutes. Government support: state honours (Dau Mandraji Samman), festivals, the Indira Kala Sangeet Vishwavidyalaya, and the Sangeet Natak Akademi.
Memory Tricks
Nacha's cast: G-J-P
Gammat (comic play), Joker (narrator), Pari (male dancer in a female role). “Good Jokes Please” is what the village wants from a Nacha night.
Theatre timeline
1928 Ravéli Nacha (Mandraji) → 1959 Naya Theatre (Tanvir) → 1971 Chandaini Gonda (Deshmukh) → 1975 Charandas Chor → 1982 Edinburgh Fringe First.
Don’t Confuse
| This | vs | That |
|---|---|---|
| Vedmati: text-based, Sabal Singh Chauhan, Jhaduram Devangan | Kapalik: improvised from memory, Teejan Bai | |
| Nacha: folk theatre | Raut Nacha: Yadav dance | |
| Dau Mandraji: father of Nacha, Ravéli party | Dau Ramchandra Deshmukh: Chandaini Gonda, 1971 | |
| Chandaini Gonda: Deshmukh’s troupe | Sonha Bihan: Mahasingh Chandrakar’s production | |
| Chandaini Gonda (troupe) | Chandaini (Lorik-Chanda ballad) | |
| Ragi: Pandavani’s accompanist | Joker: Nacha’s clown-narrator | |
| Charandas Chor (1975, Habib Tanvir) | Agra Bazar (1954, Habib Tanvir) |
Common Mistakes
Trap 1: Teejan Bai's style
Teejan Bai is the great name of Kapalik, not Vedmati. An option saying “Teejan Bai is the exponent of the Vedmati style” is wrong. Jhaduram Devangan is the Vedmati name.
Trap 2: Teejan Bai is no longer living
Teejan Bai died on 5 July 2026. Write about her in the past tense, and expect a 2026–27 question that links her death to her awards: Padma Shri 1988, Padma Bhushan 2003, Padma Vibhushan 2019.
Trap 3: Habib Tanvir's base
Habib Tanvir was born in Raipur, but the Naya Theatre was not a Raipur institution; it worked from Delhi and later Bhopal, using Chhattisgarhi village actors. Do not write “Naya Theatre, Raipur”.
Practice
These are original practice questions written in CGPSC style. They are not previous-year questions.
Level 1: Foundation
- The Vedmati style of Pandavani follows the Mahabharata of ________.
- Short comic plays within a Nacha performance are called ________.
- Charandas Chor won the Fringe First award at Edinburgh in ________.
Answers
- Sabal Singh Chauhan
- Gammat
- 1982
Level 2: Prelims MCQs
Q1. Consider the following statements about Pandavani:
- The Kapalik style is based strictly on the written Mahabharata of Sabal Singh Chauhan.
- Teejan Bai was the first woman to perform in the Kapalik style.
- The accompanist who responds to the lead singer is called the Ragi.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 and 2 only (b) 2 and 3 only (c) 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer and explanation
(b) 2 and 3 only. Statement 1 describes the Vedmati style. Kapalik is improvised from memory (kapal). Teejan Bai broke the gender barrier in Kapalik, and the Ragi is the responding accompanist.
Q2. Match List-I (Person) with List-II (Associated with):
| List-I | List-II |
|---|---|
| A. Dau Mandraji | 1. Chandaini Gonda |
| B. Dau Ramchandra Deshmukh | 2. Naya Theatre |
| C. Habib Tanvir | 3. Ravéli Nacha Party |
| D. Jhaduram Devangan | 4. Vedmati Pandavani |
(a) A-3, B-1, C-2, D-4 (b) A-1, B-3, C-2, D-4 (c) A-3, B-2, C-1, D-4 (d) A-3, B-1, C-4, D-2
Answer and explanation
(a) A-3, B-1, C-2, D-4. Mandraji organised the Ravéli Nacha Party; Deshmukh founded Chandaini Gonda (1971); Tanvir founded the Naya Theatre (1959); Jhaduram Devangan popularised the Vedmati style.
Q3. In a Nacha performance, the “Joker” is:
(a) a male dancer in a female role (b) the clown-narrator who links scenes and comments on society (c) the lead singer of the opening prayer (d) the drummer who plays the Nagada
Answer and explanation
(b). The Joker (Jokkad) is the comic link-man of Nacha who improvises and mocks the powerful. The male dancer in a female role is the Pari.
Q4. Which of the following plays by Habib Tanvir is based on a folk tale and made famous by Chhattisgarhi Nacha actors?
(a) Agra Bazar (b) Charandas Chor (c) Andha Yug (d) Tughlaq
Answer and explanation
(b) Charandas Chor (1975), based on a Rajasthani folk tale by Vijaydan Detha, about a thief who never lies. Agra Bazar (1954) is also Tanvir’s but is about the poet Nazir Akbarabadi. Andha Yug is by Dharamvir Bharati and Tughlaq by Girish Karnad.
Level 3: Mains Answer Writing
Q1. Compare the Vedmati and Kapalik styles of Pandavani. (60 words)
Model answer outline
Both narrate the Mahabharata in Chhattisgarhi with a tambura and a Ragi.
- Vedmati: text-based (Sabal Singh Chauhan’s Mahabharata, doha-chaupai), restrained, traditionally seated; Jhaduram Devangan.
- Kapalik: improvised from memory (kapal), dramatic, traditionally standing; Teejan Bai, the first woman in the style.
Vedmati preserves the text; Kapalik keeps the story alive through performance.
Q2. “Nacha was the newspaper and the reform movement of the Chhattisgarh village.” Examine. (200 words)
Model answer outline
Intro: Nacha is the all-night folk theatre of the Chhattisgarh plains, built around comic Gammat plays and the Joker.
Body:
- Social critique: Gammats on untouchability, liquor, dowry, moneylenders and hypocrisy; Joker’s satire of the powerful.
- Language and reach: in Chhattisgarhi, free, open-air; reached people with low literacy.
- Organisers: Dau Mandraji’s Ravéli Nacha Party gave it organisation and social purpose.
- Identity: Chandaini Gonda (1971) and Sonha Bihan used folk forms to build Chhattisgarhi pride, feeding the cultural mood behind the statehood demand.
- National stage: Habib Tanvir’s Naya Theatre (Charandas Chor, Edinburgh Fringe First 1982) and Govind Ram Nirmalkar (Padma Shri 2009).
- Limits: male-only cast, entertainment sometimes outweighing reform, decline under cinema and TV.
Conclusion: Nacha informed, entertained and questioned, which is what a village “newspaper” did. Its survival needs patronage that keeps its satirical edge.
Quick Revision Table
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Pandavani | Solo Mahabharata narration; tambura, kartal; Ragi accompanist |
| Vedmati | Text-based (Sabal Singh Chauhan); Jhaduram Devangan; Punaram Nishad |
| Kapalik | Improvised from memory; Teejan Bai (first woman); Usha Barle |
| Teejan Bai | 1956 – 5 July 2026; Padma Shri 1988, Padma Bhushan 2003, Padma Vibhushan 2019 |
| Nacha | All-night folk theatre; Gammat, Joker, Pari; men only |
| Father of Nacha | Dau Dulal Singh Mandraji; Ravéli Nacha Party |
| Chandaini Gonda | Dau Ramchandra Deshmukh, 1971 |
| Sonha Bihan | Mahasingh Chandrakar |
| Habib Tanvir | Born Raipur 1923, died 2009; Naya Theatre 1959; Charandas Chor 1975; Edinburgh Fringe First 1982; Padma Bhushan 2002 |
| Other forms | Rahas (Krishna-leela), Bhatra Nat (Bhatra), Maopata (Muria hunt drama) |
Key Takeaways
Key Takeaways
- Pandavani = Mahabharata narration; Vedmati (text, Jhaduram Devangan) vs Kapalik (improvised, Teejan Bai).
- Teejan Bai (died 5 July 2026) won the Padma Shri (1988), Padma Bhushan (2003) and Padma Vibhushan (2019).
- Nacha = all-night plains theatre with Gammat, Joker and Pari; Dau Mandraji is its father.
- Chandaini Gonda (1971), Dau Ramchandra Deshmukh, was a landmark of Chhattisgarhi cultural revival.
- Habib Tanvir’s Naya Theatre (1959) and Charandas Chor (1975; Edinburgh 1982) took Nacha actors to the world.
What’s Next
- Crafts: Dhokra, Bell Metal and Others: the material arts of the state
- Notable Artists of Chhattisgarh: every name and award in one place
- Literature and Language: Sabal Singh Chauhan and the written Chhattisgarhi tradition
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