SSC · Railway
The Gaur Maria dance, in which dancers wear headgear decorated with bison horns, belongs to which state?
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Answer: Option B — Chhattisgarh
Detailed Solution
The correct answer is Chhattisgarh. The Gaur Maria dance is performed by the Bison Horn Maria tribe of the Bastar region of Chhattisgarh. The name comes from the gaur, the Indian bison, because the male dancers wear a spectacular headdress decorated with bison horns (or cattle horns) and long plumes of feathers.
The dance imitates the movements of the bison, including charging, butting and running, and is usually performed at weddings and festivals. Men and women dance together. The men wear the horned headdress and beat drums hung around their necks, while the women wear brass ornaments and beaded necklaces and keep the rhythm by striking iron sticks with bells on the ground. The famous British anthropologist Verrier Elwin studied the Maria people and described the dance in his book "Maria Murder and Suicide". Bastar is one of the richest areas of tribal culture in India and is also known for the Bastar Dussehra, a 75-day festival that is one of the longest festivals in the world.
About the other options:
- Odisha is known for Odissi, Gotipua, Chhau (Mayurbhanj style), Dalkhai and Sambalpuri dances.
- Jharkhand is known for Chhau (Seraikela style), Paika, Jhumair and Karma.
Madhya Pradesh is known for Matki, Grida, Rai, Jawara and Bhagoriya. Although Bastar was part of Madhya Pradesh until Chhattisgarh was created in November 2000, the Gaur Maria dance is now listed under Chhattisgarh.
💡 Exam tip
Chhattisgarh's folk dances often appear as a group in exams: Panthi (of the Satnami community), Raut Nacha (of the Yadav community, performed around Diwali), Saila, Suwa (the parrot dance of women), Karma and Gaur Maria. Pandwani, the musical narration of the Mahabharata made famous by Teejan Bai, is also from Chhattisgarh.💬 Discussions on this question
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Indian Dance Forms — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Indian Dance Forms, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
Indian dance forms are one of the most frequently tested areas of static GK. This topic covers the eight classical dances recognised by the Sangeet Natak Akademi (Bharatanatyam, Kathak, Kathakali, Kuchipudi, Odissi, Manipuri, Mohiniyattam and Sattriya), the folk and tribal dances of every state, and related terms such as mudra, abhinaya, lasya and tandava. Most questions ask which state a dance belongs to, which community performs it, or which feature identifies a classical style. Learn the classical dances with their state and one signature feature each, such as the face make-up of Kathakali or the brass plate of Kuchipudi. For folk dances, group them state by state, since exams often list three or four dances and ask for the common state. Watch for dances shared by more than one state, such as Chhau, which has three styles. Practise the Indian dance forms questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.