Chhau Dance & Craftsmanship of Chhau Mask in West Bengal

Chhau Dance

Chhau is a type of dance drama, which is seen in its traditional form in the Indian states of West Bengal, Jarkhand and Orissa. In these states, this dance is performed on the occasion of annual sun worship. In some areas of West Bengal's Purulia and Midnapore districts, this dance contains the full story of the Ramayana, while elsewhere, the dance is based on the different incidents described in the Ramayana and the Mahabharata and the Puranas.

Dance Venue

In West Bengal, this dance is performed in an open field. For this, an enclosure of about 20 feet wide is made, with which a corridor of at least five feet must be made for the dancers to come and go. The circle in which the dance takes place is circular. All those who play instruments sit on their side with their own instruments. Each party has its own five or six bajanis. There is no decoration in the circle and there is no such thing which is considered necessary for this dance because the performers have colorful dress code which attract people.

Undercover Craftsmanship of West Bengal

Mask of West Bengal as it known has mysterious histories is a true culture of Best Bengal. In search of mask making community, we reached Kolkata capital city of West Bengal & drive to Purulia District which is approx. 300 Km / 08 Hours drive from Kolkata. After long drive overnight we stay in Purulia. Next day morning we drive to Charida Village which is approx 60 km / 02 hours from Purulia. Morning we reached in Charida village then we started walking around streets of the village for 01 hour. During our visit of 01 hour, we noticed that approx. 150 families involved in mask Craftsmanship. We reached a house where 01 families of all members were designing Colorful Chhau mask. We discussed with family and they told us that earlier in this village only few members of lower caste used to do this work but as the time passes & Chhau mask famous in all over the world and many awarded received. Now every cast is engaged with this crafts. In this village mask making about 06 / 07 generations. We know about that mask process and time. There are 05 process to making this & it take 02 to 05 days to complete it.

Process of Mask Making in West Bengal

First, the clay is collected from the banks of a small river flowing through Charida; then it is shaped into masks by the master craftsmen. Then, shreds of newspaper are stuck on the clay masks, sometimes 12 layers thick, before they are left out to dry under the sun for a day.

Next, a thin coating of bele mati, a special type of soil with high sand content, is applied on the mask. A cloth daubed with clay is stuck to the visor before a wooden carving tool is used to polish the mask and create facial features like eyes, nose and mouth.

After it’s dried, the cloth is removed very carefully and the mask is plastered with khori mati — soil with high calcium content. Colors are then applied and the mask decorated with beads, ribbons, artificial flowers and leaves. “If a mask is only half done before the day turns cloudy or rainy, our effort is completely wasted and the mask is ruined. The rainy season hampers our work,” it is said by a craftsman.