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36-567: The Mardala is used in a wide range of traditional art forms of Odisha, including Gotipua , Mahari, Odissi dance , Bhagabata Tungi, Sakhi Nata, Prahallada Nataka , Ramalila, Krusnalila, Rama Nataka, Sahi Jata , Medha Nacha, Bharata Lila , Bhutakeli Nata, Odisi Kirtana and more. Odishan musicologists in ancient treatises have mentioned four distinct kinds of instruments or vadyas  : tat or stringed instruments, susira or wind instruments, anaddha or leather instruments / drums & finally ghana or metallic instruments. Out of these four,

72-525: A characteristic swing that is typical of and universally found in Odissi music. The details of some major talas are listed below. An exclusive technique called paḍi is frequently employed in traditional Odissi songs. This is composed within the fixed prosody of the respective song. The padi is repeated in several different talas, layas and from different matras. Kabichandra Dr. Kali Charan Patnaik calls this feature 'the lifeline of Odissi music'. The Mardala

108-449: A detailed study of the movements of the feet, hands ( mudras ), the standing postures, movement and repertoire; it mentions more than 25 varieties of bandha including Gagana , Dhurmukha , Torona and Shayana . Sangita Darpana , a 17th-century text about music and dance, gives a complete repertory and overall style of presentation. Some bandhas are found in oral tradition; these include: Maguni Charan Das , Padma Shri awardee and

144-508: A painted motif. Ankle bells are worn, to accentuate the beats tapped out by the feet. The palms of the hands and soles of the feet are painted with a red liquid known as alta . The costume, jewellery and bells are considered sacred. Long ago, the temples in Orissa had female dancers known as devadasis (or mahari ), who were devoted to Jagannath , which gave rise to Mahari dance . Sculptures of dancers on bas-reliefs in temples in Orissa (and

180-676: A recipient of the Odisha Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, was one of the masters of the Gotipua dance. Deba Prasad Das Deba Prasad Das was an Indian classical dancer, considered by critics and connoisseurs as one of the four first generation gurus of the Indian classical dance form of Odissi . His Odissi style is robust and unique. He was a recipient of the 1977 Sangeet Natak Akademi Award . and 1974 Odisha Sangeet Natak Akademi Award. Deba Prasad Das

216-882: A representative of Gotipua Odissi culture and considered by many as one of the four first generation gurus of Odissi, is known to be founder of the Deba Prasad Gharana . He had many disciples such as Indrani Rahman , Bijayalaxmi Mohanty, Oopali Operajita , Pushpa Mahanti, Srinath Raut, Sudhakar Sahoo, Durga Charan Ranbir, Dhuleswar Behera, Anita Singhdeo, Sangeeta Dash, Sujata Mishra, Ramli Ibrahim, Gajendra Panda, Manoj Behera, Gopa Biswhas, Gayatri Chand, Atashi Tripathy are among many others who have emerged as noted exponents of Odissi. Notable Bharatanatyam guru Leela Ramanathan had also taken Odissi training under him. He has also choreographed many dance dramas and solo numbers. Deba Prasad Das died on 16 July 1986, aged 54. Recipient of Senior Research Fellowship from

252-594: A solo performance on Mardala under the able guidance of Guru Banamali Maharana at Rabidra Mandap, Bhubaneswar which was very first of its kind. Two state government institutions impart training in Mardala ;: Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya and Utkal University of Culture . Undergraduate, postgraduate degrees are offered. Many private institutions also impart training. Guru Banamali Maharana had established an institute called 'Mardala Academy' in Bhubaneswar,

288-539: A traditional component based on the Mardala's beats was integrated into Odissi dance by Guru Deba Prasad Das . Though several hundred talas are defined in treatises, some are more common : ekatāli, khemaṭā or jhulā, rūpaka, tripaṭā, jhampā, āḍatāli, jati, āditala, maṭhā . Other talas that are also used are sarimāna, nihsāri , kuḍuka, aḍḍa, duāḍamāna, upāḍḍa, panchutāla (nabapanchu tala), paḍitāla, pahapaṭa, aṭṭatāla, āṭhatāli and jagannātha tāla. The talas have

324-456: Is a traditional dance form in the state of Odisha , India, and the precursor of Odissi classical dance. It has been performed in Orissa for centuries by young boys, who dress as women to praise Jagannath and Krishna . The dance is executed by a group of boys who perform acrobatic figures inspired by the life of Radha and Krishna. The boys begin to learn the dance at an early age until adolescence, when their androgynous appearance changes. In

360-429: Is broadly applied around the eyes to give them an elongated look. The bindi , usually round, is applied to the forehead, surrounded with a pattern made from sandalwood . Traditional paintings adorn the face, which are unique to each dance school. The costume has evolved over time. The traditional dress is a Kanchula , a brightly coloured blouse with shiny decorations. An apron-like, embroidered silk cloth ( nibibandha )

396-467: Is intimately associated with the Jagannatha temple and thus has a very esteemed position in the culture of Odisha. Many Gurus have worked for carrying forward the legacy of the instrument. Adiguru Singhari Shyamsundar Kar , Guru Banamali Maharana , Guru Padmanabha Panda, Guru Basudeba Khuntia, Guru Mahadeba Rout, Guru Narayana Mahapatra, Guru Banamali Maharana and Guru Kelucharan Mahapatra were among

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432-474: Is the enactment of a song and interpretation of ancient poetry. This dance depicts Radha Krishna -oriented poems, such as the 12th-century Gita Govinda . The verses used for narration are extremely ornate in content and suggestion. Graceful, fluid, and sensual, the Abhinaya resembles a moving love poem with its facial expressions, eye movement and mudra gestures: "Come and see, my love Here comes Krishna,

468-407: Is thicker at the middle than its ends. A paste called kharali is applied on the playing face of the Mardala in a round shape. The preparation of kharali is a time-consuming and delicate process, requiring the ingredients of paunsa (ash), geru (red chalk), bhata (boiled rice), chuda (flattened rice), harida (fruit of black myrobalan tree) and sour gruel. This is applied to the right face of

504-534: Is tied around the waist like a ruffle and worn around the legs. Some dancers still adhere to tradition by wearing a pattasari : a piece of thin fabric about 4 metres (13 ft 1 in) long, worn tightly with equal lengths of material on both sides and a knot on the navel. However, this traditional dress is often replaced by a newly designed cloth which is easier to put on. Dancers wear specially designed, beaded jewellery: necklaces, bracelets, armbands and ear ornaments. Nose-piercing jewellery has been replaced with

540-518: Is tied strongly with pata-suta or leather strips and ready to be played. The playing of the Mardala is based on the tala-paddhati or rhythmic system of Odissi music . A tala is a rhythmic structure in Indian music. The tala s in use in Odissi music are distinctive, and are not found in other systems of Indian music. The playing of the instrument follows a strict classical grammar. Traditionally, there are ten vital features of tala that are taken care of : The kriyas are either nisabda , that

576-458: Is without-sound or sasabda , with sound. The nisabda or soundless kriyas are demonstrated by four types of motions ; there is no stroke. The sasabda or sounded kriyas are created by striking a membrane. Apart from these, there are eight desi-kriya s. The regional terminology used in the Mardala's context are kalā, ansā, māna, aḍasā, bhaunri, bhaunri aḍasā, tāli, khāli, phānka, bāṇi, ukuṭa, pāṭa, chhanda, bhangi, etc. The sabda-swara pata ,

612-565: The Konark Sun and Jagannath Temples in Puri) demonstrate this ancient tradition. With the decline of mahari dancers around the 16th century during the reign of Rama Chandra Dev (who founded the Bhoi dynasty), boy dancers in Orissa continued the tradition. Gotipua dance is in the Odissi style, but their technique, costumes and presentation differ from those of the mahari ; the singing is done by

648-673: The Odia language , Gotipua means "single boy" ( goti-pua ). Raghurajpur , Odisha (near Puri ) is a historic village known for its Gotipua dance troupes. The dance of the Gotipuas is accompanied by traditional Odissi music with the primary percussion being the Mardala . To transform into graceful feminine dancers the boys do not cut their hair, instead they style it into a knot and weaving garlands of flowers into it. They make up their faces with mixed white and red powder. Kajal (black eyeliner)

684-579: The pattachitra artists of Orissa. The difficult and intricate poses (requiring suppleness of limb) are known as bandha ("acrobatic" in the Odia language ). To perform this dance, boys need to start learning it at the age of five or six. Musical accompaniment is provided by the mardala (a two-headed drum, a percussion instrument in Orissa), gini (small cymbals), harmonium , violin, bansuri and one or two vocalists. Abhinaya Chandrika (a 15th-century text on Odissi dance by Maheshwara Mahapatra) provides

720-539: The Dance Festival and this performance is reported to have assisted Odissi to be taken notice as a classical dance form. Later, in the same year, Rahman made her debut performance of Odissi at a show witnessed by Kapila Vatsyayan , Charles Fabri and others, and this is known to have brought the Deba Das style of Odissi into public notice.'Sabda Swara Pata' is an important feature of this style of Odissi. Das,

756-414: The Mardala as a solo instrument has been presented for the last few decades with great success, apart from its better-known role as an accompaniment in the ensemble for Odissi music and dance. The solo performances follow a specific rule or pranali  : starting with a jamana , then proceeding onto chhanda prakarana , ragada , etc. Guru Dhaneswar Swain , the first solo Mardala player who have presented

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792-474: The Mardala falls under the category of anaddha vadya s or drums. Raghunatha Ratha , an ancient musicologist of Odisha extols the Mardala in his treatise, the Natya Manorama as: ānaddhe marddaḻaḥ śreṣṭho yatastallakṣaṇaṃbrube / Among the membranophones, Mardala is the superlative. Herefrom I narrate its features. The Jagannatha temple of Puri has for centuries had a Mardala servitor. This

828-530: The Mardala features prominently, usually in a niche of an alasakanya playing the instrument. There is a pose by the name mardalika replicating the same stance in Odissi dance. All woods are not suitable for constructing the Mardala. According to treatises, the ideal Mardala is made of khadira ( khaira ) or the wood of Acacia catechu . The wood of raktachandana is also spoken of highly owing to its deep resonance. Other woods such as nimba , mahalimba and gambhari are also used. An instrument fashioned from

864-406: The Mardala. The purika is applied on the left face to produce a pleasant sound. The preparation of the purika uses bhata (boiled rice), lia (blown rice) or paunsa (ash). Once done, the instrument is sun-dried. Once dried, the paste is reapplied and again sundried, and this process is repeated for at least twelve times before adjudging the shruti (tone) of the instrument. Then the instrument

900-498: The New theatre and Das got a small role, appearing only at the beginning of the dance cramas. Later, when New Theatres closed down in 1949, he moved to Annapurna and worked there for a few years where he had the opportunity to work alongside the renowned Odissi exponents such as Pankaj Charan Das , Kelucharan Mohapatra , Kumar Dayal Sharan and Mayadhar Raut . Annapurna also became defunct by 1953 by which time Deb Das had already mastered

936-482: The aforesaid woods is considered uttama , whereas an instrument made from the wood of jackfruit is considered adhama . Natya Manorama ordains the Mardala to be about one and a half cubits long. The left face must be between twelve and thirteen angula s and the right face half or one angula less than the left face. The process of making a Mardala is described in detail in the Natya Manorama. The Mardala

972-399: The audience). The dancers perform a three-step salutation: the first above their heads towards God, the second in front of their faces for the guru and the third in front of their chests for the audience. The Sarigama is a dance celebrating beauty, and highlighting the mastery of technique; it is portrayed by dancers and musicians carved into the outer walls of ancient temples. The Abhinaya

1008-536: The dance form of Odissi. The next move was to Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya , a school of dance music, where Das joined as a faculty member for Odissi in 1964. Here, he tutored Indrani Rahman a Bharatanatyam dancer at that time, whom he taught Odissi . and the association with Rahman brought Das into public notice when the Rahman took her guru along with her for concerts. In 1957, Indrani Rahman presented an Odissi demonstration choreographed by Deba Prasad Das at

1044-481: The dancers. Present-day Odissi dance has been influenced by Gotipua dance. Most masters of Odissi dance (such as Kelucharan Mohapatra , from Raghurajpur ) were Gotipua dancers in their youth. Odissi dance is a combination of tandava (vigorous, masculine) and lasya (graceful, feminine) dances. It has two basic postures: tribhangi (in which the body is held with bends at the head, torso and knees) and chouka (a square-like stance, symbolising Jagannath). Fluidity in

1080-485: The flute player, the Supreme Performer Come and see, my love He dances wearing ankles bells So lovely rhythmic patterns he makes Listen to his melodies, the mardala beats Listen to his flute and clappings." An interesting part of Gotipua is Bandha Nrutya , the presentation of acrobatic yogic postures (referring to mythological scenes from the life of Krishna) similar to visual presentations by

1116-406: The great Gurus of Mardala in the 20th century. Guru Rabinarayan Panda, Guru Jayadeba Giri, Guru Janardana Dash, Guru Dhaneswar Swain, Guru Sachidananda Das, Guru Bijaya Kumar Barik, Guru Jagannath Kuanr are among modern-day exponents of the Mardala. Many veteran Gotipua masters have also excelled in the Mardala : Guru Birabara Sahu, Guru Lingaraj Barik, Guru Maguni Das and others. The role of

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1152-433: The state capital. Ramahari Das Odissi Gurukul at Biragobindapur, Sakhigopal also offers training in Mardala under Guru Dhaneswar Swain , who also has his own institute called 'Vadya Vani Gurukul' which specialises in traditional percussion instruments of Odisha. Ensembles of traditional musical instruments of Odisha with the mardala taking the lead have also been conceptualised and executed. Gotipua Gotipua

1188-647: The upper torso is characteristic of Odissi dance, which is often compared to the gentle sea waves which caress the Orissa beaches. Each year, the Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Odissi Research Centre organises the Gotipua Dance Festival in Bhubaneswar . The dance typically begins with a vandana prayer (an invocation, with prayers of gratitude to Mother Earth, Jagannath and one's guru and welcoming

1224-520: Was born in 1932 in a Karana family at a small village near Cuttack called Keul Chabi Sua, in the Indian state of Odisha to Indramani Devi and Durga Charan Das, a police officer. He lost his mother at an early age and was brought up by his grandfather who was a local violin player. Das did his early schooling at Puri and started picking up music and dance at the age of six from a nearby traditional school (Pathara Akhara ) run by Mohan Chandra Mohapatra. However, he had to move to Behrampur when his father

1260-513: Was known as the 'Madeli Seba' and the percussionist was ritually initiated into the temple by the Gajapati ruler. The Mardala used to be the accompanying instrument to the Mahari dance, the ancestor of present-day Odissi dance , one of the major classical dance forms of India. In hundreds of Kalingan temples across the state of Odisha, including famous shrines such as Mukteswara and Konarka ,

1296-462: Was transferred there. When Das was 14, his father sent him to the music school of Radha Raman Ray, a music director working with New Theatres . He worked there for a monthly salary of approximately ₹ 3 plus food and assisted the performers in the green room. Soon, he worked his way up as a gate man, a ticket collector and finally as a prompter. The break came when Guru Pankaj Charan Das and later, Moha Mohapatra started associating themselves with

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