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Home , Ghanakanta Bora, Jatin Goswami, Maheswar Neog, Pushpa Bhuyan, Sattriya

PAPER 6 DANCE IN TODAY, DANCE-DRAMAS, CREATIVITY WITHIN THE CLASSICAL FORMS, IN DIASPORA (USA, UK, EUROPE, AUSTRALIA, ETC.) MODULE 13 THE JOURNEY OF SATTRIYA FROM TEMPLE RITUAL TO ART

Most of Sattriya’s dance numbers whether taken from the register of dramas or stand-alone numbers, were almost all part of the annual ritual practices in the sattra / सत्रा, because they were performed either as part of daily services or were part of the occasional services that marked the memorial calendar of the sattras. Yet the cultural life of the sattras is marked by two very strong features. The first is that there is a large variety of cultural practices and patterns of cultural specializations that can be seen across the board in the 500 plus sattras that continue today. The second is that there is a definite link between cultural practice, production and patronage. This is essential in understanding the journey of Sattriya from Ritual to Art. The monolithic conception of the Neo Vaishnav faith of Srimant Sankaradeva / शंकरदेव called the Ekasaran Naam Dharam / एकासरण नाम धरम faith, and variations its cultural practices ceased with the death of the founder Sankaradeva in 1568. Immediately the sattras founded by one of his significant disciples broke way on caste grounds and formed the Samhati. Here idol worship prevailed, and as these were sattras that were later to have a close

1 association with the Ahom court, artistry oriented to court preferences grew and flourished. For instance, some examples of Court oriented dances included the Apsara dance unique to the Auniati Sattra. As the Ahom / अहोम Kings when they adopted , in the reinvention of their back story saw themselves as directly descendent from Lord India this was an astute choice to please the powers that be. Another such dance was the Natua dance / नटुआ unique to the Dakhinpat Sattra. Some variant of the Natua dance was also called the Hajoliya dance / हजोलऱया. Hajo was once a great center of dance for the Assamese Devadasi. In these Brahma samhati sattras, many new works, written by sattradhikars / सत्त्त्राधधकार over the centuries, went beyond the template created by Srimant Sankaradeva and that is how the many Raas dances, grew in these crucibles. In the Sankaradeva scheme, Raas Krida dances had a limited scope. Patronage drove the creation of dances, restricted to the Brahma samhati sattras / ब्रम सम्हहति सत्रा like “Patchasalam” or Badshah Salam, and Pasuji, which drew its name from the main accompanying instrument, the Pakhawaj, which was popular in the Ahom court, an import from the Mughal Durbar. These alignments in consonance with court preferences ensured grants of lands and wealth. Even today Auniati / औतनयिी and Dakhipat / दखिऩाि, are the most materially rich among all sattras.

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After the death of Madhabadeva in 1595, the non- sattras split into three groups. The first was the Purusha Samhati sattras / ऩु셁ष संहति सत्त्िरा , or those established by the family of Mahapurush Sankaradeva. These sattras were grahast or family sattras and lived the life that the founder had recommended. They grew to have a mastery over the scribal culture of the sattras and were renowned for their strong Bhaona presentations. The group of sattras, established by Madhavadeva and his disciples, was known as the Nika Samhati sattras / तनक संहति सत्त्िरा . They mostly followed the life style lived by their preceptor and are mostly of the celibate order. Madhavadeva wrote many plays. He also created an impressive corpus of dance practices in the sattras. Thus the Nika Samhati sattras, of which the Kamlabari group of sattras is a wonderful example, practice the plays of Sankardeva, Madhavadeva and the later sattradhikars, and the dance practices introduced by Madhavadeva as well. It offers one of the finest conglomerates of cultural practices in the sattra tradition.

The last samhati / संहति that was created at the point of the split was the Kala Samhati, who gave refuge in its sattras to the lowest in the social order. Thus these sattras were not rich but numerically strong. Their uniqueness was in drumming practices and the famous Mridangiya Baaj / लिदंगीय बाज is part of their cultural patrimony. It is important to point out at this stage that all sattras had people of all castes and classes. The caste hierarchy would be reflected mostly in leadership traditions, and the predominance of the numbers, as in the case of the Kala Samhati. It may be pertinent to mention here

3 that some of the leading figures in Ahom history towards the last days of the Ahom rule hailed from the Kala Samhati sattras. The trend of specialization and the political links with the Ahom / अहोम and Koch / कोच courts, the two important power centers in the region, was a dominant force right from the time of Sankaradeva time. Patronage from the Koch court helped the faith to survive in the early days when it was being hounded by the Ahoms. Patronage from the Ahom court from the middle of the 17th Century, allowed the sattras to flourish. The Rajaghariya Chalis / राजघरीय चाऱी were specifically created for the courts. The many grants that the sattras received allowed them the leisure to continue their artistic pursuits. In the court chronicles- the Buranjais, especially the Tungkhungia Buranji there are many references to the performances of Bhaonas / भोना by the sattras in the courts. There are also some references to the commissioning of plays by Sattra Mahantas / सत्त्िरा महंि in Sanskrit, which was part of the ancient Sanskrit knowing nobility profile that the Ahom’s aspired for and through their patronage policy, attempted to portray. With the coming of the British there were no disruptions to the practice. In fact the British supported the sattras as they found the organization of the sattras running at the ground level useful to incorporate into its scheme of governance. This way they had to deal with the Sattra leadership yet manage to impact a large number of Assamese. It also looked at the large land holdings of the Sattras covetously, as it could contribute to the “Gardenisation” of , a

4 seminal plank of their economic policy towards Assam, which was seen essentially as a provider of tea and of timber. With respect to the cultural practices of the sattras, the British period saw three major trends coming into being. The first was that the aural scape of the sattras changed. The humble / काऱी and the evocative serenda / सेरᴂडा were often replaced by the Violin and Harmonium. Secondly, costumes thereafter included the use of ‘western’ cloths like velvet, which had also been adopted by the Jatra parties of Bengal. There were many more changes as well. The most important change was the fact that once Bengali was imposed on Assam as the official language, while some Sattras adopted it as a part of the scribal culture, most responded by creating a large trove of Maitri Bhashar Natakas / मैत्री भा�कर नाटक, written in Assamese. Pertinent it is to note that the most important crucibles for the birth of the which evolved as an essential lingua franca to help communication between people of different ethnicities, who found their spiritual refuge in the sattras, were the sattras themselves. While the sattras were important centres of promoting the vernacular language, they also had some passing association with Sanskrit that found its way in a very small number of compositions of Sankaradeva. Importantly, they were the exclusive centers for the use of Brajavali, the artificial language created by Sankaradeva in his Ankiya Nats. Brajavali / ब्रजावऱी as its name suggests was a mixture of Braj Bhasha, Maithili, Hindi, Assamese and other elements.

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Even today the Maitri Bhashar Natakas / मैत्री भाषार नाटक are extremely popular, and though the subjects remain the same, with the themes taken mostly from mythology, the Maitri Bhashar Natakas are more reflective of the Assamese way of life. For instance, in a Matri Bhashar Nataka, the heroine would be depicted in a mekhala chadar / मेिऱा चादर, rather than a ghuri / घुरी. Finally, as the ill effects of British rule came to be felt, many bhaonas, written in Assamese moved away from the epic themes and focused on social issues like the ill effects of opium consumption that had emaciated Assamese society. Today, the annual Raas Utsav can be seen as a theater of change and flexibility, and reflects the progressive face of the sattras. In the Dakhinpat Sattra / दखिंऩाि सत्त्िरा, it is still performed even today as a in the naam ghar / नाम घर . In other sattras including at

Garamur Sattra / गारामुर सत्त्िरा , it has moved on to the public platform, where it is performed by males and females, many of whom may not belong to the sattra, and some of whom may additionally be non-initiated members of tribal communities. In 1934, Pitambardeva , Sattradhikar of the Garamur Sattra adapted the Raas Lila of the puja into a play, and this is how this sattra has presented it ever since. Since the 1950s, women have been performing in it as well, and the ‘co-ed’ performance at Garamur Sattra is well known. It was during the displacements caused by the Mayamariya Rebellion and the Burmese invasions that another interesting tradition of the

6 sattra arts became popular. It was called by various names: Hejeriya Bhaona / हेजेररय भोना (from Hazaar or thousand, referring to a thousand khels that stood for 4000 Paiks or men) or Barechaheriya Bahona / बारेचाहेररया भोना for the collective bhaona for a large numbers of the laity, literally the laity of twelve (bare) hamlet or sahar, or Bara Kheliya Bhaona / िेऱीया भोना (referring to the group of khels, the collective of Paiks). It specifically stood for a festival of many bhaonas performed outside the sattras and the naam ghars, in specially created, temporary performance architecture of open stages called kholas / िोऱा, with performances on all the stages to be going on simultaneously. It is believed that this tradition was started towards the end of the Ahom rule and according to Dr. Maheswar Neog, was financed by the nobility in an attempt to enforce social integration in a fractured society, as it became one more bridge between sattra life and civilian life. It brought together people of many communities in a cultural fiesta that also celebrated the end of a harvest. This presentation was held in the dry season when the fields are clear of crops, as the setup needs a large space. It was popular for almost a century-and-a-half, and over time assumed more of a socio-political rather than socio-religious value. It was a secret platform for anti-colonial activities as well. Actually, from the 1930’s episodically and sporadically some of the dance items were presented in non Sattra venues. The name of Jibeshwar Goswami comes to mind, who under the banner of the Prachin Kamrupi Sangha presented some dances in cities,

7 starting with Shillong. Shillong was also home to the Shillong Kala Parishad set up by stalwarts like . The city saw the performances of some Ankiya Nats that had been adapted for stage presentations, and some stand-alone performances of dance numbers. The most popular items then were the “Dashavatar/ दशाविार” and the “Sutradhari Nritya / सूत्रधारी नत्त्ृ य”. The Mahanta (Sattradhikars of the Grahast sattras belonging especially to the Purusha Samhati) of the Sharavani sattra of Kaliabor, Girikant Mahanta guided them in this early, sacred to secular translation. There was a hiatus during the Second World War, after which a lot many organizations came into being giving greater visibility to the arts of the sattras. In 1948 AIR’s station was established, that popularized Bargits / बरगीि, far and wide, and some of the non-traditional singers included the greatest names in the arts of Assam including Ambikagiri Roy Choudhary, Jyoti Prasad Agarwala, Bishnu Rabha, , Gajen Barua and others. Jyoyi Prasad’s brother Paromananda Agarwala also played Bargits on the Piano. Amidst these modern and nontraditional representations, the Sattra Bhakats were also featured and there were no turf wars. Possibly the representatives of the sattras analyzed that the fact that Bargits were meant to be heard and as Ankiya Bhaonas / आंककया भोना were already being performed by village people in the Naamghars / नामघर, that there was no objection to the putting out of Bargits on non-sacred platforms, through modern technologies. As the respect

8 to the sattras and the monks were forth coming, there was no reason for them to feel threatened. In effect, a key role was played by some of the sattra monks and Sattradhikars to help bring Sattriya / सत्त्िररया culture in to the public domain. As early as in the second decade of the twentieth century the late Mitradev Mahanta recorded some Bargits for the first time. Maniram Dutta Muktiyar Barbayan recorded six Bargits, along with his disciple Bhadrakanta Goswami, in Shillong, with the encouragement of Sabita , Rani of Bijni, then Secretary of the Assam Sangeet Natak Academy and its Chairman the then Governor Joyram Das Daulatram. In keeping with Srimanta Sankaradeva’s efforts at integrating marginalized communities, the Sattradhikar of Nikamul Sattra / तनकमुऱ सत्त्िरा, Gahan Chandra Goswami, who was himself an exceptional singer, he trained a group of young students from Arunachal, in his Gharamora Sattra / घारामोरा सत्त्िरा in . Prominent among other members of the sattra community who helped bring the Sattriya culture out from the confines of the sattras and Naamghars , are Jibeswar Goswami, Narahari Burha Bhakat, Chakradhar Mahanta, Girikant Mahanta, Baloram Bargayan and many other artistes of the Kamalabari group of Sattras, who sang from the AIR Guwahati and AIR stations. With the setting up of the Department of Information of the , and the introduction of a scheme called Publicity through Cultural Media with Rudra Barua as the Deputy Director and Anand Mohan Bhagawati as the production officer,

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Sattriya got another shot in the arm, for Sattriya, and other dances were slotted between the messages to promote government schemes. As these were to be done on stage special stage versions of these dances were created and this early experience in choreography and the making stage versions of these dances, eventually gave both, Anand Mohan Bhagwati and an advantage that came to the fore again after 2000. The Information Department turned out to be a nursery of Sattriya stars and taught them all the basic principles of Choreography for the stage. Later, Murari Sharma, Prabhat Sharma, Jibenjit Dutta and Deepali Bhuyan, one of Raseswar Barbayan’s earliest students, were all employed there. Raseswar Saikia had no educational certificates and so he could not be accommodated, but in 1972, who was then a young monk from Titabor was given a role in the Cultural affairs department as a Bhaona Demonstrator. From 1954, claims dancer Indira PP Bora, that she began learning “Sattriya” at Ajanta Kala Mandir. Teachers would come from different sattras to teach at the Ajanta Kala Mandir, but, by her own admission, it was in a fragmentary manner. In 1961, the Ajanta Kala Mandir troupe, which included Rudra Barua, Pradeep Chaliha and others, went on a dance tour of South India, performing at many places including Kalakeshetra. At Kalakshetra she recalls that Pradip Chaliha gifted Rukmini Devi a , and after she performed it before Rukmini Devi “She went on to include Sattriya Dance in Kalakshetra’s presentations”, claims Bora. In 1963, at the house of Jogendranath Saikia, Bapuram Bayan of Garamur Sattra stayed and taught his three daughters, one of whom

10 was dancer and former Secretary Sankaradeva Kalakshetra, Sharodi Saikia. That was the first long term serious training by a girl from a Bhakat. Later, Sharodi Saikia, had the privilege of learning in a serious and focused manner from Raseswar Saikia who was the first from the celibate category. In 1973, after serving as Law Minister in Assam when Jogindranath Saikia moved to Delhi as a member of the Legislative Language Commission, he set up a small training school where Raseswar Saikia trained the girls from the Saikia family and his own too. In 1975 the group that went to Indonesia with President Fakkaruddin Ali Ahmed, who also hailed from Assam, included Sharodi Saikia, and others like Jolimoni Saikia, and Bholuram Borbayan. The first time that Sattriya was used on a modern government platform to serve as a cultural marker of Assam was in 1949 at the Hills and plains Conference, a pet project of Sir Akbar Hyderi the then Governor of Assam and Gopinath Bordoloi, the then Chief Minister. Through this performance, they were attempting to subtly reinforce the message of integration as crafted by Sankaradeva over four hundred years ago through the neo- Vaishnav faith the propagation of which was through performance. Guwahati got to see Sattriya Dance as a staged show in 1963, at the District Library. Aruna Das, Saru Bordoloi, and Nandini Baruah danced at this performance. It was in 1963 also, that Dilip Jamadar documented the folk dances of Assam in a Film’s Division Documentary in which Sattriya Dance was also featured. In the early 1960s , the then diva of , and Ritha Devi, grandniece of Rabindranath Tagore and the

11 granddaughter of eminent Assamese litterateur, Lakshminath Bezbaruah learnt some items in Sattriya from Raseswar Saikia Borbayan. But they were driven mostly by curiosity to learn a bit, and they did not perform it much. Had they performed it, possibly Sattriya would have caught the imagination of India for its artistic content, like did, of which both Rahman and Devi were early practitioners. However, when it came to national spaces, it was the monks of the Kamalabari Sattra / कमाऱाबारी सत्त्िरा who performed for the first time in Delhi in 1955 at the National Dance Festival. At the third Inter-University Youth Festival held at Delhi in 1956, the then troupe presented the Rasa Nritya for which the gayan bayan team had come from the Dakhinpat Sattra. This was a very big step forward as the dance was performed by four male and four female University students, one of whom was Garima Hazarika who went on to receive the award for choreography in 2006. It was only due to the intervention of the eminent scholar Dr. Maheshwar Neog that the then sattradhikar of the Auniati Sattra, Hemchandra Goswami agreed to help and that too conditionally. Finally, it was at the National Dance Seminar organized by the Sangeet Natak Akademi in 1958, that Sattriya was noticed and hailed. The featured papers were prepared and read by Dr. Maheswar Neog and the performances were presented by the monks of the Mool Kamlabari Sattra, under the leadership of Maniram Dutta Mukhtiyar Borbayan . It was for this seminar that Prof. Neog in consultation with Maniram Dutta Mukhtiyar Borbayan,

12 selected the nomenclature of Sattriya for this body of dances, as they believed it encompassed all the dances performed in the Sattras. Regrettably, in this period, Assam fell on the blind spot of India, not just in development issues but also with reference to their cultural aspirations. Most efforts in post-independence period for the promotion of Sattriya were driven by the Assamese themselves. Many dancers who had been to Kalakshetra to study dance, including Pushypa Bhuyan and Indira P.P. Bora, established dance schools to teach it in Assam. In fact Assam saw Bharat Natyam, Manipuri, and Odissi as popular dance forms. Later these same schools became the ones that started the teaching of Sattra dances in an organized manner. Even as Sattriya hoped for its recognition, some of the non- traditional dancers like Pushpa Bhuyan and Indira P. P. Bora had begun performing around India. For many they were the first dancers to perform this style. Indira Bora gave many lecture demonstrations in India and overseas. Both ladies were recorded for Doordarshan’s National Programme of Dance in Delhi. However, Doordarshan’s first National Programme of Dance was recorded in Guwahati was in 1985, in the open area of the house of Raseswar Saikia Borbayan. Dr. Maheshwar Neog was present on the hand to advice. A group of six dancers danced Nadu Bhangi / नाद ु भंगी . The dancers work three different types of costumes (not the uniform costuming that accompanies group presentations today) because Neog advised that in the sattra this item is danced in different costumes.

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In 1985, the Government of India signed the to usher in a regime of peace after the ULFA lead insurgency in Assam. One of the clauses of the Accord was o promote the cultural aspirations of Assam. In that context, Assam got the Shankaradeva Kalakshetra, renovation and modernization of the Chitraban Studio Complex and the IIT Guwahati, Numaligarh refinery and more. It was with the coming of Bhupen Hazarika as Chairman of the Central Sangeet natak Akademi that the long standing aspiration of Assam was addressed, with the long hoped for national recognition being accorded to the Sattriya Dance of Assam, that put it at par with dances like Kathak, Bharat Natyam, Manipuri, Mohini Attam, , Odissi and .

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