Bagurumba

Bagurumba (Bodo: बागुरुम्बा) is a folk dance of indigenous Bodo tribe in Assam and Northeast India. It is a traditional dance which is traditionally inherent to one generation to another generations. The Bodo women performs the Bagurumba dance with their colourful dokhna, jwmgra (fasra) and aronai. The Bagurumba dance is accepted as main traditional dance of Bodo people. But there are some other important dances like- Bardwisikhla dance, Mwsaglangnai dance, Dahal-tungri sibnai dance, Sikri sikla dance, Daosri delai dance, Sa-gwlao mwsanai, Kopri sibnai mwsanai and so on. All these dances are known as Kristi dance. It is also accompanied by musical instruments like (kham,(a long drum, made of wood and goat skin or other animal’s skin) sifung (flute, made of bamboo), jota,(made of iron/tama) serja (a bowed instrument, made of wood and animals skin), and gongwna (made of bamboo), tharkha (a piece of split bamboo),

This Bagurumba dance is originated from nature, some thousands years ago it was practiced by the Boro people. Generally boro people are like to stay in green environment. They love to play with environment, beauty of nature. So they used to stay foothills of the Eastern and southern Himalaya which are generally forest area. There are so many deferent symbols in this traditional dance, which are imitated from other natural environment. Like – dance of plants, dance of animals, birds, butterfly dance, wave of flowing river, wind etc.

By seeing this bagurumba dance all boro people can’t stay cum and quite. By seeing,this dance Suddenly every Bodo people use to dance unknowingly, and we feel peace and happiness in our mind.

There is no certain days and time period to perform these dance, this dance can be perform in any occasions, festivals and programmes. At present Bagurumba dance is famous whole over the world.

“Jath nongabwla

Cool nongabwla

tabwrwm homnanwi-

bamnanwi lagwomwnka

hai lwgw lagwomwnka”

this lines indicates that, if we are not really jath and khul they might be taken us whenever they want, but we are very much jath and cool so nobody can catch or carry us- it’s a confidential song of Boro women. They thought that, lose character’s women goes to bad practices and if someone comes to catch her, she never protects or restrict them. So we are not that type of women,,, we are jath and cool.

“Turi barinilai daosen

jwngni lagwalwi dajen”

(kobam gwrwbhwnai) the meaning of this line is- we should not lose / no failure. We must won any games always. It’s a confidential song of boro women

Musical instruments

Among many different musical instruments, the Bodos use for Bagurumba Dance:

Sifung: This is a long bamboo flute having five holes rather than six as the north Indian Bansuri would have and is also much longer than it, producing a much lower tone.^[1]

• Serja: a violin-like instrument. It has a round body and the scroll is bent forward.
• kham : a long drum made of wood and goat skin.
• Jota: made of iron/tama.
• Gongwna: Made of Bamboo.

References

1. Baruah, S. (1994). "'Ethnic' Conflict as State—Society Struggle: The Poetics and Politics of Assamese Micro-Nationalism". Modern Asian Studies 28 (3): 649–671. doi:10.1017/S0026749X00011896.