Play: Forester, Sautish, Vagh – Bokadi
Group: Aavishkar, Gujarat
Language: Dangi
Duration: 1 hr 30 min
The Form
Madalya is the ancient theatre tradition of Dangi tribals of Gujarat. It was largely performed to
entertain guests during wedding celebrations in the traditional agrarian society. With the invasion
of urbanization that swept across Dangs in the late twentieth century, celebration of weddings
and the traditions associated with it have drastically been transformed, pushing the theatre
tradition in a dark corner and losing its popular status.
This is an attempt to save and revive the ancient theatre tradition of the tribes of Gujarat when
most folk theatres are pushed towards extinction. Madalya is a complete theatre tradition where
music, dance and drama are integral elements of its structure.
The Play
From a repertoire of about thirty skits, the following three skits will be performed. They depict
the socio-economic aspects of the forest-based agrarian society.
Forester: As the name suggests, the skit is based on the forest and its officials. The tribals
believed that the forest belonged to them and no-one else. Not even the government had any
right over it. During the colonial era the British took control of the forest with the Forest Law of
1842, prohibiting the free usage of forest by natives. This skit is believed to have been created in
late nineteenth century to express the anger and protest against the law, and is important in
understanding the psyche of the Dangi tribals and their historic revolt against the British..
Sautish: Sautish in Dangi translates as ‘Sautan’ in Hindi. Polygamy or having more than one
wife was very common in Dangi society. Though widely practiced, polygamy was not socially
accepted by a large part of the society. The skit, in the most hilarious way portrays the position
of a husband with two wives. This universal story of a man with two women and their eternal
quarrels remains the same for each society.
Vagh-bokadi: It was quite common to encounter wild animals like tigers (vaghs) and bears in
Dangs. Many a times they lost their cattle too. This skit refers to the everyday presence of wild
animals in Dangi life and how they bump into these animals. Vaghdev was feared and yet
worshipped. These contradictory emotions of love and fear are expressed in this skit. It is a
comedy depicting an incident of a tiger eating the wandering goat of a careless Dangi farmer.
A Note
We at Aavishkar, have been constantly engaged in the process of studying, documenting and
preserving our Indian cultural heritage along with the dissemination through various tools
especially in the field of performing arts. As common with these kinds of forms, there is no
director of the group.
The Group
Aavishkar, an academy of performing arts, has as its objective, studying various folk/tribal forms
of Gujarat and the rest of India; and later imparting this knowledge & information to urban youth
and bringing awareness about our rich cultural heritage. It has been an integral part of
Aavishkar’s discipline to organize intensive camps and workshops for systematic study and
research in rural areas. Since its establishment in 1986, various folk dance forms of Gujarat like
Hudo (Tarnetar-Saurastra), Kartal (Tribal-dance-Panchmahal), Maniaro (Warrior Ras-Porbandar
Saurashtra), Janviyo Dhol Nritya ( Sabarkantha) have been studied.
In the year 1993, we undertook a study project on the performing art forms of Dangi tribals
under the scheme “Preservation and dissemination of folk/tribal arts”. - Ministry of H.R.D.,
Govt. of India, New Delhi.
Cast & Credits
Bhoye Shivajibhai K
Gavit Devidas S.
Bhoye Jitendra J
Bangal Ashokbhai A.
Bangal Manoj A.
Chaudhari Sunil S
Bhoye Dilip S.
Albad Satish U.
Bhoye Motubhai S.
Bhoye Somabhai J
Albad Manyabhai S.
Pawar Tulsiram K.
Gavit Jairambhai S.
Raout Mangubhai S.
Thakre Ramubhai S.
Thakre Gopichand Z.
Bhoye Budhyabhai I.
Vaghmare Bhikhbhai G.
Khanbhayat Chandarbhai B.
Chaudhari Kamleshbhai V.
Thakre Motiram J.
Bagul Pavan R.
Mewada Jatin
Dalal Kalpesh
Contacts:
Aavishkar Academy of Performing Arts
A-48, Aryamanh Bunglows,
Thaltej Shilaj Road,
Ahmedabad - 380059
Gujrat
Mb: 09825034743
E: aavishkar869@gmail.com