About the Program

About the Program

Saila Dance –

The Gond tribe, who lead a well-organized life on the banks of Maa Narmada, surrounded by the Mekal Mountains in Dindori district of Madhya Pradesh, perform the Saila-Reena dance after the Dussehra festival, on the night of autumn moonlight. Saila-Shail means that Saila dance is performed with a stick of one and a quarter hands in hand and hence it is named Saila. The beats and rhythm of the Maadar instrument, the bright sound of the Timki instrument, the tinkling and jhannar-jhannar sound of the Pajna in the feet, the guddum-guddum sound of the Gudum instrument and the bright sound of the Shehnai and the sweet sound of the flute add to the beauty of the dance. Men perform the dance with a stick of one and a quarter hands in one hand, a peacock feather in the other hand, a pajna in the feet and women perform the dance with a handkerchief in the hand.

This dance is also an inter-village cultural journey of Gond tribes when on the special invitation of the head of another village, men and women of the village, dressed up, go to another village with their cultural troupe on a moonlit winter night. Saila dance begins in the morning with the sound of musical instruments. The host village welcomes this troupe with great respect. At the end, they take blessings by donating a cow and giving tilak and the cultural troupe of that village goes to settle their tracks i.e. to take revenge which is called Girda.

The lyrics of the song are – Tai na na mor na na ga

Naachey god bajay payeri tor

Roop Singh Kushram

Group chief

Gond tribal dance troupe

Mudki, District Dindori (M.P.)

PIN- 481880

About the troupe

Gond tribal dance troupe

Mudki, District Dindori (M.P.)

PIN- 481880

About the troupe

Gond tribal dance troupe

Mudki, District Dindori (M.P.) It is said that for the last many years, i.e. in the year 1974-75, the first presentation of Saila dance was given in the Republic Day Parade in New Delhi. Since then, this dance troupe is operational and has presented Saila dance in the major cities of the country and abroad, such as Delhi, Bhopal, Gwalior, Raipur, Bilaspur, Calcutta, Bombay, Allahabad, Sanchi, Daltonganj, Bokaro, Dhanbad, Baikunthpur, Ambikapur, Amarkantak, Surguja, Jabalpur, Chitrakoot, Haridwar, Dehradun, Lohardaga, Hazaribagh, Nagpur, Sangli, Ujjain, Indore, Khajuraho etc. Presentation in Ramlila Festival under the aegis of Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, New Delhi in Lok Yatra programmes organized under North Madhya Pradesh Cultural Centre, Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh and South Madhya Pradesh Cultural Centre, Nagpur, Maharashtra; Presentation in programmes organized by Indira Gandhi National Museum, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh; Madhya Pradesh Government, Culture Department, Tribal Folk Art and Dialect Development Academy, Culture Council, M.P. Bhopal's Lokrang Festival, Dharohar Festival, Sampada Festival, Khajuraho Festival, Malwa Festival, Tribal Tribe Research Institute, M.P. Presented in Adirang Utsav, Meghmadal Utsav, Adirag Utsav of Bhopal, participated in various programs at block level, district level, division level and state level and performed Saila dance and presented Saila dance in Desi Mahotsav organized by Sangeet Natak Academy New Delhi in Itarsi Madhya Pradesh and in the festival of various expressions of Desi India in Jodhpur Rajasthan.

In the program organized by Lalit Kala Academy Regional Center Lucknow Uttar Pradesh-

Main instruments- Madar, Timki, Shehnai, Gudum, Manjira, Chatkula etc.

Costume- Women- Dhutia (Saree), Blouse, Bindiya, Payal, Kardora, Bahkar, Chudi, Mala, Guria, Hawal, Sutia, Handkerchief, Peacock Feather Plumage etc.

Men - Dhoti, Kurta, Jacket, Pheta, Chita, Kalgi, Paijna, Danda, Jhaali etc.

Roop Singh Kushram

Team Leader

Gond Tribal Dance Group

Mudki, District Dindori (MP)

Pin- 481880