सहरिया स्वांग/Saharia Swang

The video is a presentation on the Saharia Swang, a dance form of the Saharia community. The Saharias are a tribal community from Shahabad, a place in Rajasthan which borders the state of Madhya Pradesh. The Saharias were originally forest dwellers, the word Saharia coming from the Hindi word, ‘sahar ‘ for ‘jungle’, who were settled at Shahabad and 12 adjoining villages with the objective of modernising them. The Saharias are known for their dance the Saharia Swang which is performed during the month of Holi. The dancers organize themselves into troupes and they travel from village to village to perform Swang. The dance is performed to the beats of the dhol, nagari and matki. The Swang features a male dressed in female attire who dances around the male performers. The performers adorn their heads and hips with leaves and put colourful striking body paint on their bodies.