Swang (dance drama)
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Swang or Saang or Svanga is a popular folk dance drama or folk theatre form in Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Malwa region of Madhya Pradesh.
Its roots can be traced back to the origins of the Indian theatre tradition. Since women did not participate in the dance-drama form, men enacted their roles. Swang incorporates suitable theatrics and mimicry accompanied by song and dialogue. It is dialogue-oriented rather than movement-oriented.
As is the case with Hindu traditions, before the actual swang performance, the performers seek the blessings of Lord Ganesha.
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[edit] Overview
As a dance-drama form, swang incorporates suitable theatrics and nakal (mimicry) accompanied by song and dialogue. In the earlier days, dramas in the 'Swang' form enacted plays drawn from legends, like the legend of Ramdevji. All dramas end with the victory of good over evil.
In recent years, swang has incorporated more current themes as its subjects, including themes like health and hygiene, literacy, AIDS awareness and women's empowerment.
This is performed by a group of ten or twelve persons. They sing religious stories and folk tales in open spaces. It can be called a 'open air theater'. The performance can continue for 5 hours. Some of the men dress as women to act and dance. 'Sang' or 'Swang' means a disguise or 'to impersonate'. This form of dance or drama was first started in its present form in about 1750 AD by Kishan Lal Bhaat.
Swaang theatre is restricted to men who play the female roles, the latter often involving elaborate make-up and costumes. These plays are usually performed in the open on a simple raised platform and with no backdrops or curtains. Essentially, saang folk plays consist of long question and answer sessions between the actors and since much of the dialogue is improvised, the actors must be able to trade quotations, puns, proverbs and songs at the drop of a hat. There is much singing and dancing and there is always a clown character called the makhaulia.
The tradition of folk theatre in Haryana is very old. Plays, to begin with were staged in the open, with the audience sitting around. A combination of music, dance, poetry and speech was called Natya.
[edit] History
In Hindu mythology, the gods themselves figure as supreme dancers. Brahma created the Natya Vidya and Bharat Muni wrote a book by the name of Bharat Natya-Shastra. According to this, drama was created not merely for pleasure but for elucidating moral truths. In the play Ocean of Milk, Shiva and Parvati appear as dancers.
The first Sanskrit drama emerged from the festival of Indra's Banner, which celebrated the triumph of the gods over the demons. Out of this developed the heroic play (nataka) depicting the godly kings of the epics.
[edit] Various forms in Swang
Folk theatre may be placed under two categories: (a) temple based religious theatre with Indian epics and Puranas being the source material for characters; and (b) community-based secular theatre, of minor forms and lighter variety.
In reality several themes are mixed together - mythological love, popular history, and religious themes, all with overtones of secular values.
[edit] Swaang of Haryana
Haryana Swaang follows in the old tradition, being the most popular variety of performance based on the 'open stage' technique. It is an all-male cultural troupe of twenty to thirty artistes, including the director, producer, musicians and actors. The female roles also are played by males, due to the segregation of sexes.
But female troupes are not altogether unknown. Towards the end of the nineteenth century and beginning of the present, all women Swaang troupes performed in western U.P. and the adjoining 'Khadar' area of Haryana. The parts were played by women. Sardari of Kalyat (Jind), Natni of Gangaru, and Bali of Indri (Karnal) were some of the leaders of such troupes.
[edit] Origin
The origin of Swaang is traced to one Kishan Lal Bhat, who some two hundred years ago laid the foundation of the present style of folk theatre. Another view gives credit for this to one Kavi Shankar Dass, a poet artiste, who belonged to Meerut. The stage was most elementary, the actors performed from a central place among the audience. The light was provided by mashals (Roman torches).
A notable early pioneer was Ali Bux of Rewari, who successfully staged Fasanai, Azad and Padmawat. For music and song, these early Swaang drew on khayals and chambolas.
In Haryana the most celebrated name is that of Dip Chand Bahman of village Sheri Khanda in Sonepat. He is still in public memory and is popularly styled as the "Shakespeare' or 'Kalidas of Haryana'. Semi-literate, he had a spark, a touch of genius. He polished the style of Ali Bux and gave a new color to this folk art. The Swaang of that time had two categories: (i) Kirtan style and (ii) Nautanki style. Dip Chand's style of performance incorporated elements from music, dance, pantomime, versification, and ballad recitation.
During the First World War, when Dip Chand's capacity for improvisation and adaptation was at its peak, the British Government made him a 'Rai Sahib' and granted him other favours. His catchy song-compositions with martial tunes attracted large recruits to the army. The haunting tune of one of his songs was on everybody's lips:
Bharti holai ra tara bahar khara rangrut Yahan rakhta madhham bana Milta ha phatta purrana Vohan milta hai full boot Bharti ho lai ra. . .
(Come and join the army; the recruiters are waiting outside your door: you have only old worn out clothes to wear here, but there-in the army-you will get full-boots.)
Among Dip Chand's many contributions to the folk music of Swaang, the outstanding one is that he opened the eyes contemporary singers and music lovers to the prime importance of voice-culture and voice-modulation and the supreme value of emotion in music. He was truly the king of emotions. It was his genius that chiseled off all the harsh crudities and angularities of the old style of the stage and lent it a polish and glow. Among his talented disciples may be mentioned Hardeva Swami of Golar (Rohtak), Bhartu Brahman of Bhainsru (Rohtak), Qutbi Doom and Khema.
Hardeva skillfully polished his guru's Chambola style and made some improvements in Haryanvi ragni (folk song). Bjae Nai, disciple of Hardeva, beautifully mixed both the styles of folk music, thus creating a greater mass appeal. Pt. Nathu Ram, another well known Swaangi coached a number of talented pupils, which included Maan Singh, Bulli, Dina Lohar and Ram Singh.
Pt. Lakshmi Chand of Jatti Kalan (Sirsa) is known as Surya Kavi (Sun Poet) in Haryanvi Ragnis and is the most ever celebrated guru in this field. Majority of Swang Ragnis have stamp of his name in poetry itself and the legend says he composed them on stage in realtime. He improved the ragni style of singing. He possessed a very rich, melodious voice and was also a successful composer. The important Swaang staged by him included Nal Damyanti, Meera Bai, Satyavan Savitri, Poorjan, Seth Tara Chand, Puran Bhagat and Shashi Lakarhara.
The large number of disciples he left behind included Pt. Mange Ram, Mai Chand, Sultan, Chandan and Rati Ram.
The stage of Swaang does not require the elaborate arrangements of the modern dramatic performances. There are no curtains or a green-room for make-up. There is only a square wooden platform of about three and a half meters. The rest is all a display of skill and stamina of the artists who perform as long as six hours. They do not use loudspeakers.
An hour or so before the show, the musicians of the orchestra begin to create the proper atmosphere. The artistes sing some religious or other songs connected with the play. Then the 'Guru' appears and the artistes touch his feet to evoke his blessings. The play opens with a song bhait in praise of the Goddess of Knowledge (Bhawani).
Ay re bhawani baas kar maira ghat ka parda khol Rasna par basa kara bhai shudh shabd much bol
(Oh Goddess Bhawani give me enlightenment.)
With a brief introduction about the play, the performance starts. The Haryana Swaang has enriched itself by borrowing and adopting a variety of themes. It embraces romances like Sorath, Nihalde, Padmawat, Nautanki, etc. There are historical and semi-historical themes based on epics, such as Raja Rissalu, Kichak Badh, Draupadi Chir Haran, Amar Singh Rathor, Sarwar Neer, Jaswant Singh, etc.
Themes of old literature, such as Gopi Chand, Bhartari Hari, Harishchander, Raja Bhoj, etc. are also adopted. Mythological themes like Prahlad Bhagat, and Punjabi romances like Pooran Bhagat, Heer Ranjha, etc. have become part of the vast and varied themes on which the Haryanvi rural theatre operates.
More recently elongated to "Swanging" in the verbal form for a more "hip" and "youthfull" use. For example "I was swanging allnight baby!"
