Kurukuru

ART AND CULTURE OF
ORISSA
RABINDRA MOHAN SENAPATI
PUBLICATIONS DIVISION
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ART AND CULTURE
OF ORISSA
RABINDRA MOHAN SENAPATI
Ministry of Information and Broadcasting
Government of India
First Print : 2004 (Saka 1926)
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CONTENTS
CHAPTER - I Land and People 1
CHAPTER - II Architecture and 9

Sculpture in Orissa
CHAPTER - III Orissan Paintings 16
CHAPTER - IV Oriya Music 22
CHAPTER - V Dances of Orissa 28
CHAPTER - VI Oriya Folk-Plays, 35

Theatres and Yatras
CHAPTER - VII Handlooms and 41

Handicrafts of Orissa
CHAPTER - VIII Festivals of Orissa 46
CHAPTER - IX Cult of Lord Jagannath 52

in Orissa
CHAPTER - X Oriya Literature 56
CHAPTER - XI Changing Cultural Scene 69

I
INDIA Orissa
Map of Orissa
CHAPTER - I
Land and People
vJ rissa is an Eastern Regional State of the Indian Union. It

has a geographical area of about 155,707 sq. km., lying
between latitudes 17°49N and 22°34’N. It is bound on the East
by the Bay of Bengal, by the state of West Bengal on the
Northeast, Jharkhand on the North, Chhatisgarh on the West
and Andhra Pradesh in the South. The capital of the state is at
Bhubaneswar, which is a planned city. Near about is old
Bhubaneswar town which is called the temple city.
Physiographically, Orissa has three broad natural regions :

(1) The eastern coastal plains, (2) the middle mountainous
country, (3) the plateaus and rolling uplands. The major rivers
originate in the plateaus and Eastern Ghats and fall into the Bay
of Bengal. The river valleys constitute the fertile coastal plains
called 'Deltas . All the major rivers of Orissa are dry during the
summer except in their tidal portions. The important rivers are
the Subarnarekha, Salindi, Baitarani, Brahmani, Mahanadi,
Rushikulya and Vansadhara. Mahanadi on which the Hirakud
Dam has been built with its tributaries and branches forms the
largest river system of the State.
The characteristic climate of Orissa is tropical and monsoonic.

Its annual average rainfall is about 1482mm. Most of the
precipitation results from the southwest monsoon, which normally
remains active in the state between the 10th June and 15th
October. Certain parts of Western Orissa, being in the rain-
shadow areas, get deficient rainfall and suffer from drought. In
years of heavy rainfall, floods inundate and devastate the coastal
region.
2 ART AND CULTURE OF ORISSA
The mean annual temperature of the state hovers around

26°C but the Western Orissa districts have extremely high
summer temperatures at times going upto 50°C.
The coastal districts of Orissa are quite frequently ravaged

by devastating cyclones originating in the Bay of Bengal,
generally in the months of September to November. Orissa has
long suffered from triple calamitous natural disasters of floods,
drought and cyclones year after year. This has broken the
backbone of Orissa’s economy. No wonder Orissa has the largest
percentage of people below the poverty line in India - a picture
that is persisting from the pre-independence era.
The natural vegetation in the state is its forest cover.

Satellite imageries show Orissa’s forest coverage to be 48,800
Sq.Km., forming the principal habitat of its tribal population. In
the tidal and estuarine areas of rivers, Orissa has some of the
most valuable mangrove forests of the world.
Orissa had a total population of 36.7 million living in

50,972 villages and 138 towns according to the last decennial
census of 2001. The rural population is about 85% (31.2 million)
and urban population is only 14.9% (54 lakhs). Density of
population is 236 per Sq.Km. Sex ratio is 972 females per 1000
males. The literacy rate is 63.6 percent. Orissa’s economy being
primarily agricultural, majority of workforce is composed of land-
holding farmers (44%) and landless agricultural labourers (28%).
The rest pursue other occupations.
Agriculture is the most important occupation of the people.

Amongst cereals grown in Orissa, rice is the dominant crop,
accounting for 82 percent of the total area under cereals. Pulses
and oilseeds are grown mostly as second crops, principally in
rainfed lands. Rice production, however, fluctuates because of
natural calamities like drought, flood and cyclone, which affect
the crops and consequently the economic condition of the
people.
Oriya is the official language of the State and is the mother

tongue and spoken language of almost 84 percent of the people.
LAND AND PEOPLE 3
Other linguistic groups also understand and speak Oriya. English

is spoken by the educated class.
Majority of the population, almost 92%, profess Hinduism

as their faith. Perfect religious harmony and peace has always
prevailed among different religious denominations. Among the
Hindus, Scheduled Castes (Harijan), Scheduled Tribes and Other
Backward Classes (OBC) constitute 85% of the state’s populations.
A large number of tribes practice their own tribal religious cults
and quite a substantial number have embraced Christianity.
Orissa is the homeland of as many as sixty-two different

tribal communities with a total population of 70 lakhs according
to 1991 census (22 percent of total population). They inhabit
mostly in forest-clad mountainous regions. The main tribal
communities are Kondhs, Sauras, Gonds, Parajas, Gadbas,
Koyas, Oraons, Santals, Bhumijas, Bondas and Juangs. Each
tribe has its traditional belief about creation and cosmology, Gods
and demons, good and evil forces and its specific festivals, rituals
for all occasions including ancestor worship, and its distinctive
repertory of dance and music, tales of joy and sorrow and
distinctive life styles. They rejoice in a life of freedom and love to
live in the midst of nature. They mostly depend upon cereals that
they grow as well as natural forest produce, which they collect
and sell for a living. With the advent of modernity, tribes are
getting exposed to and adopting new lifestyles and cultural ethos.
People in Orissa, whether rural or urban, live in families.

Marriage is monogamous. Social life among castes and
communities is very cordial.
The history of Orissa has been shaped as much by the

forces of time, as by the forces of power politics and the intense
religious and artistic activities.
History of Orissa dates back to a remote antiquity. In

different periods it bore names like Kalinga, Utkala and Odra,
none of which was exactly coterminous in area with present
Orissa. The names signified different territorial extent and
configuration of land areas, ruled by different dynasties of rulers
at different periods. Each of these comprised large parts of

present Orissa but also included areas forming parts of the
adjacent states. The word ‘Utkala’ meant ‘Land of Artistic
Excellence’ which implies that Orissa had been famous for its art
and culture for long.
In the absense of recorded history over long periods,

historians have placed reliance on archeological discoveries to
reconstruct the past. Rock engravings and rock paintings bearing
testimony to the pre-historic Rock Art of Orissa, discovered in
the Western districts indicate that prehistoric men had lived there.
Excavations and surveys have brought to light prehistoric remains
and many types of tools of the Stone Age culture, which
prevailed in Western Orissa and also some other regions of the
State. Metal Age sites have been found in Sankarjang in Central
Orissa and Golbai in coastal Orissa. Iron tools have also been
found. With more excavations at different sites, it will be possible
to open up the hoary past of Orissa, more particularly the
prehistoric period leading up to Mauryan rule.
Political history of Orissa opens with the rule of the Nanda

Emperors of Magadha. According to the Hatigumpha inscription
of Emperor Kharavela at Udayagiri near Bhubaneswar, a Nanda
King had taken away the Kalinga Jinasan to Magadha. However,
Nanda political hegemony over Orissa was short-lived. After its
fall, Chandragupta Maurya succeeded to the Magadha throne.
Probably sometime during the early years of Maurya rule, the
then Orissa repudiated Maurya Rule. Ashoka, the grandson of
Chandragupta, possibly to regain the kingdom, invaded Kalinga.
Lakhs of soldiers either died or were taken as captives. The
bloodshed and loss of life and property as well as widespread
destruction moved Ashoka so intensely that he embraced Buddhism
and preached the religion of peace and non-violence far and
wide.
The next great epoch in the history of Orissa was the reign
of Kharavela, a Jain King who ruled in the 1st century B.C. His
achievements were remarkable. He conquered many regions, and
gave them good administration. He played a prominent part in
Jain religious activities. He built the caves in Khandagiri and
LAND AND PEOPLE 5
Udayagiri hills near Bhubaneswar to provide shelter to jain

monks.
History of Orissa after Kharavela remains in darkness for

several centuries. By the 4th century A.D., several portions of
Orissa had come under the rule of Imperial Guptas. Thereafter
several small or big dynasties ruled simultaneously or in succession
over different parts of Orissa. The Sailodbhava dynasty of
Kangoda, was most important of them. From the accounts of
noted Chinese pilgrim Hieun Tsang, who visited Orissa in the 7th
Century A.D., it is evident that Harsha Siladitya who first
conquered Kangoda, extended his rule to the rest of Orissa.
Harsha was a champion of the Mahayan school of Buddhism.
In the eighth century A.D., the most remarkable feature of

Orissan history was its overseas maritime trade and commerce,
and eventual establishment of colonies in South-East Asia. To
promote overseas trade, several busy seaports came into existence
along the seacoast of Orissa. Excavations and investigations are
under way to glean further details.
During the 8th and 9th centuries, a powerful dynasty

known as Bhaumakaras ruled over Utkal, famous for the temple
dedicated to Viraja, the presiding deity, which was the seat of
Government of the Bhaumakaras. Orissan sculpture and
architecture at that time was at a very developed stage. The
Bhaumakara rule was followed by the rule of Somavansi rulers of
Orissa belonging to the renowned Keshari dynasty during the
10th and 11th centuries. Saivism became the predominant Hindu
cult and enjoyed their patronage. Numerous Saiva temples,
including the famous Lingaraj temple in Bhubaneswar, renowned
for its sculptural excellence, were built during their rule.
By the end of the 11th Century A.D. and early 12th

Century, the Gangas captured political power over Orissa. The
first ruler of this dynasty, Anantavarma Choda Gangadeva (1078-
1147) started construction of the great Jagannath Temple at
Puri. The temple was completed by his successors. The Ganga
rulers warded off Muslim invasion of Orissa and extended their
empire. By the 13th Century, Orissan architecture and sculpture
had reached its zenith with the construction of the famous Sun
Temple (Black Pagoda) at Konarka by the Ganga ruler
Narsinghadeva - I who reigned from 1238 to 1264 A.D.
After the collapse of the Ganga dynasty, the Suryavansi

Gajapati Dynasty succeeded to the Kalinga Empire. The first
Gajapati King was Kapilaendradeva (1435-1466) who extended
his empire by winning wars against the neighbouring powers. His
son Purusottam Deva, consolidated the empire. But during the
rule of his successor Prataprudradeva, the Gajapati dynasty and
its kingdom Kalinga suffered a political and military decline.
During his rule Shri Chaitanya, the Vaishnavite Saint and
preacher of Bhakti cult, came to Orissa. Under the patronage of
Prataprudra, the Krishna Bhakti movement spread in the state.
The weakened military force could not successfully confront
external invasions. With the death of Prataprudradeva, the
Gajapati rule came to an end. The last independent King of
Orissa, Mukunda Deva, was killed in a battle against the Afghan
invaders of Bengal. With his death, Orissa lost her political
independence in 1568.
The Afghans conquered Orissa when the Mughal Emperor

Akbar was ruling in Delhi. The Afghan-Mughal confrontation
continued till Raja Mansingha, being directed by Akbar, suppressed
the Afghans and ended their rule in Orissa and brought it under
the Mughal Rule. Raja Mansingh appointed Ramachandra Deva.
Raja of Khurda, as king of Puri and entrusted him the
management of the Temple of Lord Jagannath at Puri, including
performance of some religious duties. The tradition continues
upto the present day.
The Mughals ruled over Orissa for a century. After the

death of Aurangzeb, the Mughal empire broke up and Orissa
came under the rule of the virtually independent Nawabs of
Bengal. But this did not last long. From 1741, Raghuji Bhonsala,
the Maratha ruler of Nagpur, challenged with his Maratha army
the hold of Alivardi Khan, the Nawab over Bengal, Bihar and
Orissa. Orissa became the battleground between these two
contending forces. Finally, after ten years of armed struggle,
Alivardi ceded Orissa to the Maratha power. The Maratha rule in
Orissa lasted for more than half a century.
LAND AND PEOPLE 7
The British (East India Company) seized Orissa in 1803

from the Marathas. With British occupation, the territorial
integrity of Orissa was broken up, the Northern portions being
merged with and ruled from Bengal and the Southern and
Western areas being likewise merged with and ruled respectively
as parts of Madras presidency and Central provinces. The British
conquest of Orissa saw the emergence of Princely states or
Tributary Mahals, which were brought under their subjugation.
During the rule of the East India Company over Orissa, a revolt
called the Paika Rebellion by the rural militia broke out in Khurda
in 1817. The leader of this uprising was Bakshi Jagabandhu, the
Military Chief of the Raja of Khurda. This was a precursor of the
Sepoy Mutiny of 1857. British East India Company forces
ruthlessly crushed it. The British Government took over
administration of Orissa along with the rest of India from the East
India Company in 1858.
With the spread of education and publication of Oriya

periodicals, national consciousness began to grow in Orissa. Side
by side with freedom movement, started a campaign for unifying
all the outlying Oriya-speaking tracts into a separate province. In
this movement for a United Orissa, there were many Oriya
leaders and intellectuals in the vanguard. The foremost among
them was Late Madhusudan Das. He was ably supported by
eminent personalities like Gopabandhu Das, Chandrasekhar Behera
and also by the prominent literatures namely Fakir Mohan
Senapati, Gangadhar Meher, and many other contemporaries like
the then Maharaja of Parlakhemundi, Late Krishna Chandra
Gajapati Narayan Dev and Raja Saheb of Khallikote, Ramachandra
Mardaraja Dev. Mr. Das set up an organization for this purpose,
called ‘Utkal Sammilani’ in 1903 with the avowed aim of
campaigning for formation of a separate province of Orissa on
linguistic basis by merging together the dismembered parts of
Orissa then administered and forming parts of the then Bengal
and Madras Presidencies and the Central Provinces. The movement
fructified with the creation of a separate province of Orissa on
1st April 1936.
Orissa was one of the foremost provinces in the freedom

struggle of the country. Soon after the independence of India on
15th August 1947, the 26 feudatory states of Orissa merged in

1948 directly with the Orissa Province and by the end of 1949
the complete state of Orissa as at present constituted, came into
being.
Traditional Oriya cuisine is very delicious. Cooked parboiled

or raw rice, dal, dalma (dal mixed with assorted vegetables) and
curry is the common meal of the people. Other important
delicious curries are Bhaji (fried vegetables), santula (a preparation
of mixed vegetables, half way between fries and curries). Ghanfa
(mixed vegetable curry), besara or mahura (spiced curry), ambila
etc. Various preparations of fresh and dried fish, meat, chicken
and eggs, crabs are the favourite of non-vegetarians. On festive
occasions and also as daily intake of those who can afford,
sundry cakes using rice powder and blackgrarn dal are also
prepared. The cakes are named as chakuli, chitau pitha, manda,
arisa, kakara and podapitha. Sweets like kora, ukhuda, muan,
rasagolla, chhena podo (baked cheese cake), rasmalai etc are the
favourites in Oriya households.
The traditional dress in Orissa is dhoti and kurta for gents

and sarees for ladies. Rural people widely use these dresses.
However, styles of dress have changed remarkably both in urban
and rural areas. Trousers and shirts among men and salwar
kameez among young women have become common wear both
in urban and rural areas.
Orissa, renowned for its exquisite Arts, Crafts, Architecture,

Sculpture. Dance, Drama and Music has zealously preserved its
rich cultural traditions even under the adverse economic conditions
of its people. In the pages that follow, the saga of glorious art
and culture of Orissa will be unfolded.
CHAPTER - II
Architecture and Sculpture in

Orissa
Orissa occupies a distinct place in the Indian art, on account

of her great monuments and masterpieces of sculpture. The
heritage of rock art of Orissa ranges from the Pre-historic period
to the early Iron Age. The earliest evidence was reported from
the discovery of rock engravings from the rock-shelter of
Vikramkhol in Jharsuguda district. All the rock-art sites of Orissa
numbering 28, are found in the hills of Western districts of
Orissa, namely Sundargarh, Jharsuguda, Sambalpur and Kalahandi.
Sundergarh district alone accounts for more than three forths of
the rockart sites in the State. It is at the fringes and cliffs of hills
that nature carved out cavities of various dimensions. These rock-
cavities were rock-shelters that attracted pre-historic men to live
there. In course of their stay in the rockshelters, they have left
behind their signatures in the form of paintings and engravings
on the walls and roofs. The engravings and paintings cover a
variety of geometrical forms such as circles, squares, rectangles
and human and animal figures of humped bull and deer, etc.
Budhist and Jain shrines : Orissa has kept her past very
much alive as can be seen in the magnificent old Hindu temples
and even older Budhist and Jain monuments, which have
survived till to-day. Budhism appears to have started in the State
with followers, even before Ashoka’s war campaign in Kalinga
(261 B.C.) began. During Kalinga war launched by Ashoka, King
of Magadh, lakhs of Kalingan soldiers died in the war field, which
filled him with remorse though he conquested Kalinga. A cruel
‘Chandasoka’ became ‘Dharmasoka’. He embraced Buddhism
and spread its message of peace and non-violence far and wide.
Edicts were got engraved by him at Dhauli (near Bhubaneswar)

and Jaugada (in Ganjam district) of Orissa. At Dhauli above the
Ashokan edicts, there is the forepart of an elephant, hewn out of
solid rock. This represents the earliest sculpture in Orissa. As a
sacred animal figure, symbolically representing Budha’s birth, it
must have been an individuals art worked out by the local artists.
In the rock edict, Emperor Ashoka made the famous declaration.
“As men are my children and just as I desire for my children that
they should obtain welfare and happiness both in this world and
the next, the same do I desire for all men.”
The Budhist heritage of Orissa is rich both in sculpture and

architecture. The account of Hiuen T’san, a Chinese traveller
who visited Orissa in 638 A.D., has furnished accounts of the
condition of Budhism in the Seventh Century A.D. He has
reported the existence of several hundred monasteries and
hundreds of Buddhist monks. Excavations at three contiguous
hillsites of Lalitgiri, Udayagiri, and Ratnagiri proved the building
spree in ancient past which was accelerated during the eighth
and the following centuries. This phenomenal growth in Buddhist
shrines was due to active patronage of the Bhauma-Kar Kings
who ruled Orissa over two centuries. The first few rulers were
Buddhists and actively promoted the faith by their building
activities particularly monasteries. The rich artistic remains in
Lalitgiri, Udaygiri and Ratnagiri show existence of Stupas,
monasteries and a large number of images of Buddha and
Boddhisattwa of great artistic merit. These Buddhist establishments
flourished during the rule of the Bhauma-Karas. Apart from
these, there were other remains of Buddhist establishments and
monuments in various other parts of Orissa. With the nucleus of
Ratnagiri dating back to the 5th century A.D., it witnessed a
phenomenal growth in architectural and sculptural art till 12th
Century A.D. Thereafter building activity declined so also
Buddhism. Buddhism ceased to be a major religious force under
the Hindu Ganga dynasty who came to power in Orissa in 12th
Century A.D.
In ancient Orissa, Jainism was in a very flourishing condition,

as revealed from remains of Jain monuments and inscriptions at
Khandagiri and Udaygiri hills near Bhubaneswar. Jainism was
ARCHITECTURE AND SCULPTURE IN ORISSA 11
propagated in Kalinga earlier. But in the first century B.C., during

the reign of Emperor Kharvela, it witnessed, the golden age. King
Kharvela was himself a Jain. Caves in Khandagiri and Udaygiri
hills represent Orissa’s cave architecture dating back to the first
century B.C. The caves were cut out in solid rocks on the orders
of Emperor Kharavela for use by the Jain monks. The artistic
sculptures in the caves are very attractive.
Kharavela belonged to Chedi dynasty. Apart from being a

military genius, he was proficient in all arts. The Hatigumpha
inscriptions engraved in the hills near Bhubaneswar, carries a
record of events of the reign of King Kharvela. Under him,
Kalinga became one of the strongest powers of the country,
having overrun Magadha and other areas. The architectural
features of the caves near Bhubaneswar consist of facades of
pillared verandhs and the cells. The caves are adorned with
pictures of a large variety of animals and birds and pictures of
vegetable and floral designs. The lion, goose, peacock, fish and
snake are all emblem of Jain Tirthankaras. These sculptures were
found in the caves.
The fall of Chedi dynasty probably synchronised with the

decline of Jainism as a popular religion in Kalinga. Buddhism and
Saivism emerged as the main contenders of Hinduism. Though
Jainism continued as a religious faith in later period, the number
of its followers had begun to dwindle. From the accounts of the
visit of Hiuen T’sang (638 A.D.), it transpires that Kongada had
a big Jaina population and Jainism was a living faith in the
Sailodhdhva Kingdom. Not only in the Khandagiri and Udayagiri
hills near Bhubaneswar, but also in several other places of Orissa,
Jaina antiquities and monuments have been found in recent
years.
Temple architecture : Architecture in Orissa found its supreme

expression in the form of Hindu Temples, some of which are
amongst the finest in the country. Of these, three are most
famous the Lingaraj Temple at Bhubaneswar (11th Century),
the Jagannath Temple at Puri (12th Century) and the great Sun
Temple at Konark (13th Century). The Sun Temple of Konark
was conceived as a chariot with twenty four wheels and driven by

seven horses. These were masterpieces of Kaligan art.
The whole of Orissa is dotted with thousands of old

temples, some of which are in a dilapidated condition. Commenting
on the wonders of workmanship at Konark, poet Rabindranath
Tagore wrote - “Here the language of man is defeated by the
language of stone.’’ The great temple of Lord Jagannath in Puri
is one of the most sacred pilgrimage centres in India. Temples
were traditionally built with royal patronage, constructed strictly
according to precise and elaborate cannonical texts, know as
‘Shastras’. The architects and sculptors were drawn (Shilpi) from
hereditary craftsmen families. Hundreds of temples which were
built from A.D. 600 to A.D. 1300 excelled in the field of art and
architecture with the result that temples of Orissa became a class
by itself and came to be regarded as Kalinga School of
architecture. This is taken as a subclass of the Nagara Style. In
the evolution of temple architecture, the Sikhara or Culvilinear
spire type ultimately became the dominant form in Orissa. Some
of the temples represent the mature product of ‘Sikhara Style’.
Four dynasties of Orissa viz. the Sailodbhavas (575 to 730

A.D.), the Bhaumakaras (736 to 940 A.D.) the Somavansis (885
to 1110 A.D.) and the Imperial Gangas (1110 to 1435 A.D.)
were mainly responsible for the growth and development of
Orissan Temple architecture, a glimpse of which is given in the
following pages.
In the beginning, an Orissan temple, consisted of square

sanctum with a Sikhara, and a rectangular Mukhamandapa,
having two-tiered flat ceiling with clerestory. The Mukhamandapa
known in Orissan temple terminology as, ‘Jagamohan’ had pillars
inside it to support the flat ceiling. The pillars inside the
Jagmchan disappeared gradually in the next Bhaumakara period
and with the use of the cantilever principle the load of the ceiling
was taken by pilasters provided on the inner walls of the
Jagamohan. During the Somavansi period, the Jagmohan acquired
a square plan like that of the sanctum and was called ‘Rekha’
deula in Orissa. The Somavansi period witnessed a formative
phase in introduction of Pancha-Ratha plan and square Jagmohan
Rockcut Elephant - Dhauli
Khandagiri and Udayagiri Caves

Ratnagiri Buddha in Bhumi Sparsa Mundra
Gateway of Main Monastery, Ratnagiri
Sun Temple, Konark

Votive Stupas - Ratnagiri
Celestial Musician, Konark - Orissan Sculpture
Rockshelter Painting, Manikmada
Jhoti - Rural Wall Painting

Mural Painting - Viranchi Narayan Temple, Buguda
Saora Wall Painting, Idital
(the vertical sections in the temple were called ‘Rathas’). Besides,

the introduction of the Square plan helped in the evolution of
Pidha deula. By the eleventh century A.D., Rekha and Pidha
structures were fully developed, which were the main components
of Orissan temple complex. In the Ganga period, two important
developments in Orissan architecture were found. First was the
introduction of raised plinths. The second important feature
introduced in the period, was addition of two more chambers
namely, Natamandir (Dancing Hall) and Bhogamandapa (offering
Hall of food).
Sculptural Art of Orissa

The earliest specimen of Orissan sculpture is the elephant
figure at Dhauli coming from Budhist Iconography. The next
stage of Orissan sculptural art was the friezes of Khandagiri and
LJdayagiri Jain Caves. In the Jain sculptural art of Orissa,
Khandagiri and Udayagiri found the supreme place during the
rule of Kharavela. These were made in the first century B.C. The
sculptural decorations of the caves comprise mainly the large
panels of popular legends, historical episodes, religious observances,
dancing and singing performances and last but not the least
human and animal figures. Jain Tirthankra figures and Sasanadevas
with their emblems are found in some of the caves. Jainism
suffered an eclipse after the fall of Kharavela dynasty. But during
the Somavansi Rile of Udyatkesharideva (1040 - 165 A.D.) it got
a new impetus. Jain antiquities have been found in Puri,
Keonjhar, Balasore and Koraput districts. During this period, Tara
Temples, housing Jaina sculptures like Rusavanath, Mahavira,
Parswanath, etc. were found. After Somavansi period, Jainism
gradually faded away from the religious scene of Orissa.
Coming to Buddhist sculptures, evidence indicates its

development in Orissa from the time of Emperor Ashoka (261
B.C.) to about twelveth Century A.D. It seems Mahayana form of
Buddhism prevailed in Orissa, which later transformed into
Vajrayan apantheon with the introduction of Tantra element in its
philosophy. The most important feature of the new School was
monotheistic conception of a supreme being who was identified
with Adi Buddha and given the name of Vajrasattva. From him
originated, five Dhyani Buddhas. The tenets of Vajrayana, were

compiled in the first half of the eighth century. The evolution of
a new pantheon of gods and goddesses gave full scope to the
creative genius of the sculptors of early medieval Orissa. The
Buddhist monasteries of Lalitgiri, Udaygiri and Ratnagiri became
epicenters of Buddhist art. In other places such as Balasore,
Mayurbhanj, Phulbani, Dhenkanal and Ganjam etc. Buddhist
Sculptures particularly have been found. Apart from the Buddha
figures, the other important feature of Buddhist art in Orissa was
the representative of Boddhisattva, Avalokiteswara, in his different
varieties such as Padmapani, Lokeswara etc. Large number of
Vajrayana sculptures were found in Ratnagiri, Lalitgiri and
Udaygiri. These are different forms of Avolokiteswar namely
Manjushri, Heruka, Jambhala, Kurukulla, Mahakala, Tara, Manici
etc. The Buddhist sculptures found elsewhere were particularly
Vajrasattva figures, alongwith Buddh images. Excavations at
Ratnagiri revealed that Buddhist art developed in Orissa from
about fifth century A.D. and continued upto twelveth century
A.D. Buddhist sculptural art was the main constituent of Medieval
Orissan sculptural art.
The main bulk of Orissan sculptural art is however

represented by sculptures of Hindu faith. Sculptures pertaining to
Saivism. Vaishnaism and Saktism were found in Orissa. Under
Sakti Sculptures, we come across the Saptamatruka Chamunda,
and Durga images. The tantrik Yogini sculptures are found at
Hirapur and Ranipur - Jharial. The famous temple of Konark has
some of the latest sculptures, particularly the Surya deity and
others. Alongwith cult deities in the temples, we come across
other decorative sculptures such as Nayika figures, Gajasimha
figures, mithuna figures etc. Then there are sculptures of kings,
queens, priests, soldiers, elephants, horses etc. alongwith sculptures
depicting social themes such as family life, dance, music, games
and hunting scenes which were carved out in Konark temple.
Life-size Surasundari figures i.e. the heavenly musicians, are
found on the upper two tiers of the temple. Also evident in the
indigenous character of the Orissan sculptural art, are the
depiction of dress, ornaments, anatomical features, facial expression
and peculiar poses. A Giraffe has also been depicted in a
sculpture at Konark. Konark temple is famous for its erotic

sculptures about which scholars have been debating on its
meaning.
The sculptures of the Ganga period (1110 to 1435 A.D.)

are remarkable and after this dynasty, the sculptural art in Orissa
gradually died down.
CHAPTER - III
Orissan Paintings
Qrissa has a long tradition of painting from prehistoric times.

Traditions of wall paintings are also very much in existence in
rural and tribal areas. These are called folk-paintings. Painting in
Orissa is still a living tradition.
The rock painting of prehistoric times have been found in

Orissa, primarily in the far western parts of the state namely
Vikramkhol in Jharsuguda district, Gudahandi in Kalahandi
district, Jogimath in Nuapada district, Manikgada and Usakothi in
Sundargarh District. The drawings are fast fading away. Paintings
in red and black colours appear at the entrances of some of the
caves in Gudahandi hills. The facades of the natural caves were
decorated with drawings mostly of geometrical designs-squares,
rectangles, circles etc. The most interesting drawing is a hunting
scene which depicts a primitive man throwing a stone at a
running bison. These indicate that the caves were once the
habitats of prehistoric hunters. The drawings in the Yogimath hill
probably has prehistoric writings. The pictographs consist of hills,
wavy lines, implements, musical instruments as well as animals
and human figures. Man probably in this part started giving
expression to his ideas through picture-writings. The pictographic
writing in Vikramkhol cave is a very important photo-historic
relic.
The characters in Vikramkhol inscription appears to be

intermediary between Mahenzdaro and Brahmi scripts. It appears
that the letters were first painted before they were incised. In the
rock-shelter at Manikmunda, there are paintings in red active
colours illustrating hunting and other scenes. The pictographic
writing found in Ushakothi hill-caves, throws light on the
ORISSAN PAINTINGS 17
protohistoric culture of the region. All these indicate existence of

prehistoric art in Orissa.
Rural Folk-Paintings
Folk paintings have been a part of the ritual of living in
rural areas, where one finds a manifestation of artistic impulses in
villages. Laxmi is the Goddess of wealth. During harvest times,
Laxmi is worshipped in rural areas with rice-paste and water. On
this occasion, the mudwalls of the houses are painted with
various floral designs (especially of paddy stalks) and pictures of
birds (normally peacock) and creepers of various descriptions.
The art is traditionally passed on from one generation to another.
Besides the Chita or Jhoti which is painted on the floors and
walls for Laxmi Puja, there are various other occasions when
similar paintings are made, namely seasonal festivals such as
Khudurukuni, Dussera, Kartika etc. During marriage celebrations,
Chittas are also painted on the walls of houses. These are
pictures of palanquins and their bearers carrying the bride, the
water-filled pitchers (Kalasha), floral designs and decoratives and
banana trees which symbolise auspiciousness. The Jhoti or Chita
and the Muruja are different forms of folk paintings. In Jhoti-
Chita, the ingredient is mostly rice-paste in water of requisite
dilution. Here the finger is the brush. The walls are washed with
earth and cowdung and are allowed to dry. Then paintings are
done on it. These absorb the moisture from the diluted ricepaste,
leaving the designs intact. But muruja includes a variety of
materials in powder form. Normally five colours are in use. White
is made out of powdered rice or white chalkstone. Black colour is
obtained from the burnt and powdered coconut shells. Yellow
colour is obtained from turmeric powder. Green is made from
dried and powdered leaves of trees. Red colour is obtained from
powdered brick. Muruja is generally painted on the ground as per
designs, using various colours. During the sacred month of
Kartika, in each home the picture is drawn. Muruja is sprinkled
on the ground with the help of only two fingers of the right-
hand.
Tribal Paintings
Orissa has a rich tribal culture of painting too. In Saora
community, the wall paintings made by them are called ‘Idital’. It
is the family deity of every Saora. Saoras also draw many other
paintings for various purposes. Amongst Kondh community,
there are various subgroups called Kutia Khonds and Dongria
Kondhs. They are an artistic community. Wall paintings of
Khonds are called ‘Manji Gunda’. Kutia Khond paintings are very
simple and these are called ‘Tikangkuda’. Kissans in their
paintings portray samlai deity and also portray signs of agricultural
activity. The paintings of Paudi Bhuyan, a tribal community, are
called ‘Jhanjira’. They are more particular about agriculture which
is reflected in a host of their paintings. Wall paintings of Juang
community include animals, birds and flowers. Santhal community
do not have paintings as such, but they polish the walls and
verandah of their houses with coloured earth. Tribal paintings are
intimately related to their religious beliefs and are drawn to
appease their gods and the spirits.
Mural Paintings
The earliest mural painting in Orissa is the great painting of
Sitabhinji rock. This mural painting on rock, dates back to 8th
century. It shows King Disa Bhanj, leading^ royal procession.
It shows a stately rider on horseback with men marching

behind him, two persons riding on the back of a huge elephant,
followed by a lady with a bowl in her hands.
Temple murals of high quality are found in the Viranchi

Narayan Temple of Buguda. In Dharakote, a Kingship in
Southern Orissa, splendid murals adorn the inside of the
Jagannath temple, and inside Vrindaban Chandra temple. These
are situated within the compound of the royal palace. These were
probably executed around 1900 A.D. Two paintings at Jagannath
temple, Puri namely Budha Vijay and Kanchi Vijay are taken to
be the mural paintings of 12th to 16th Century A.D. Dinanath
Pathy, an Oriya artist has chronicled the mural pintings of Orissa.
Traditional Paintings
Pattachitras are really, Patta paintings. The Orissan Patta
refers to cloth described in early texts. Pattachitra is done on
pati, special type of hand-made canvas, prepared by pasting
together layers of cloth paintings on this Patta is known as Patta
painting. The traditional artists of these paintings are known as
‘Chitrakaras’ (artists). The common themes of Pattachitra are
Jagannath and its cult and familiar episodes of Radha-Krishna
legend. Figures of Nabagunjara which has been pictured in the
cover page of this book are also made. This mythic animal has
parts of bodies of nine birds and beasts namely tiger, lion, bull,
peacock, snake, parrot, cock, elephant, man. These together
make a strange animal called Nabagunjara.
The traditional pattachitra painters are primarily clustered in

and around Puri, particularly in Raghurajpur village. Another
eminent product of Chitrakars is the painted circular playing
cards known as ‘Ganjappa’. These beautiful and charming,
traditional small paintings, were made in sets of 96 cards,
executed in vigorous folk style. Another traditional painting is the
illustrated palm leaf manuscripts known as ‘Chitrapothi.’ Palm
leaf etching dates back to the medieval period. With the help of
an iron pen or stylus, the writings and paintings are done by the
palm-leaf etching technique. After advent of paper and printing,
this art has died out. Many illustrated palm leaf manuscripts are
still preserved and are housed in State museum at Bhubaneswar.
Modern Art
A pioneering artist of contemporary Orissan art was Sarat
Chandra Deb (1901-72) who was educated in art abroad and
returned home after completing his studies. He was keen to
establish a distinctly Orissan School of Art. He set up a private
institution called Utkal School of Arts where he wanted to build
up artists specialising in Utkal School of Painting; but the school
languished due to lack of funds. A new lease to his aspirations
came when he was appointed as Principal of Government of
Orissa Art School in 1957 at Khallikote. He got an opportunity
to give shape to the ideas of an indigenous art and made some
attempts.
The modern art movement started in Orissa, when Oriya

students went outside the State to get art education in Calcutta
Art School or in Santiniketan Kalabhaban. They returned to
Orissa after passing out. Art in Orissa got a fillip after their
return to Orissa.
Ananda Mishra of Puri is recognised as the first modern

painter of Orissa. His painting ‘Gaja Udharana Vesha’ is a good
piece of art, Muralidhar Tali was a good oil painter. Gopal
Kanungo drew paintings based on impressionism and culism. He
made portraits of leading Oriya leaders and literatures. Other
important artists like Gourang Chandra Soma, painted in the
mythic vein while Ajit Keshari Ray, who got art education in
England, introduced a strain of modernism in Orissan Art.
Ananta Panda made landscapes, Binod Routray was good at
miniature paintings while Laxmidhar Das is credited with making
quick sketches. Bipin Behari Ray, a deaf and dumb artist, who
got art education in England is well-known for protraitures. But
before the aforesaid trained artists appeared in the scene,
Bimbadhar Verm a (1901-1953) made a strong presence in
Modern Art with traditional Oriya settings. He was a self-taught
painter without any formal art education. His most well-known
work is ‘Palli Badhu’ (Village bride), a water colour on silk. His
affinity for the folk subjects found expression in the famous
painting ‘Godhuli Ragini’ showing a young boy returning home at
twilight while playing a flute. His rural and folk sensibility came to
the fore in his paintings.
The Khalikote group of artists who passed out of the Art

College have distinguished themselves in their profession. They
include, Dinanath Pathy, Siva Panigrahi, Kasinath Jena, Narayan
Rao, Ramahari Jena and Baladev Mohartha. Dinanath Pathy in
his introduction to Oddiyan, a volume of six contemporary
painters, made a fervent appeal that Orissa’s inherited visual
culture was completely ignored by modern art practices and
should be restored. It may not be out of place to mention here
that Ananda Panda who was an Art teacher in Khallikote Art
School left it saying it has lost its sense of direction. He with
other artists formed the working Artist’s Association. He organised
shows in different parts of Orissa.
Govt, of Orissa set up at Bhubaneswar a second Art

College in 1962. The Orissa Lalit Kala Academy was set up at
Bhubaneswar in 1962 by State Government. But these institutions
have not contributed much to the contemporary modern Art in
Orissa, which could be called “Path breaking”.
Jatin Das and Prafulla Mohanty are two prominent artists

who have made a mark outside the State. Jatin Das got training
in art in the J.J. School at Bombay. His painting style was
characterised by a vigorous and energetic work. He got
preoccupied with human forms. Today he is one of the leading
artists of the country. The other artist, Prafulla Mohanty, lived
much of his life in England. His work was in a geometric
language of symbol and colour. He identified himself with the
neo-tantric painters.
CHAPTER - IV
Oriya Music
F
JL oik music is an expression of innermost experiences of
human mind. It is not standardised and varies in scale, interval
and tonality. The rhythms of folk music appeal to the heart
directly. A folk song is inherited and maintained by oral tradition.
Folk music is both vocal and instrumental Game songs, swing
songs, songs of festivals are vocal while beggars, mendicants sing
mostly ballads using ‘ektara’ and other musical instalments.
Children sing while playing, maidens sing on the swing during
Raja Festival, the cartman sings while driving his cart. Here are
some selections from Oriya folk songs;
Cartman's songs :
Rama is gone and
gone to the forest,
Run up ‘0’ Raula
We have to go a long distance
My bullocks are slow-going,
It is a rough road.
And have to join my friend
the cartman who has gone ahead.
(L.K.M.)
In Raja Festival :
The swing festival (Raja) has come,
and I like to see it arm in
arm with my beloved.
Now I wish to decorate myself
with ‘abhira’ and adorn the
pretty face of my beloved with the same.
(L.K.M.)
ORIYA MUSIC 23
Orissa has the third largest concentration of tribals in the

country, distributed over sixty-two communities. Each tribe has its
own distinct music and dance, different from the other. The
tribals have developed their own culture, attuned to nature. Here
are some excerpts from tribal songs :
Saora Song
Like ripe dates the youth is fair
Like the small dates the youth is fair
O sister, my mind gets engaged there
The one constant thought is how to sport
with him always.
(S.K.M.)
A Song of Bonda Paraja

Drops of darkness covering both here and there
And swaying and thawing.
And lightning dances its hard glint sabre,
In antic flashes from gorge to summit
floods are released
The forest land shivers with cold
To the ecstasy of blasts and thunder
The wild rain pours its song from hill to hill.
(S.K.M.)
A historical background of the heritage of music in Orissa is

mentioned here. Bharata, the pioneer of music and dance in
India, in his treatise clearly defines the musical tradition on the
basis of geographical areas which includes Odra, the present
form of Orissa, as one of the centres of music. This is
substantiated by the archeological evidence left by Emperor
Kharvela of the Chedi dynasty which ruled Orissa in 1st Century
B.C. Kharvela was himself a musician. In the sculptural panel in
the Rani Gumpha (cave) of Udayagiri hill, there is a musical panel
depicting the performance of dance to the tune of musical
instruments. This is revealation of the type of music prevalent in
the then society.
The temples of Orissa which flourished from 6th century

A.D. till 13th Century A.D., depicted in stone panels numerous
musical instruments played, in musical scenes. In many of these

temples, live music was being played. Geetgovind composed by
the great poet Jaydev was one such song. It is a Sanskrit poem
based on the love story of Radha and Krishna composed in
various Ragas and Talas in highly lyrical form. The Kavya was
composed in twelfth century A.D. Such a great Kavya could not
have been written just anywhere in the country but only could
have happened in a flourishing civilization. This civilization
existed in Orissa in Prachi river valley in those times. Jaydev was
born in Kenduli village, in this area. In 1954-56, Prof. G.S. Das
after investigations wrote a report, saying a civilization once
flourished in the Prachi valley. The investigations and excavations
led to discovery of old brick temples, numerous artifacts, in the
area. Prachi Valley was also known for its old religious fervour,
where Dwadas Sambhu temples and Dwadas Madhab temples
existed. In the environment of a literary fervour in this area,
Jaydev could compose this Kavya. In the villages surrounding
Kenduli, numerous palm-leaf manuscripts of Geetgovind were
found, indicating the impact of the Kavya on the people. In the
era of Jayadev, Sanskrit language and literary works in Sanskrit
flourished. No doubt, it was in these surroundings that Jaydev
could compose the immortal Sanskrit Kavya. Geetgovind was
being ritually sung before the Lord in Jagannath temple at Puri,
which is very near Kenduli, Although Orissa was his workplace,
Jaydev is a national poet belonging to the entire country.
After 1435 A.D., came the Gajapati Kings. During their

reign instead of Sanskrit, Oriya language was used for literary
works, so also present Oriya music was born. Poet Sarla Das,
composed ‘Mahabharata’ in Oriya during this period. He mentions
in this epic, sixty-six types of musical instruments prevalent in
Orissa then, such as, Jhillee, Dindima, Nagara, Tanpura, Dhola,
Shankha, Gamukha, Dambaru, Biratura, Tamaka, Nishan,
Biraghus, Tala, Kamsala, Tantbeena, Bheri, Mandala, Kahalee,
Durduri, Bina, Koda, Ghumura, Ture, Ghanta, Ghagudi, Ghanti,
Bijighose, Tanpura, Sarangee, Galaturee, Saraguna, Gayala Singha,
Pakhwaj, Laujantra, Kandra, Jhanja, Kendara, Ghuma, Dhapa,
Nagara, Pangdhola, Dholakee, Dholak, Gini, Sara Mahuree,
Telingee, Dhansa baja, Madal, Dungdunga, Changu, Dimara,
ORIYA MUSIC 25
Ghosa, Damphanagara, Khola, Tipa, Dhudkee, Ektara, Tambura,

Nageswaree, Kathataranga etc.
Before 15th Century A.D., Vaisnavites of Orissa worshipped

Lord Gopinath. Subsequently when Sri Chaitanya Dev came in
1510 to Orissa. Oriya lyrical poetry developed on the theme of
Radha-Krishna Premlila (Love theme of Radha with Krishna). By
that time, Oriya music had developed much, so also lyrical Oriya
poetry. Some of the musical forms which later developed were
Chhanda, Chautisa, Champu, Chaupadi, Bhajan and Janana.
From 16th to 19th Century Kings and Zammindars appointed
court musicians and enjoyed listening to lyrical chaupadi songs,
popularly called Odissi songs later on. This was called the ‘Riti
Yuga’ of Oriya poetry. Oriya poets like Upendra Bhanja, Baladev
Rath, Gourhari Parichha, Gopal Krushna, Banamafi Das etc.,
were great composers of Oriya vocal music which were lyrical
music. Oriya songs, particularly Chaupadi, was based on Raga
and Tala. That discussions on music were very much prevalent
then are proved by existence of Sangeeta Sashtras, written
around those times. Prominent amongst these were, Geeta
Prakash (Krushna Bada Jena Mohapatra - 15th Century) Sangeeta
Muktabali (Harichandan - 16th Century), Sangeet Narayan
(Purusottam Mishra - 17th Century).
The English came to Orissa in 1803. They gradually

introduced Classical Hindustani music in the State. Later on the
Late Laxmikanta Choudhury set up in 1933 'Utkal Sangeet
Samaj at Cuttack, the then Capital of Orissa State. He opened a
school for imparting lessons in music to young boys and girls.
Veteran musicians of Orissa like Gokul Srichandan, Singhari
Shyamsundar Kar, Shyamsunder Dhir, Markendaya Mohapatra
and Balakrishna Das joined the school as music teachers.
Unfortunately, Laxmikanta Choudhury very soon passed away
and his Utkal Sangeet Samaj became dormant.
Oriya music got an impetus when HMV company (His

Master’s Voice) and Columbia Company, began recording Oriya
songs set to music and marketed the gramophone records. The
process started from 1907. All the genres of Oriya music were
there. Prominent amongst the musicians were Basudev Mahapatra,
Lokanath Kanungo, Banikantha Nirnai Harichandan, Gaurang

Charan Das, Aparna Panigrahi, Sinhari Samsunder Kar,
Baiakrishna Das etc. Amongst female musicians were Kumuduni,
Prativa Devi, Madhuri Panda, Meenadevi Patnaik, Radharani,
Chandraprava, Sumati Devi etc. From 1975, Oriya Audio
Cassettes came to the market and that heralded death of
gramophone records.
Oriya music got a fillip in January 1948, when Orissa got a

separate radio station at Cuttak for broadcasts. This really gave a
boost to Oriya music. Oriya musicians got very many programmes
and were financially supported. There also emerged a music-
loving audience. Further developments took place in Oriya music
when in 1950, National Music Association was formed at
Cuttack to impart lessons in music to young boys and girls. In
1952 came another organisation called ‘Kala Vikash Kendra’ for
the same purpose. Government came up in a big way when it
set up in Bhubaneswar ‘Orissa Sangeet Mahavidyalaya’ for
imparting music lessons to the talented youths.
Around fifties, a change came about in Oriya music. Some

artists like Akhay Mahanty, Prafulla Kar, Pranab Patnaik,
Sikandar Alam, Bhikari Charan Bala and others left traditional
Oriya music and introduced modern form. This was received well
by the general public. Now Audio cassettes are being marketed
by music companies; but certain amount of vulgarity has crept
into them.
The story of development of Oriya music would not be

complete without recording the contribution of All India Radio
and Doordarshan Television. These two bodies have helped
young talented Oriya mysicians to comp up. Such is also the
story of Oriya Cine music. But Hindi movie music has a much
greater appeal to the youngsters than the music in Oriya
language, particularly in urban areas.
The story of Oriya music would not be complete without

paying homage to great Oriya Sangeet Gurus who had kept it
alive in difficult times. Prominent amongst them were Guru Gokul
Srichandan, Aparna Panigrahi, Banikantha Nimaicharan
Harichandan, Tarini Charan Patra, Guru Simhari Shayamsunder
ORIYA MUSIC 27
Kar, Markendaya Mohapatra, Nrusingha Nath Khuntia, Sangeet

Sudhakar Balakrishna Das, Radhakrishna Bhanja, Kasinath
Fujapanda, Bhubaneswar Misra, Raghunath Panigrahi, Sunanda
Patnayak, Gopal Chandra Panda, Radhamani Mohapatra, etc.
Late Nimaicharan Harichandan captivated the public with his
Jananas (prayer) to Lord Jagannath.
New generation of young Oriya musicians have entered the

field now and it would have to be seen how far they provide
good entertainment to the public.
CHAPTER - V
Dances of Orissa
o rissa has contributed a distinct school of classical dance to

the rich mosaic of Indian culture namely Odissi dance, which has
been internationally acclaimed.
In the Natya Shastra of Bharata, Odra-Magadhi style of

dance and music were mentioned. On the basis of archaeological
evidence, Odissi appears to be the earliest classical dance form. It
flourished in Orissa and developed over centuries. The earliest
evidence of dance by professional female dancers (Nartaki) is
found in the Stone figures in caves of Khandagiri and Udayagiri
near Bhubaneswar. These scenes were depicted in the 1st
Century B.C. by the Jain King Kharavela who himself was a
great musician. The Jains, the Buddhists and the Hindus all
recognised dance as a ritual for worship. Although Orissa was
ruled by different royal dynasties in different ages, the dance
tradition continued unabated. In Orissan temples, sculptures of
dancing and singing girls are found in extenso. In the 13th
century, Konarka temple was constructed and its Natya Mandapa
(Dancing Hall) abounds in dancing images, carved out of stone.
Odissi dance is full of sculptural poses known as Bhangis.
Another exclusive posture of Odissi dance is ‘Chauki’. Apart from
archeological and sculptural evidence, a palm-leaf manuscript
called ‘Abhinaya Chandrika’ written by Maheswara Mohapatra
(17th Century) contained information about technique of Odissi
dance.
The history of Odissi dance did not stop there. The great
Ganga King Chodaganga Dev, who built the Jagannath temple
(1077-1147) introduced the ritual of dance before the deity in
the temple by Maharis (Devadasis or dancing girls). By the end of
DANCES OF ORISSA 29
16th Century ATX, Orissa had lost her independence and

successively came under the rule of Afghans, Mughals, Marathas
and the British, For over three centuries, Orissa remained in
turmoil and Mahan’ tradition declined. In its place “Gotipua”
dance appeared where boys dressed as girls danced outside the
temples. Most of the Odissi Gurus (Masters) of the earlier times
were Gotipua dancers.
The classical Odissi dance was revived by gurus such as

Pankaj Charan Das, Kelu Charan Mohapatra, Deba Prased Das,
Mayadhar Rout, Fiarekrushna Behera and a host of others. An
equally great service has been rendered by the Odissi dance
performers, Indrani Rahman, Sanjukta Panigrahi, Kum Kum
Mohanty, Sonal Mansingh, Madhuri Mudgal, Yamini Krishnamurthy,
Kiran Sehgal, Pratima Gauri Bedi, Minati Mishra, Priyambada
Hejmadi and host of other dancers put it on the world map.
Odissi as an independent dance form, came to be recognised all
over the country. All the poses, steps and movements in Odissi
dance have been codified and preserved by the Odissi Research
Centre established by Govt, of Orissa at Bhubaneswar.
Finally, a word about technique and repertoire of Odissi

dance. In Odissi dance, important parts are called Padabhada,
Bhumi, Chari, Biramani, Bhangi and Hasta (Mudras) etc. The
different items of Odissi dance are listed in the order in which
they are performed :
Manglacharana
Batu Nrutya
Pallavi
Abhinay and Mokshyanat
Odissi dance has a rich and varied repertoire. The most

typical pose of Odissi is the Tribhanga’ where the body is bent
thrice. A fundamental posture of Odissi dance is ‘Chawki’. Like
other classical dance forms, Odissi admits of the division into
nritta (pure dance) and nritya (expressional dance and natya
(Drama). A programme of Odissi opens with Manglacharan, an
invocatory piece of dance followed by singing of a Sloka in
obeisance to Lord Ganesha or Lord Jagannath. 'Batu Nritya’ is
an item of pure dance, laying stress on poses. The dance is not
accompanied by any song or recitation but by rhythmic syllables

which are provided throughout the item. The most graceful item
Pallavi, with lyrical, sensuous passages of dance, captivates the
audience. It is set to the music of a Raga. ‘Abhinaya’ follows
which is always accompanied by a song either in Sanskrit or in
Oriya. Most of the songs written by medieval poetcomposers of
Orissa, pertain to the theme of eternal love of Radha-Krishna. A
piece from Geeta Govind is indispensable, ‘Dasavatar’ item being
the most popular. These romantic compositions are in slow
tempo where the performer gets full scope to depict emotion by
gestures, glances and agile movements. In contrast, the Mokhsya
Nata, the concluding piece of Odissi, is rendered in fast tempo
with rhythmic patterns played at speed which carries the dancer
towards ultimate release or Mokshya. In recent times, the
repertoire has expanded. Several dance dramas using basically
the Odissi dance technique have been choreographed. Odissi as a
dance form, has earned world popularity.
Folk Dances of Orissa

Apart from the classical Odissi dance, numerous folk dances
are in vogue in Orissa. These were the ancient sources of
popular entertainment in the rural areas. They are closely
associated with fairs, festivals and religious ceremonies. Some of
the famous folk dances of Orissa are described below :
Danda Nata : It is the most ancient of all folk-dances of Orissa.

It is a part of the mass culture of Orissa where Lord Shiva and
his consort Gouri are propitiated. It is variously known as Jhamu
Yatra etc. Danda literally means a staff and Nata means dance.
Those who participate in Danda Nata are called ‘Bhokta’
(Devotees) For three days beginning from two days before Pana
Sankranti, the Bhoktas walk on a bed of red-hot live charcoal
(fire walking), stand on edged swords, pierce iron nails on their
skin and tongues, as marks of their severe penance to draw the
attention of deities to expiate them from all sins and bless them
with boons.
Patua Dance : For the entire month of Chaitra, the village

streets echo with the sound of Ghanta (Brass gongs) played by
DANCES OF ORISSA 31
Ghanta Patuas. This ritual dance is closely associated with mother

goddess, particularly Sarala. The traditional sevak community of
the deities perform this ritual dance. They dress themselves as
females. The deity is represented by Ghata (the sacred pitcher)
which is placed over the head by the dancer to a fixed wooden
stand. The Ghata is decorated with sandal paste, vermillion,
flowers. Balancing the Ghata on the head, the dancer dances
with barefeet to the accompaniment of percussive instruments
like Mardala (a variety of Pakhwaj) and (ghanta).
Chaitighoda : This is called Dummy Horse dance. The

fishermen community of Orissa celebrate this annual festival of
theirs from March to April. In this dance, a dummy horse is
made with bamboo-strips and the frame is then covered with a
coloured cloth. The head of the horse in wood is fixed to the
frame. It is then painted with bright colours and is decorated with
flowers. In a big cavity inside the horse frame, a dancer places
himself and displays different galloping movements of a horse.
Two more characters (Rauta and Rautani) appear on the stage
and sing and dance with dummy horse dancer. The couple sing
of mutual love. In a group of Chaitighoda dance, there are three
dancers, a Jodinagara player, a Dhol player and a Mahuri player.
The performance starts late at night and continues till morning.
Ghoomra Dance : The dance is performed to the accompaniment

of a drum. The earthern drum covered in the mouth with a skin
of a reptile is called Ghoomra. It is a vibrant dance, performed
by males only. Young men fix a ghoomra on the chest with
strings around the body and beat the drums in unison and dance.
The dancers wear their indigenous costume.
Mask Dances : In Orissa, there are three varieties of mask

dances - human masks, divine masks and animal masks. Ail the
mask dances are associated with religious festivals and religious
processions. The masks are made of papier mache and are
painted with bright colours.
Kela Keluni Dance : The Kelas are a nomadic class of people

in Orissa. There are various groups in the community. Kela
means ‘Snakecharmerb The Kela Keluni dance is performed in
which Kela and his wife Keluni participate. The Kela plays a
string instrument which is called ‘Ghuduki’. The couple sing and

dance. The dance of the Keluni is fast in which hips and heads
are swayed.
Ranapa Dance : It is prevalent in the cow-herd communities.

Young boys of the community perform this dance during the
festivals of Dol-Yatra and Giri-Govardhan Fooja. They wear
anklets which produces jingling sound. They sing about the
childhood days of Lord Krishna.
Chhow Dance : This dance is prevalent in contiguous areas of

Mayurbhanj (Orissa) Seraikela (Jharkhand) and Purulia (West
Bengal). Therefore it has three distinctive styles. It has evolved
out of the extant war dances of the area. The dance has its own
code of training. Orissan Chhow has a vast repertory of over
hundred dance forms. The orchestra of Chhow is generally
provided by the traditional drummers and musicians. It is
performed generally during the Chaita Parava. The chhow dance
item has four stages of development. It begins with Ranga Vadya,
an ensemble of musical instruments which inspires the dancer.
After this, the orchestra takes up the initial tune of the dance in
slow tempo. The dancers then come to the centre of the dancing
area with a dramatic gait. The next stage is sNata’ in which the
thematic content of the dance is developed and elaborated and
the drama is built up. Nataki is the final stage in which a high
tempo is built up with great dramatic vigour. The Chhow dance
grew up with royal patronage in the past. Now a days people
and government patronise it.
Tribal Dances
The tribals in Orissa are very fond of dance and music.
Dance is their traditional inborn aptitude. They have retained
their rich and colourful dances which form integral part of their
rituals and festivals. The dances are mostly in groups with an
intense community sharing practice. Although the pattern of
dance and music prevalent amongst them vary from tribe to
tribe, yet there are certain features common to all tribal dances.
They maintain the rhythm with musical accompaniments. This
consists of clapping of hands or beating of drums or an orchestra
Godhuli Ragini, Bimbadhar Verma
Ashoka in Kalinga - By Jatin Das
Danda Nat (Dance)
Oddissi Dance - Tribhangi Pose
Gadaba Dance, Korapur
Koya Dance, Malkangiri

Chaiti Ghoda Nacha (Dance)
Dalkhai - (Sambalpuri Dance)
Ram Leela
DANCES OF ORISSA 33
of different instruments. Every dance is accompanied by a song

which is sung by the performers. Both men and women dance
and sing. Some of the tribal groups put on colourful dancing
constumes during their perfomance. Brief notes on some of the
tribal dances of Orissa are given below :
Juang : The Juang dance, which goes by the popular name of

‘Changu Dance’ is performed by both men and women. Besides,
they perform other types of dances such as deer dance, elephant
dance, pigeon dance, bear dance, Koel dance and peacock
dance. While dancing, the girls stand in a straight line infront of
the boys. While the dance goes on, the line becomes semi¬
circular. The girls hold each other’s wrist or hand-in-hand and
move forward and backward in bending posture. The boys stand
in a straight line which becomes a curve during dance performance.
The musical instruments which are used during dance are drums,
dholas and tambourine.
Saora : Saora dance is very simple. Generally, they dance

during ceremonious festivals and marriages. In their dance, group
of men and women jumble up together and while dancing, the
drummers and the dancers advance towards each other alternatively
to the rhythm of music. Colourful costumes are worn during the
dance. Other decorations on body and head include feathers of
white fowl and peacock plumes. While dancing, they carry
swords, sticks and other implements and blow whistles and make
peculiar sounds. The musical instruments that accompany the
dance are brass cymbals, brassgongs and drums.
Gond : Amongst the Gonds of Koraput district, dance is

performed throughout the year. Dances are also performed on
special community occasions such as marriage. The turbans are
adorned with ‘cowrie’ shells and the apron is adorned with small
pieces of mirror. The girls get dressed in hand-women sarees and
silver ornaments. A dance group is ordinarily formed with 20 to
30 persons of both sexs. Only unmarried boys and girls dance.
The musical instruments are played by boys. Two boys lead the
dance with wooden drums. The girls dance in circles with simple
steps of one and two, very often bending bodies forward.
Koya : Dance amongst Koyas is richly varied. The most

important occasion for dancing is the worship of Mother Goddess
in the month of Chaitra. Both boys and girls participate in dance.
But in the festival, only girls participate. During dance, the girls
keep rhythm by beating sticks on the ground which are fitted
wiih small bells. Dance groups are formed by about 30 to 40
persons. The most conspicuous movement is the winding and
unwinding of circles formed by girls.
Kondh : Kondh dance is mostly confined to unmarried boys and

girls. The dances are performed especially when the boys or girls
of one village visit another village. When Kondh boys and girls of
Koraput meet in their dormitories after the day’s toil, they dance.
The girls dance in lines and the boys dance behind and infront of
them. This is Kondha dance in Koraput district. The dance of
Phulbani Kondh is more colourful. The girls wear sarees in two
pieces and bangles on their ankles. They dance in rows, facing
rows of boys who sing songs and play on hard drums. Special
dances are performed during buffalo sacrifice which is called
‘Kedu’ festival.
Gadba : Gadba dance is performed by women who wear

‘Keranga’ sarees. They make their distinctive hair styles. The
men play the musical instruments. Chaitra and Pausa months are
the dancing seasons. Gadba women dance in semi-circles with
steps of three and four which they gradually change to eight. The
body is often bent forward while skilful moves are made on the
heels.
Other tribal dances include Dalkahi dance, Karma dance,

Dhap dance, Stick dances etc. which are still in vogue.
The tribais are now exposed to new forms of lifestyle and

culture. Like all societies, they are changing under the impact of
forces of modernity.
CHAPTER - VI
Oriya Folk-Plays, Theatres

and Yatras
F
X olk-plays have grown over the centuries and are a part of the
life and culture of the rural people. Folk plays in the form of
songs, dances and dramas have nourished a rich tradition.
Though many of these have now become extinct and some are
languishing, the rural folk have preserved and fostered, quite a
few folk-plays such as Ram Leela, Rasa Leela, Prahalad Natak
etc. A brief account of these are given below :
Rama Leela : It is a religious folkplay. The word Leela literary

means sport and therefore ‘Ram Leela’ portrays the sport of
Rama, the King. Ram Leela performances start from Ram
Navami day and usually deal with the various incidents from the
story of Ramayana which continues for several nights. Actors
playing the role of demons, wear masks. Actions in the play
adhere to dance-music or song-music which are cast in the form
of dialogues. The band of chorus singers with orchestral music
repeat the refrains.
Rasa Leela : Several Vaisnav poets have written innumerable

songs of devotion pertaining to the ammorous sports of Radha
and Krishna. Rasa Leela centres around the immortal love story
of Lord Krishna with Radha and the Gopis and are played for
nights together. Now-a-days dialogues have been added. The
chorus singers always sing the refrains. Once upon a time Rama
Leela was the most popular of the folk-plays of Orissa but its
popularity has waned.
Bharat Leela : It is more popularly known as ‘Dwari Leela’

(Dwari means sentry) - Folk plays in Orissa draw their plots from
mythologies, epics, tales, ballads or romantic legends. Bharat

Leela draws its plot from the epic tales of Mahabharat. It is
therefore, called Bharat Leela. In this play four essential characters,
namely Arjuna, Subhadra, Satyabhama and Dwari participate.
The core of the Lela relates to love and subsequent marriage of
Arjuna with Subhadra. Dwari (Sentry) plays a very major role.
Orchestral music adds grandeur to the play.
Moghul Tamsha : It is a satirical play on the Mughals and is

confined to Bhadrak area. It is not a play of only Oriya language.
It is multi-lingual performance, with songs and dialogues being
used in Persian, Urdu, Hindi languages. It was inspired by the
Marathas, ruling over Orissa, who satired on the earlier Muslim
(Mughal) rule. Moghul Tamsha is still a living tradition. It has no
definite plot. The main actor is Mirja Saheb who is the Moghul
administrator. People masquerading as personal service-holders of
Moghul rulers are called one by one to the stage. They sing
songs and introduce themselves. Enough humour and satire is
provided through the dialogues. Music is provided with Dhol and
Jodi-Nagara. The folk-play provides entertainment to the people.
Prahlad Natak : It is typical play of Ganjam district of Orissa.

Literally it means a play about Prahlad, the devotee boy. This
unique folk theatre embodies many of the rich folk, classical and
tribal traditions of Orissa. The play was written by Gopinath
Parichha, a well known poet and playwright of South Orissa in
the 19th Century. The subject matter is the appearance of Lord
Nrusingha, the suppression of pride of demon Hiranya Kaship
and yearnings of devetee boy Prahallad.
Suanga : ‘Suanga’ means joking. It is a folkplay and its tradition

is very old. It is a development over the Leelas. Suang mostly
concerns itself with stories from legends, folklores, episodes from
mythologies and often from history. In Suang, all the characters
sing, dance and act. Due to greater popularity of ‘Jatra’, Suanga
has slowly died out.
Yatra : Yatra originated as a development over the folkplay i.e.

‘Suanga’ during last quarter of the 19th century. The main
developments were introduction of dialogues in blankverse, use of
foreign musical instruments, dazzling costume, humour with rustic
ORIYA FOLK-PLAYS, THEATRES AND YATRAS 37
characters in local dialect. Mostly Oriya Suanga playwrights

changed over to Yatra, after Yatra emerged with its popular
appeal. Yatras no longer confine themselves to mythological or
historical plays. Popular legends and social themes found place in
the plays. In its earlier stages, the Zamindars used to patronise
them.
For the first time Yatra parties (troupes) were formed in

Orissa in 1878. But later, Yatra parties were formed on
professional lines. Pioneers of professional Oriya yatra were
Jagannath Pani (1836-37) Gopal Das, Balakrishna Mohanty
(1900-58), Govind Chandra Sur Deo (1884-1939), Krishna
Prasad Basu (1896-1968) and Baishnab pani (1882-1956).
Baishnab Pani modernised and revolutionised the Yatra form in
Orissa. His contribution to the growth of mass culture as a way
of popular entertainment, is immense. He introduced duet dances
and prose dialogues in blank verse and used techniques of
Western Opera. These plays with their embellishments were also
called ‘Geeti Natya’. Modern Yatra parties have become very
successful under the spell of cinematic imitations. Even modern
plays are being adopted for staging yatra. Modern cinema has
deeply influenced the form of yatra. There are duet dances.
Songs in the present-day yatras, are set to popular tunes mostly
in imitation to cinema songs. Yatra parties not only perform in
rural areas, these are also being staged in small towns. It has
become very popular and very lucrative business. More and more
professional troupes are entering the field.
Oriya Theatre
Orissa had a long theatre culture. After occupation of
Orissa by the English in 1803, people came in contact with
Western education and culture. Towards the end of the nineteenth
century, modern theatre came to Orissa. Before that, Orissa had
only Yatras, Suangas and Operas. During the British regime,
historical and mythological dramas were being staged. Large
number of theatres therefore came into existence, during this
period, with efforts of Kings, Zamindars and rich Aristocrats.
Amongst them were Padmanav Theatre (Parlakhemundi).
Jagannath Theatre (Puri), Chikiti Theatre, Khariar Theatre,
Kothpada Theatre etc. where dramas got staged. The modern

commercial or professional theatres, thereafter, came into
existence. It would be interesting to chronicle the growth and
development of Oriya theatre in a nutshell.
In 1916, the first commercial theatre, ‘Radhakrishna

Theatre’, was established by Banamali Pati at Balanga in Puri
District. After death of Pati. Aswini Ghosh purchased it and
restarted it in 1928 under the name Banamali Art Theatre,
which lived upto 1936. In 1935 Sarathi Theatre was set up at
Berhampur but it did not last for more than two years. In 1933
Somnath Das set up ‘Annapurna Natyamandali’ which was
renamed ‘Annapurna Theatres’. Annapurna Theatre was a great
success. To cope up with demand for theatrical plays, it was
bifurcated into Annapurna ‘A’ group and ‘B’ group and started
functioning at Puri and Cuttack. But these did not last long. The
two theatre parties closed down around 1970 due to various
reasons. In 1929, Kali Charan Patnaik, a noted dramatist, set up
‘Sakhigopal Natyasangha’ which was renamed ‘Orissa Theatres’
in 1939. It was very popular amongst the audience from the
entertainment point of view. But many artists left this organisation
and the theatre closed down in 1949. In 1942., Bharati Theatre
and in 1944 New Orissa Theatre were set up but because of
mismanagement, these two theatres did not last long. Similarly
Rupashri Theatre was started at Cuttack in 1946-47 but it did
not last long. In 1953 a successful theatre called ‘Janata
Kangamancha' came into existence at Cuttack but it closed down
in 1970 because of management problems. Another Theatrical
party called ‘Kalashri Theatre’ was set up at Cuttak in 1966 but
it did not survive for long. It is not possible to catalogue all the
small and large theatre parties in Orissa which were born but
died unceremoniously. A significant aspect of the New Wave
Drama (Naba Natya Dhara) in Orissa was the play ‘Agami’. By
this time amateur parties known as ‘Group Theatre’ had come
up in the State. ‘Srujani’ organisation was most prominent
amongst them.
The reasons for the fall of the professional theatres in

Orissa, otherwise known as commercial theatres, are not far to
seek. The audience did not favour them because of lack of new
ORIYA FOLK-PLAYS, THEATRES AND YATRAS 39
subjects, lack of good acting, absence of popular music and

above all the management problem. Middle Class people used to
patronise theatres. But their tastes changed with the incoming of
cinema and television. The tradition of staging Oriya dramas
have, however, been kept up by a handful of amateur drama
organisations. Annual Drama festivals are being organised by
them. But it is difficult to revive the commercial theatre although
‘Utkal Rangamanch’ is trying to do just that. However it must go
to the credit of amateur theatre organisations that they have
been able to keep theatre in Orissa alive by staging shows
periodically, particularly during festivals. Such is the story of
Oriya stagecraft.
The reasons for the fall of the professional theatres in

Orissa, otherwise known as commercial theatres, are not far to
seek. The audience did not favour them because of lack of new
subjects, lack of good acting, absence of popular music and
above all the management problem. Middle Class people used to
patronise theatres. But their tastes changed with the incoming of
cinema and television. The tradition of staging Oriya dramas
have, however, been kept up by a handful of amateur drama
organisations. Annual Drama festivals are being organised by
them. But it is difficult to revive the commercial theatre although
‘Utkal Rangamanch’ is trying to do just that. However it must go
to the credit of amateur theatre organisations that they have
been able to keep theatre in Orissa alive by staging shows
periodically, particularly during festivals. Such is the story of
Oriya stagecraft.
The trends in Oriya theatre have been outlined in the

previous paragraphs. But the story would not be complete
without mentioning the names of successful playwrights who had
immensely contributed to modern Oriya drama, the first Oriya
drama ‘Babaji’ was written in 1877 by Jagmohan Lala. But it
was Rama Sankar Ray who is considered as the father of the
modern Oriya drama. His first Oriya play was ‘Kanchi Kaveri’
which was written in 1880. He wrote many plays, most of which
were staged. But in subsequent years it was Aswini Kumar who
occupied centre stage of Oriya drama literature. Aswini Kumar
wrote a large number of mythological, historical and social plays.
First play written by him was ‘Bhisma’ in 1915. His dialogue,

dramatic technique and characterisan in plays were excellent. In
the first part of twentieth century emerged Kali Charan Patnaik
who was a playwright of repute. He staged social plays like Girl’s
School, Bhata, Raktamati etc. which mesmerised the audience, in
the post-independent Orissa, playwrights who had made immense
contributions to Oriya drama, were Gopal Chhotray, Kartic
Kumar Ghose, Laxmidhar Nayak, Ramchandra Mishra and
Bhanja Kishore Patnaik and others. Their successful stage plays
popularised Oriya drama. Prominent amongst them was Gopal
Chhotray who was also a prolific writer of plays for radio drama.
In the subsequent years, playwrights whose contribution was
recognised were Kamal Lochan Mohanty, Pranabandhu Kar,
Bymokesh Tripathy, Basant Kumar Mohapatra, Himansu Bhusan
Sabat, Biswajit Das etc. In the post 1960 period, there was a
change from the conventional drama. This was reflected in the
new ‘absurd’ dramas. Prominent writers were Manoranjan Das
and Bijay Mishra. Other play-wrights such as Kartik Rath had
also composed absurd experimental dramas. It is not possible in
this short space to mention names of all dramatists who had
contributed to new Oriya drama movement. But it is worth
mentioning that a number of stage actors and actresses have
dedicated their lives for success of Oriya theatre. Prominent
amongst them were Samuel Sahu (babi), Priyanath Mishra,
Byomokesh Tripathy, Natbar Sena, Sarat Pujari, Askhay Mohanty.
Dhiren Das, Hemanta Kumar Das, Govind Tej, Dhirendranath
Biswal, Nitai Palit, Prasanta Nanda, etc. Female actresses were
Radharani, Manimala, Lila, Susama Tej, Jharana Das, Bhanumati
and host of others.
It is worth mentioning that modern Oriya Yatra has virtually

ousted the commercial theatre. Modern Oriya theatre, however,
still lives due to pioneering efforts of amateur theatre groups.
They are continuing their efforts to attract the audience with
newer stage-plays. They deserve assistance and encouragement
in this noble venture.
CHAPTER - VII
Handlooms and Handicrafts of

Orissa
I
Xndia for millenia have been famous for the variety and beauty
of its handlooms (Handwoven textiles). Handloom is a loom
operated by hand. It requires a space of barely 10 Sq. mtrs.
Generally, weaving is a family activity, helping each other in the
processing and producing cloth. According to a recent census,
there are about four lakh weavers in Orissa, operating about one
lakh looms.
Handloom
Orissa had been in ancient times exporting fine cloth
through its ports. The manufacturing activity in those days, was
an important economic activity. In the tribal societies of Orissa,
many tribal groups used to weave their own clothes. Particularly
Bonda women using their native looms, weave Ringa cloth out of
Kerang fibres which are collected from the forest. Today this
practice is dying down in the tribal groups. Hand-weaving of
cloth is one of the richest medium of cultural expression of
people. One of the earliest references to Orissa’s Handloom
Tradition is found in jyotinisvara’s Varnaratnakara, written in the
early fourteenth century in Maithili. The tradition of intricate and
painstaking hand-weaving referred to in this treatise in Orissa
continues to the present day.
Orissa had a rich tradition of producing ‘ikat’ fabrics. The

term ‘ikat’ comes from Malaya-Indonesian expression ‘mangikat’
meaning to bind knots or wind around. The Ikat technique of
manufacturing handlooms is called ‘tie and dye technique’ and is
also known as ‘bandha’ technique in Orissa, The ‘bandha’

process means to bind, knot or wind around. The Ikat dyeing
involves the sequence of tying or wrapping and dyeing sections of
bundled yarn to a predetermined colour scheme prior to weaving.
Thus, the dye penetrates into the exposed sections, while the tied
sections remain undyed. The patterns formed by this process on
the yarn are then woven into babrics. In lkat technique, which is
also called ‘tie and dye (bandh) technique’, the designs in various
colours are formed on fabrics either by the wasp threads or the
weft threads or by both.
Orissan handlooms are recognised ail over the country and

abroad for their highly artistic designs, colour combinations,
motifs and durability. This handwoven fabric is replete with
everyday motifs like flower, tree, wheel, fish and religious symbols
like conch etc. The final products are unique creations - aesthetic
yet functional. Because of labour-intensive work, demanding great
skills, the cost of the fabric becomes high. However the woven
fabrics bear testimony to the artistic ability and tradition of
weavers of Orissa,
Traditionally, women of Orissa dressed in Sarees of blue,

red and magenta and other deep colours. With synthetic (as
opposed to vegetable) dyes available, more colours like orange
and other mixed colours have come into use. The beautiful and
eye-catching sarees are made in the State, mainly at Nuapatna
near Cuttack and in the inland weaving centres around Sambalpur,
Bargarh, Sonepur and Boudh Districts. These are the major
centres of production.
In these areas the layout of the textile designs, takes the

form of horizontal shapes. Motifs are mainly floral or of fish and
animal design. One of the most popular motifs used in the fabrics
of Nuapatna area, is the elephant (Gaja) particularly in the
Khanuda cloth used by brides at marriage time. Large and small
stars, elephant, deer, parrot, nabagunjara, lotus and other
flowers, creeper, kurnbha, danti (tooth like) patterns have been
used since long on silk and cotton fabrics. Of late, however, there
has been a diversification in designs and production. New centres
of production have come up and have gained popularity and also
HANDLOOMS AND HANDICRAFTS OF ORISSA 43
consumers’ acceptance. Notable amongst these are ‘Bomkai’ and

Habaspuri sarees and also cotton sarees produced in Berhampur
area. Experimental innovations continue to be made to weave
exclusive, intricate fabric designs in cotton and silk fabrics. The
master weavers also have shown their talent in clothes made out
of Tossar silk.
Today, the handloom sector in Orissa is at cross roads as its

market is being eaten into by less expensive, powerloom and mill
products. Weavers have therefore, begun to diversify their
product range. They are producing yardage for dresses, funrnishing
bedlinen, cushion covers and upholstery. Home furnishing
productions are being made in the State. Kotpad’ scarves,
‘Dhalapathar’ curtains and Sambalpuri bed covers are examples.
The product of Orissa handlooms are second to none and are
exquisite and artistic and have been welcome in foreign markets.
Handicrafts
The beauty and charm of Odissi handicrafts mirror their
heritage. It is a Collector’s delight. It reflects tradition which still
lives in the creative imagination and skill of Oriya craftsmen. It is
a rich legacy of an ancient culture. One can look at the myriad
handicrafts of Orissa some of which are outlined below.
Stone Carving : Stone sculpture artists prepare imposing stone

statues. They are found in Puri, Bhubaneswar, Khiching and
Lalitgiri. The stone carvers apart from art objects, prepare
different objects of modern living such as ash-trays, bowls, vases
with a traditional touch.
Sliver Filigree : Silver filigree locally known as Tarakashi’ is
one of the prized handicrafts of Orissa. It is internationally
acclaimed for its excellent finish, fine foil and texture, delicate
artistry and marvellous craftsmanship. It is centred at Cuttack
where silversmiths live. Elegant jewellery and decorative pieces
are eye-catching. It is a craze for the modern fashion loving folks.
Applique Work : The brilliant applique work of Pi pill has been

internationally acclaimed. The craftsmen deftly stitch traditional
and modern motifs such as elephant, peacock and flowers on
cloth background, to form harmonious colourful designs with
embroidery work. The artists also make garden umbrellas, wall-

hangings, cushion covers, bed-covers, colourful canopies,
lampshades, ladies’ bags, shopping bags and door screens.
Patta Chitra : This has been covered earlier under the head
‘Fainting’. It is a living art mostly practised by skilled traditional
chitrakaras living in Puri and adjoining Raghurajpur area. Patta-
Chitras (Canvas picture) make lovely wall-hangings. The artists
prepare a canvas by coating the cloth with a mixture of chalk
and tamarind seeds, which is called patas. On this leathery finish,
the artists paint mythological themes from Mahabharat, Ramayana,
tales of Radha-Krishna love and Lord Jagannath. Patta-Painting is
now a thriving businesss.
Brass Bell Metal Work : The bell metalware occupies a proud

place in Orissa’s casting history. The flexible brass fish of
Ganjam, the cute brash figurine of Kantilo, the brass and bell
metal ware of Cuttack and metal lamps (Deepa Rukha) are
typical examples of Orissa’s metal ware. The metal castings
called ‘Dhokra’ are typical examples of Orissa’s metalware.
Dhokra is an alloy and with its antique touch, goes well with
interior decorations.
Wood carving and Painting : A special charm of Orissa’a

wood carvings is the blending of folk and classical forms. The
wood carvers make a variety of decorative and utilitarian objects,
such as toys depicting birds and animals, -images of Gods and
Goddess, wooden boxes and bowls.
Horn Objects : The richly textured and finely fashioned works

from the horns of animals is a class apart. The Craftmen of
Parlakhemundi and Cuttack skilfully fashion horns into birds,
animals, fighting bulls, cranes, deer, elephants, camels, penstands,
pipes, dainty lamp-stands and a wide range of scintillating
objects.
Lacquer Work : Nowrangpur district is the home of lacquerware

artists who make quaint lac boxes, wall plaques and decorative
toys by applying molten coloured lac, obtained from tapping of
particular trees, on bamboo matting. Among other beauties of
HANDLOOMS AND HANDICRAFTS OF ORISSA 45
this craft are bangles, necklaces and toys which are generally in
great demand.
Terracota : Terracota is an art form universal in its scope and

has a distnict imprint of the native soil. The art of kiln burnt
potteryware is marvellous. Other graceful terracota artefacts are
locally made such as horses, goats etc.
Tribal Crafts s Tribal crafts once covered objects like hunting

weapons, fishing implements, agricultural implements, household
objects, personal belongings, textiles, ornaments, dhokra objects,
musical instruments etc. These have different names in the
myriad tribal dialects. To give a few examples ska is a wine vessel
and gunub is a drum in Bonda tribes. Sanar is a comb and
Changu is a famous musical instrument amongst Saoras. Binda is
a an arrow and karadi is a bell in Kondha community.
Special mention my be made of the wood carvings of

Kondhs and Juangs, embroidery work of Dongria Kandhs,
muscial instruments of Santhals, combs of Kutia Kondh and
Dharuas, carpentry works of Lanjia Saoras, bamboo work of
Mahalis and siali fibre work of Mankdias. With the impact of
modernity, tribal crafts are gradually disappearing.
CHAPTER - VIII
Festivals of Orissa
DV^^rissa is known for her colourful festivals. The festivals are

numerous, spread over all the twelve months of a year. The
village life centres round agriculture. Therefore, there is an
intimate relationship of festivals with the numerous agricultural
operations that take place. Festivals are also observed as part of
Hindu religious faith. Dates for festivals are determined by the
traditional Hindu Calendar. The specialities of most of the
Orissan festivals are that, on these occasions, much merry¬
making is done, new clothes are worn and special dishes are
prepared at home. The Orissan cuisine is at its test in these
functions. Delicious dishes prepared include small cakes known as
‘Pitha’ and also sweets made from milk. Festivals carry forward
people’s tradition and culture. A brief summary of major festivals
of Orissa is given below :
Month (Approx) Festivals :
January Makar, Dhanu Yatra
February Magha Saptmi, Sarswati Puja
March Dola Yatra (Holi), Siva Ratri
April Asokastami, Mahavisuva Sankrati, Rama Navami
May Jhamu Yatra, Chaita Parva
June Sitalsasthi, Raja Festival
July Car Festival

c
August Jhulan Yatra, Rakhi Purnima
FESTIVALS OF ORISSA 47
September Ganesh Puja
October Durga Puja, Kumar Purnima, Diwali, Nuakhai
November Kartika Purnima, Aunia Nabami
December Prathamastami
A brief summary of the major festivals in the State is

recounted :
Raja Parba : This festival is the most important in coastal Orissa

and unique in its observance in honour of the Mother Earth. It is
observed for three days. All agricultural operations remain suspended
during these days. During ‘Raja’ festival, food specialities are
prepared in every home. The most important is ‘Poda Cake’ made
out of rice, coconut, molasses and spices. Children take Pitha (Rice
cakes) and fruits during this period. They wear new clothes and
make a lot of merry-making in ‘Swings’.
Mahabisuva Sankranti : This is the beginning of new year in

Orissa. This festival is also called : ‘Pana Sankranti’. On this day
in every Oriya home, ‘Pana’ or household sweet drink is given to
the neighbours and visitors. Families make special prayers and
food offerings in the temples. On this day also ends the
firewalking function called ‘Jharnu Yatra’ where penitents walk on
live charcoal to the accompaniment of gongs and drums.
Rath Yatra or Car Festival : This is the grandest of all

festivals in Orissa and is held at Puri. It begins from the second
day of the bright half of (Asadha) month which falls in June or
July every year. It is the sacred journey of images. Lord
Jagannath with brother Balabhadra and sister Subhadra in
wooden chariots journey from main Jagannath temple through
the streets to another shrine called ‘Gundhicha Ghar’, where the
deities stay for nine days. On the last day, the return journey is
made i.e, from Gundicha Ghar to main Jagannath temple. This is
called Bahuda Yatra. Thousands of devotees from all over India
throng on Ratha Yatra day at Puri to pull the sacred Chariots.
Akhoya Trutla : This is the oldest agricultural festival in the

State. On this day farmer goes to his field with turmeric powder,
sandal paste, paddy seeds mingled with vermillion and rice cakes.
He takes alongwith him his plough. In the field, he prays and
offers ‘Bhoga’ to goddess Lakshmi and sows fistful of paddy
seeds in the field after ploughing it.
Ashokastami : This is celebrated in grand form at the Lingaraj

Temple at Bhubaneswar. This is a chariot festival like the Car
Festival of Puri. The protege of Lord Lingaraj (Siva) is taken out
in a wooden chariot from the main temple to Rameswar temple.
The chariot returns after a four day stay with Mausi Maa.
Durga Puja : It is celebrated with much colour and festivity in

the State. Durga Puja symbolises the commemoration of victory
of good over evil. Mother Durga on this day killed the demon
‘Mahisasura’ and brought about peace in the land. Puja Mandaps
with coloured clay images of goddess Durga are set up in large
numbers. Crowds throng Puja Mandaps to enjoy the festivities.
Goddess Durga is worshipped from the Seventh to Tenth day.
On the Tenth day called ‘Vijaya Dasami’ or the Dussehra, the
images are taken out in a spectacular procession for immersion
in the river.
Makara Mela : Makar Sankranti is celebrated with much gusto

when the sun enters the orbit of Capricorn. By this time, harvest
of new paddy, sugarcane crops etc. are over. On the day of the
Sankranti, food offering are made to God. Sun God is worshipped
with great fervour and enthusiasm by one and all. The festival is
also called ‘Makara Mela.’
Mahasiva Ratri : On this day, devotees remain on fast and

perform ‘Puja’ in the ‘Siva’ temples. The main festival is
celebrated at the Lingaraj temple in Bhubaneswar where sacred
lamp burns on the temple top.
Dola : This is very popular and colourful festival in the State.

Radha and Krishna are the main deities who are worshipped in
this ‘Parba’. People in the rural areas carry the gaily decorated
‘Viman’ with the idols in the village streets singing devotional
songs. The main attraction of Dola Yatra is Holi when people
throw colour powders and waters on each other.
Chaiti Parba : This is the main festival of fishermen community.

They dance with a wooden horse in villages. This is called
(Ghoda) Horse dance.
Nuakhai : This is a major social festival of Western Orissa.

Generally, it takes place in August-September on an auspicious
day fixed by the astrologers. Although the festival is meant for
eating new rice of the year, it is observed as a day of general
festivity. New rice is cooked with milk and sugar and distributed.
People greet their friends and relatives.
Magha S apt ami : On this day thousand of pilgrims take holy

dip in the sea near Chadrabhaga beach. They welcome the rising
sun with prayers. Konark is the place of main festival. According
to ‘Puranas’ Samba worshipped Sun God on this day and was
cured from leprosy disease.
Sitala Sasthi : This is the celebration of marriage ceremony of

Lord Siva with Goddess Parvati and is mostly observed in
Western Orissa particularly at Sambalpur in June. The wedding
of the divine couple is observed with much pomp and ceremony.
Lakhs of people witness it when the idols are taken out in
procession on a ‘Medha’.
Dhanu Yatra : This is colourful festival of Western Orissa,

particularly at Bargarh town. Dhanu Yatra, relates to the episodes
of Lord Krishna’s visit to Mathura where King Kansa, the tyrant,
ruled over his subjects. The ceremony is colourfully observed at
Bargarh where thousands of people assemble daily to witness the
ceremony. The town of Bargarh becomes Mathura. The river Jira
becomes Yamuna and the village Amapali on the other side of
river becomes ‘Gopa’. Different acts of the puranic descriptions
are performed and spectators witness it with great joy.
Thakurani Puja : Thakurani is the presiding deity of Berhampur

in South Orissa. Her blessings are sought by everybody. The
Thakurani Yatra is observed with much pomp and ceremony
when the deity is brought outside.
Chhau Festival : This is a famous war dance. Other subjects

have also come into this dance.
Tribal Festivals
The amazing conglomeration of the traditions, beliefs,
sorrows and philosophies together constitute and vitalise the
rituals and festivals of the tribals who inhabit Orissa. They have
retained their rich and varied heritage of colourful dance and
music forming an integral part of their festivals. The description
that follows gives a brief account of some of the best known
festivals of major tribes of Orissa.
Saora : Festivals of Saoras relate to various agricultural

operations and harvest of crops. Some of the important festivals
relate to various crops like millet, gram, sweet potatoes etc.
{Buroy-n-a-Adur; Ganugas-n-a-Adur; Kusaj-n-a-Adur; Osa-n-a-Adur).
Kondha : They observe a programme of feasts and festivals

round the year for better yield of crops. The Chaitra Parab
festival is observed before sowing paddy seeds. Kedu festival is
observed in the month of February-March.
Koya : They observe religious festivals like Bijja Pandu, Marka

Pandu and Idu Pandu where religious rituals are strictly observed.
Kolha : Kolhas observe four festivals which are combinations of

a socio-religious and recreational activities. These are Magha
Pudi, Ba-Parab, Ffera Parab, Jamna Parab. Most of these take
place when harvest is over or before eating new fruits like
mango, jackfruits etc.
Oraon : They observe religious festivals connected with their

economic pursuits.
Gadba : Their important festivals are Bandapura-Parab, Dashara

Parab, Pusha Parab and Chaita Parab.
Paroja : Parojas observe many seasonal festivals with pomp and

ceremony. Festivals are observed round the year. Amongst the
important festivals are Asadhi Parab, Nuakhia, Baujani Jatra,
Pusa Parba and Chaita Parba.
Ho : Hos observe seven important festivals like Madhe, Saha,

Damurai, Hero, Jomrama, Kolan and Batauli. These are mostly
associated with their agricultural operations.
Juang : Dance and Music form an integral part of the social and
religious festivals of Juangs. They observe Pus Punai with much
fun-fare.
Kharia : Like their other tribal brethern, Kharias are very' fond
of dance and music. Every occasion of festivity is celebrated with
dance and music.
Kisans : When Kendu twigs are planted in the agricultural fields,

a festival is observed. They observe Nuakhai when new rice from
the fresh harvest is eaten. They observe Puspunai festival in the
months of December-January which marks the end of the annual
agricultural operations.
Mirdhas : On festive occasions, special dishes like rice cakes

and mutton are prepared and eaten with much dance and music.
Amongst their important festivals are Nuakhia (Eating new rice)
and ‘Amba-Gundi’ (When mango, Mahua and Kendu fruits are
eaten when the first crop comes).
Santal : They are a progressive lot now-a-days. Yet they have

kept up their traditional festivals. Makara and Tusu are their main
festivals.
Young tribal girls in Western Orissa perform Daikhai dance

on festive occasions like Dussera, Bhai Jiant etc.
We have made a round-up of festivals of Orissa. No doubt

some of the festivals are fading out, on the impact of modernity.
Yet those which have survived to this day. continue to be a
source of joy to the people.
CHAPTER - IX
Cult of Lord Jagannath in

Orissa
uri is a coastal town in Orissa, situated by the sea-shore. It is

one of the four most holy places of pilgrimage in India (Dhama)
- the three others being Badrinath in the North, Rameswaram in
the South and Dwaraka in the West. The great Hindu temple of
Lord Jagannath is situated in Puri. The presiding deities in the
temple are Lord Jagannath, his elder brother Balaram and their
sister Subhadra. The word “Jagannath” means Lord of Universe.
The images are a triad of fascinating wooden figures (Wooden
deities) painted in brilliant colours and lined up next to each
other, sitting in Ratna Singhasan (Jewelled Throne) in the
sanctum sanatorum of the temple. The main image is that of
Lord Jagannath after whom the temple is named. Lord Jagannath
is also called Daru Devata, a word which means wooden deity.
The Puri temple is known popularly as Jagannath temple. It is
the hallowed seat of Lord Jagannath. Mystery surrounds its
origin, scholars give diverse opinion. Many legends are recounted
to explain the strange form of Jagannath. According to the most
popular legend, Lord Jagannath was being worshipped by
‘Savaras’ (Tribal people) as ‘Nilamadhab’ in dense forests.
Viswavasu was the Chieftain of Savaras. King Indradyumna was
ruling Abanti at that time. On hearing that the God Absolute is
present in Nilagiri of Udradesha whose glipmse gives salvation,
he sent his priest Vidyapati as his emissary to Utkal. On arrival
here, Vidyapati stayed in the Savara hamlet. He established
rapport with Viswavasu, who being merciful took him in a secret
narrow path and showed him ‘Nilamadhab’. Vidyapati on return
informed King Indradyumna and thereafter the King went to
CULT OF LORD JAGANNTH IN ORISSA 53
Utkaldesha with Narada. On arrival there, King of Utkal informed

him about the recent disappearance of Nilamadhaba. Indradymna
was extremely disappointed but was consoled that God will
appear in shape of a log of wood in four-fold images. The king
performed Aswamedha Yajna. On its closing day Indradyumna
saw God ‘Nilamadhab’ in his dream. Later royal messengers
informed him that a four-branched great wooden log in the sea
was floating. A divine voice was heard from the heaven that
“Lord Jagannath will himself construct his own image and get
them installed on the Mahavedi (The Great Throne). Mahavedi
will remain closed for a period of fifteen days. The old carpanter
who is standing outside with his instruments should be allowed
inside and the door be closed. Nobody should open the door and
go inside the room until the construction work is complete, in
fifteen days”. The old carpenter was no other than the
Viswakarma, the divine architect, who appeared in the guise of
the carpenter. After some days, the Queen hearing no sound or
noise of construction work from inside, got curious and caused
doors to be opened, to find that Viswakarma had disappeared
leaving behind, three wooden unfinished images. They were the
trinity-Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra. Again in accordance
with divine instruction, the king installed the three images in a
newly constructed temple and worshipped them.
The existing temple of Jagannath was built by first ruler of

Ganga dynasty, Chodagangadeva in twelfth century A.D. The
triad of three wooden images, Jagannath, Balabhadra and
Subhadra were installed inside the temple in the sanctum
sanctrom. Worship was started. There are hundreds of temple
servants or Sevakas who were appointed by the King for services
to the deities. The descendants of Sevaks are performing the
rituals to this day. There are thirty-six traditional communities
(Chhatisa Niyoga) each rendering a specified hereditary service to
the deities. Among them also are temple priests. Then there are
communities of potters who produce thousands of ritual vessels
used by the temple daily, for proparation and consumption of
food. Communities of carpenter build every year new wooden
chariots for the Car Festival. The king introduced rituals of dance
and music in the temple by appointing Devadasis (Dancing girls)
Called ‘Mahans’. Musicians and instrumentalists were in attendance.

The “Geetagovind” composed by great poet Jayadeva used to be
recited inside the temple. During the rule of Anangavim Dev-Ill,
Jagannath Dharma was adopted as the State religion and King
declared himself as the servant of Lord Jagannath. Shri Jagannath
continues to remain the State deity of Orissa. Lakhs of devotees
from all nooks and corners come to Puri. The family God of
most households in Orissa is Lord Jagannath. The daily rituals in
the temple are done by Sevakas according to the Records of
Rights prescribed several centuries back. The first Sevaka is
Gajapati Maharaj (King) living at Puri, popularly called “Thakur
Raja”. He performs some rituals, particularly sweeping the floor
of chariots during the Car Festival (Rath Yatra).
A special feature of Jagannath Temple is that temple

kitchens cook prasad (holy offering of food) sufficient to feed
thousands of people every day. Jagannath Temple has the largest
kitchen in the whole of the country. The cooked food is first
served at Bhoga Mandap (the platform for sacred food offering)
and after it is offered to the Lord, it becomes Mahaprasad. Early
in the morning Gopala Balava Bhoga is offered, followed by
Sakala Dhupa (Morning food offering), Madhyana Dhupa (Mid¬
day food offering). Sandhya Dhupa (Evening food offering),
Badasinghar Dhupa (The last food offering) to the Lord.
There are descriptions about fiftynine festivals of Lord

Jagannath. But the most important and famous amongst them is
the Car Festival or Chariot Festival (Ratha Yatra). Every year for
Rath Yatra, the three Chariots are newly constructed. Lakhs of
devotees throng Puri on this occasion, when the deities are put
on public view. The Car festival is a 9 day long festival. It begins
from Asadha (June-July) and the three deities come out of the
temple and are taken on a journey of around 3 Kms. in
procession in decorated chariots, for sojourn in the Gundicha
Ghar (Temple). The return Car Festival (Bahuda) is held nine days
later. The Chariot of Lord Jagannath is known as ‘Nandhighose’.
The Chariot of Balabhadra, is named as ‘Taladwajak ‘Devadalan’
is the Chariot of Subhadra. From Gundicha Temple, they return
and re-enter the Jagannath Temple. This is called Return Car
Festival (Bahuda Yatra). Car festival is one of the Country’s most
CULT OF LORD JAGANNTH IN ORISSA 55
incredible spectacles. Because the three divine images of the Puri

temple are wooden, they have to be periodically replaced. On a
cycle determined by the Hindu calendar, the deities cast their old
frames and assume new ones. Generally this comes once in
twelve years. This process and attendant function is called “Nava
Kalebera” (New embodiment of three deities).
The cult of Lord Jagannath pervades the whole State of

Orissa and in every household one finds the images. Numerous
religious faiths came and spread religion in ancient Orissa -
Hinduism, Jainsm, Budhism, Vaishnaism, Saktaism and Bhaktism
etc. But Jagannath Dharma (religion) assimilated all the religious
philosophies. Lord Jagannath was gradually embraced by all the
religious sects. Thus evolved Jagannath cult which is a unique
cult. It is an all-embracing synthesis of various cults and religions.
It has contained diverse faiths, cultures, creeds and ideologies.
Therefore, cult of Jagannath has come to be regarded as the
religion of masses (Gana Dharma). Jagannath is the deity of
Kings, Brahmins, Scavengers, downtrodden and the common
men, and of all castes. The uniqueness of Lord Jagannath is that
while in other places, the religion and culture of that place is not
associated with the names of the presiding deities, here in Orissa
Jagannath has continued to be the epicentre of the religion and
belief of Oriya people.
The cult of Lord Jagannath is based upon love and

affection, service and sacrifice and displays the idea of equity in
society. It unites people belonging to all castes, creeds, colours,
faiths and religions which is a unique feature in the world.
CHAPTER - X
Oriya Literature
T JL here is a consensus among eminent Indian Philologists that

Oriya is a separate language and has a rich literature. Oriya
language was derived from Magadhi Apabhramsa. Emperor
Kharavela’s inscription (1st century B.C.) at Udayagiri hills near
Bhubaneswar in Orissa has very close resemblance with Pali.
Ashokan inscriptions at Dhauli hills near Bhubaneswar (3rd
Century B.C.) provide specimens of Magadhi sub-dialect. Of
course quite a few scholars of Eastern languages have claimed
Buddhist Caryapada (Budhagana and Doha) as the earliest stage
of each of their languages (8th to 10th Century AD). It is
however an established fact that Oriya emerged as a separate
and independent language around the tenth and eleventh A.D.
with a standard Oriya script. We would now turn our attention to
the evolution of Oriya literature over the ages.
Oriya Literary works can broadly be divided into three

phases :
Old Oriya literary period : From the inception of Oriya

literature up to Mahabharata
Kabya of Sarla Das i.e. upto
15th Century A.D,
Medieval Oriya Literary From Sarla Das i.e. from 16th

period Century AD to nineteenth
Century AD. This includes the
Bhakti Movement Period in
Oriya Literature and includes
Ornate Oriya Kabya period
popularly called 'Riti Yuga'.
liftf
Oriya yatra Show
Silver Filgree Work - Cuttack

Appligue Work, Pipili
Ghumura Dance, Kalahandi
Jagannath Temple, Puri

Car Festival (Rath Yatra), Puri
Jagannath, Balabhadra, Subhadra - Deities

ORIYA LITERATURE 57
Modern Oriya Literary : From mid-nineteenth Century

Period upto the present day — this
includes the renaissance Period
following occupation of Orissa
by the Britishers and spread
of English education and
development of Oriya fiction,
poetry, drama etc.
The Mahabharat of Sarala Das

The Imperial Ganga Kings of Orissa ruled the State from
1100 A.D. to 1435 A.D. They were lovers of Sanskrit literature
and promoted the development of Sanskrit scholarship. The love
for Oriya language, literature and culture emerged with the
enthronement of emperor Kapilendra Deva of the Gajapati Surya
Vanshi dynasty in 1435 A.D. He was a warrior of indomitable
courage. Adikabi Sarala Das was the leading poet of this period
during which Orissa was at the apex of her political and military
glory and economic prosperity. During this period of Oriya
resurgence, Sarala Das wrote three of his epoch-making works in
Oriya — namely Mahabharata, Bilanka Ramayana and Chandi
Purana, the most important being Mahabharata. All the three
epics were composed in Dandi metre. His Oriya Mahabharata
contained many deviations from and additions to the Original
Sanskrit Epic. It was not a simple translation. Sarla Das has
included in his works very many historical pictures of the then
social life, military strategy etc. which were deviations from
original Sanskrit text. The Bilanka Ramayana and Chandi Purana
were also new creations of Sarala Das which did not merely
follow the outlines in the original Sanskrit texts.
The great Sanskrit classic “Geetagobinda" by saint poet
Jayadeva, represents a high point of Lyricism and Bhaktirasa,
which has enchanted performers and audiences all over the
world, till today.
Bhakti Movement in Oriya Literature —

Literature of the Panchsakha Age
The Bhakti literature in Oriya flourished during 16th
Century. Oriya literature was largely enriched by the contributions
of the five saint-poets (Panchasakha) who however did not

emerge at a time. They were Jagannath Das, Balaram Das,
Achyutanda Das, Yasovanta Das and Ananta Das. Jagannath Das
and Shri Chaitanya were contemporaries. Shri Chaitanya
propagated Goudiya Baishnav religion (Raganuga Prema Bhakti)
whereas others were exponents of Utkaliya Baisanav Tatwa
(Gyana Bhakti) The Panchasakhas were held in high esteem and
formed a unique group holding forth Bhakti as the best path to
realize God. They popularized religious and spiritual literature in
Oriya which were formerly in Sanskrit language and had a close
preserve of ballads, prayers and stories in verse which have a
moral, cultural and religious bearing and were intelligible to Oriya
laymen. Jagannath Das (1492-1552) was the most famous of the
Panchasakhas and famous for his immensely popular Oriya
Bhagabat. It is not a mere translation of the Sanskrit Bhagabat.
Oriya Bhagabat was easily intelligible and could be memorized by
the devotees, mainly rural masses. Almost every village had a
place called Bhagabat Tungi where religious discourses based on
Bhagabat were held. Jagannath Das had adopted a style in his
Oriya Bhagbat which was at once chaste, elegant, dignified,
beautiful, simple and intelligible to all classes of people and hence
it's abiding popularity down the ages to he present day.
Imaginative Oriya poetry of 16th to 17 th

Century
After Bhakti-Kavyas, imaginative and romantic poetry
occupied the next important place in Oriya literature. The simple
Oriya used in Bhagabat' of Jagannath Das greatly influenced
these works. The Kabyakars (poets) of this genre were Kanhai
Khuntia (Mahabhava Prakash), Arjun Das (Ramviva), Banamali
Das (Chata Ichhamati) Narasinga Sena (Parimala), Bishnu Das
(Premalochna), Sisu Sankar (Ushavilas), Pratap Ray (Sasisena),
Devadurlava Das (Rahasya Manjari), Kartik Das (Rukmini Vivah),
Danai Das (Goparasa) and Purusottam Das (Kanchikaveri).
During this period, a number of poets enriched Oriya

language by their remarkable literary contributions called
‘Chautisas’. Thirty four stanzas from ‘Ka’ to ‘Kshya' are placed at
ORIYA LITERATURE 59
the beginning of each composition. Chautisa normally used to

cover narratives, love stories or religious feelings. The first
Chautisa of Oriya literature is ‘Kalasa Chautisa’ of Bachya Das.
This piece details marriage ceremony of Siva and Parvati. Other
Chautisa works are Mandakini Chautisa, Barsabharna Chautisa
and Kesava Koili of Markanda Das.
Age of Ornate Poetry in Oriya Literature

The Age of Oriya ornate poetry (Riti Yuga or Alanakar
Yuga) extended from Dhananjaya Bhanja of mid-seventeenth
century to Abhimanyu Samantasinghar of mid-nineteenth Century.
During this period Bhakti Rasa was replaced by Srinagara Rasa.
Although there were very many poets, Kabi Samrata
Upendrabhanja took this ornate Oriya poetry to its zenith in the
eighteenth Century. That is why this literary period is often called
‘Bhanja Yuga’. In his poetic compositions Upendra Bhanja used
his Slesha, Yamak, Chhandas (irony, humour, alliteration etc.) and
other literary styles. He was a supreme exponent of mellifluous
combination of words and had studied Sanskrit Abhidhans like
Amarkosa and Trikandakosa. His mastery in rhetorical (1670-
1720) usage conveyed ‘Bahudha Artha’ (multiple meanings) to
each and every stanza by different juxtaposition of words.
Upendra Bhanja, the prince of Oriya Ornate poetic style,

was a prolific poet. His works included-Chitralekha, Hemamanjari,
Brajalila, Chandabhusan, Sadha Rutu, Kalakautuka, Subhadra
Parinaya, Baidehisa Bilas, Rasa Panjanga, Prema Sudhanidhi,
Rasika Harabali, Kanyabihar, Labanyabati, Purusottam Mohatmya,
Geeta Abhudi, Koti-Brahamanda Sundari etc. The age of ornate
Oriya poetry commenced with poet Dhananjaya Bhanja. After
him came poets like Lokanath Bidyadhar (Sarbanga Sundari),
Bhakta Charan Das (Mathura Mangal), Dinakrushna (Rasakallol).
For over one century, however, Upendra Bhanja dominated this
genre of poetry'. Very many poets after Upendra Bhanga also
composed Kavyas — Sadananda Kabisurya Brahma, Chanapati
etc. The ornate Kabya tradition in Oriya literature ended with
Bidagdha Chintamani of Abhimanyu Samantasinghar (1757-
1807), who was a great Vaishnaba poet in the twilight of
medieval Oriya literature.
Oriya Lyrical Poetry

Towards the end of eighteenth century, the ornate Kavyjuga
gave way to the age of Oriya Lyrical poetry (Geeti Kabita). Most
of the lyrical poetry was composed in locally popular musical
forms (Raga) so that those could be sung. During late 18th
century and first half of nineteenth century, the most prominent
lyrical poets included, Kabisurya Balladev Rath (Kishore Chandranan
Champu) (1789-1845) Gopal Krishna (1785-1862), Gaurhari,
Gauracharan, Basamali, Haribandhu. They mostly composed
‘Chaupadis’, which are now popularly called ‘Odissi’.
Towards the close of the medieval period, Orissa was

occupied by Britishers. Orissa then came in contact with English
educations and civilization and with that, commenced the period
of modern Oriya literature of nineteenth century.
Modern Oriya Literature (1803 Onwards)

The British occupied Orissa in 1803 A.D. brought with
them English education, English literature and printing press.
There were also publication of religious journals. The renaissance
of modern Oriya literature commenced after 1850. The western
impact was felt in every aspect of Oriya literature. The Oriya
writers took interest in new genera like poetry, fiction, essays,
drama, etc. Traditional Oriya poetry was replaced by elegy, ode,
lyric, sonnet etc.
Fakir Mohan Senapati : (1843-1918)

He is considered the Father of modern Oriya literature,
particularly in prose — in the field of novels and short stories.
The first full-fledged novel in Oriya was written by Fakir Mohan
Senapati called ‘Chhaman Atha Gunta’ (Six Acres and Half)
based on the then feudal social systems with vivid portrayal of
characters. Dr. J.V. Bolton in his book on ‘Fakir Mohan - His life
and prose fiction,' has said that the novel is a satire on the
British judicial system. Dr. Bolton also translated Fakirmohan’s
autobiography titled ‘His times and F. The master creator wrote
three more novels — ‘Mamu’, ‘Prayaschita’ and ‘Lachhma’.
Fakirmohan had a unique style of his own, using colloquial Oriya
ORIYA LITERATURE 61
language replete with humour and satire. These Literary creations

remain unsurpassed even today. The foundation of modern
Oriya short story was also laid by Fakirmohan in late nineteenth
century. His first short story was ‘Rebati’ published in 1898. This
was about female education, a sensitive subject a century back.
Fakirmohan wrote scores of short stories covering the then Oriya
village iife, society, urban centers etc. His was a forceful literary
genre in Oriya fiction.
Other founders of modern Oriya literature during the late

19th and early 20th century periods were Radhanath Ray,
Madhusudan Rao and Gangadhar Meher. Radhanath Ray
(1848-1908) started writing modern Oriya poetry in Late
nineteenth century. He wrote mainly long narrative poems called
‘Khanda Kavyas’. Among his long poems were ‘Kedar Gouri’,
Chandrabhaga, Nandikeswari, Usha, Parbati, Darbar. Most of his
themes were adapted from stories of Greek Legends set in
Orissan surroundings. He wrote Mahayatra’ which had a grand
style, written in blank verse. Radhanath’s contemporary was
Madhusudan Rao (1853-1912). He was a talented poet. He
ushered in modern age in Oriya poetry. He sang in praise of
God and led a pure and sublime life. His famous poetical
collections include Chharumala, Basantagatha, Kusumanjali,
Bibhidha Kabita etc. Gangadhar Meher (1862-1924) was a
famous poet of western Orissa of late nineteenth century. In
Oriya Poetry, he used both classical and modern forms. His
famous poetical works include ‘Arghyathali’, Tapaswini', ‘Indumati’,
‘Kichakabadh’, etc.
Against the afore mentioned general background to modern

Oriya literature, an attempt is made to focus on pioneering works
and cover important literary trends in Oriya poetry, fiction,
drama, etc. by some of the representative authors. The field
being vast, it is not possible to cover the works of all authors in
the limited space available.
Oriya Poetry
Apart from the illustrious modern Oriya poets of late
nineteenth century namely Radha Nath Ray, Madhusudan Rao &
Gangadhar Meher, Nanda Kishore Bal too was a poet of high
t
caliber and distinction in Oriya poetry. He brought folk rhymes

and folk traditions of rural areas into the sphere of modern Oriya
poetry. His major contributions to poetry are: ‘Sarmista’,
‘Nirjharini’, and ‘Pallichitra’. His poems were mostly set against
rural background for which he is called ‘PallikavT. Mention must
also be made of Bhima Bhoi, the saint poet of Mahima religion
in Orissa, extolling his Mahima Guru, the formless divine force.
His works included ‘Stuti Chintamanf, ‘Bhajanamala’, ‘Adintha
Geeta’, etc.
In the beginning of twentieth century, at Satyabadi in Puri

district a school was set up by Gopabandhu Das to inculcate
among the younger generation a spirit of Oriya nationalism. The
Satyabadi School was a neo-cultural center where highly educated
scholars like Gopabandhu Das, Nilakantha Das, Godabarisha
Mishra etc. taught the students. Many of Gopabandhu s poems
like Dharmapada, Abakash, Chinta, Bandira Atamakatha,
Nachiketa Upakshyana upheld the national pride and the spirit of
freedom movement as their themes. Gopabandhu’s close associate,
Pandit Nilakantha Das, was the author of the famous Konarka'
Kavya. Amongst the Satyabadi group of poets, Godabarish
Mishra has a place in modern Oriya literature whose poems were
short, simple and lyrical. His works include ‘Alekhika’, ‘Kalina'
and Kishalaya'.
After the Satyabadi Group, the poets of ‘Sabuja Group’

emerged as a vital force in Oriya poetry from 1921 to 1935.
The pioneers of this group were young people like Anada
Sankara Ray, Kalindi Charan Panigrahi, Baikunthanath Patnaik,
etc. They raised their voice against a tradition-bound society and
exhibited, romantic mysticism. The period was, however, short
lived.
There were other noted Oriya poets in these times who did
not belong to "Sabuja Group ”. Amongst them was the famous
and talented poetess Kuntala Kumari Sabat. Another important
poet of this period was Godabarish Mohapatra, well known for
his works Kankala and numerous political and social satires.
Two other celebrated poets of this period were Mayadhar

Mansingh and Radhamohan Gadnaik. Mansingh is a doyen of
ORIYA LITERATURE 63
modern Oriya romantic poetry. His love lyrics include “Dhoope',

‘Pujarini’, ‘Hemasasya’ etc. He was a prolific poet whose poetry
was replete with love, patriotism, nature, humanism and a deep
spiritual longing. Radha Mohan Gadhnaik was the other great
poet of the period, who enriched Oriya literature by his vast and
varied poetic output. He had a distinct style of metrical
excellence particularly ‘Chanda’.
After the forties, Oriya poetry took a new turn. Although
before independence, there were poets of what is called ‘Pragati
Yuga’ influenced by Marxist thinking, their output was small and
the trend was short lived.
Modernism in Oriya poetry has its real beginning with
Sachi Routray. His revolutionary piece was the epic ‘Baji Rout’, a
boatman boy who braved the British forces and was shot dead
because he refused to ferry the British Police across the river on
their way to suppress freedom fighters. Many of the poems of
Sachi Routray have been translated into English, most important
of which is ‘A boatman boy and forty poems'. He is an
octogenarian. His works have a wide range and thematic variety.
His poems have been published in a number of anthologies.
In the mid-fifties, Guruprasad Mohanty wrote modern
poetry, influenced by English poets but expressed himself freely
in Oriya. Bhanuji Rao was another talented poet of this period.
During the sixties and seventies, Oriya Poetry took a new shape
in the hands of two eminent poets — Ramakanta Rath and
Sitakanta Mohapatra.
In the last thirty years or so, a group of talented Oriya
poets have emerged. The group includes Jaganath Prasad Das,
Sourindra Barik, Rajendra Kishore Panda, Soubhagya Kumar
Mishra, Durga Charan Parida, Phani Mohanty, Harprasad Das,
Srinibas Udgata, Brajanath Rath, Harihar Misra and a host of
others. In Oriya, poetic output was proportionately large during
this period. The poems cover from rambling thoughts to modern
complexities of life.
Fiction
Fiction is the most important genre in Oriya prose
literature. It covers both novel and short story. Fakir Mohan
Senapati was the pioneer in these two fields. We would now look
at the post - Fakirmohan fiction period.
Novel
Fakirmohan had a unique style of writing novels. Inspired by
his works, novels, typical of social life of Orissa and historical
themes, were written. ‘Kanakalata’ by Nandakishore Bal is a
social novel. Amongst the later novelists were Mrutyunjay Rath,
Tarini Charan Rath, Ramchandra Acharya and Kuntala Kumari
Sabat. Baisnav Charan Das and Upendra Kishore Das broke
away from the traditional run of novels and wrote ‘Mane Mane'
and ‘Malajahna’. The next important novelist was Kalindi Charan
Panigrahi, famous for his Matira Manisha (1934) dealing with
problems of joint family system. During early part of the
twentieth century, Godavasrish Mishra, Godabarish Mohapatra
and Chakradhar Mohapatra were prominent novelists. Harekrushna
Mahatab, famous as a freedom fighter wrote many novels
against the backdrop of Indian freedom movement (Prativa-
1946), (Abyapar 1947). In the pre-independence period, nine
authors jointly wrote a novel entitled Basanti (1924). During the
forties of the last century, there was an efflorescence of Oriya
Novel literature by the works of two novelists — Kanhu Charan
Mohanty (1906-1994) and Gopinath Mohanty (1914-1991).
Kanhu Charan was a prolific novelist and became very popular
by ushering in a new trend in social realism. In 1935, he wrote
Ha Arna' in the background of Orissa famine. His brother,
Gopinath Mohanty, wrote novels drawing experience from different
aspects of tribal and rural life. His Paraja and Amritsar Santan
covered new ground. Rajkishore Patnaik created a new wave with
his novels. But the most path-breaking novel was ‘Amada Bat’
(1951) written by Basanta Kumari Patnaik.
Surendra Mohanty (1922-1996) was a prominent writer of

historical and political novels like Neela Saila (1968), Satabdir
Surya. Nityananda Mohapatra was a follower of Gandhian
idealism and wrote Hidamathi (1948), Bhanga Hada. During
fifties, some good novels were published by Laxmidhar Nayak
and Chadramani Das. But Santanu Kumar Acharya was a distinct
path breaker in post Oriya novels with his Narakinnar (1962) and
ORIYA LITERATURE 65
Satabdir Nachiketa (1965). During this period Gokulanda

Mohapatra wrote a number of science fictions such as Prithivi
Bahare Manisha, Udanta Thalia, Sputnik. Chandra Sekhar Rath
wrote novel with a spiritual undertone called Yantrudha (1966).
Bibhuti Patnaik wrote good number of novels with love themes.
Historical novels of Nrusingha Charan Panda about country's
history and culture are noteworthy.
Jagannath Prasad Das made a new experiment in Oriya
novel by his 'Desha Kala Patra’ (1992) with narration of social
and cultural history of Orissa. Based on Puranic material, Prativa
Ray wrote ‘Yagnaseni’. The author of this book has experimented
with his two novelettes — Tathapi be Mu Banchibaku Chahe'
and ‘Sekatha Bhuli Huena’ based on contemporary struggles in
Oriya life. Most recent Oriya novels disclose a new socio-cultural
ethos.
Short Story
We have already discussed the short stories of master writer
Fakir Mohan Senapati who laid the foundation of modern Oriya
short story. He was called 'Katha Samrat’. He used vivid and
idiomatic Oriya language and portrayed Oriya village life as well
as urban centers.
After Fakir Mohan, some important short story writers
appeared in the scene, the most important being Laxmi Kanta
Mohapatra. His short stories were Budha Sankhari’, ‘Adarsha
Patni', “Pratidana’ etc. In the early part of twentieth century,
Godavarish Mishra wrote some short stories, important ones
being ‘Bhaibhagari’, Tola Kanya'. Godavarish Mohapatra was a
successful story writer. His important stories include Magunira
Sagada', ‘Nila Mastrani', etc. His style was simple, yet forceful.
Oriya short story took a new but short turn after 1936
under the influence of Marxist Philosophy, particularly by Bhagabati
Charan Panigrahi. This was, however, short lived. Various other
short story writers later appeared in the scene and they were
Pranabandhu Kar, Raj Kishore Ray, Raj Kishore Patnaik and
Ananta Prasad Panda. Surendra Mohanty was a prolific short
story writer in post independence era. His short stories disclose a
deep sympathy for human misery.
Manoj Das is a talented story teller in Oriya. He is at ease

both in English and Oriya. He often brings rudiments of folk-
stories etc. and moulds them with superb ease. Important among
his work are Laxmira Abhisar, Bhirna Manisha, Ananya Kahani.
Kishori Charan Das is a very eminent writer of post independence
period. His Anthology of short stories contains pieces such as
Bhanga Khelana, Ranu Apa and Prayanti. Krushana Prasad
Mishra and Achyutananda Pati are other prominent short story
writers of post independent period. Rabi Patnaik, Akhil Mohan
Patnaik, Chandrasekhar Rath, Bibhuti Tripathy, Binapani Mohanty,
Uma Sankar Mishra, Hrusikesha Panda, Rama Chandra Behera,
are other important short story writers of the modern period.
Jagannath Prasad Das has written some unconventional short
stories like ‘Arne Jeumane’.
Short story is now an established literary form in Oriya
Literature and there are large number of writers in the field. But
Oriya short story still lacks depth of range and rich realistic
experiences of human life. Particularly lacking are sensitive stories
on the life of oppression and suffering of Dalits when one realizes
that Orissa has a large Dalit population.
Drama
Drama in various forms had been a source of entertainment
for the people. The Oriya drama grew out of folk plays known as
Yatra, Leelas and Suangs. With the spread of English education.
Oriya dramatists came in contact with English plays. The first
Oriya drama was ‘Babajf written by Jagmohan Lala in 1877.
Another pioneer in Oriya drama was Rama Sankar Ray.
Afterwards, many writers were active in the field, chief amongst
them were Kampal Mishra, Padmanav Narayan Dev and Bhikari
Charan Patnaik. Kothpur Math near Mahanga in Cuttack district
was an important stage center for dramas. In the early twentieth
century, lyrical dramas of Baishnav Pani, Krushna Prasad Basu,
Balakrushna Mohanty gained immense popularity. The greatest
popular dramatist was ‘Baishnab Pani', During early part of the
twentieth century, Oriya Drama took a new turn in the hands of
new and bold dramatists like Ashwani Kumar Ghosh. Between
1937 and 1962 he wrote many social, historical and mythological
plays. After him, came Kalicharan Patnaik whose immortal
ORIYA LITERATURE 67
creation was ‘Bhata’ (Rice) depicting man's inhumanity in times

of famine.
A number of dramatists were engaged in writing drama in

the post independence period. Amongst them were Rama
Chandra Mishra, Pranabandhu Kar, Manoranjan Das, Bhanja
Kishore Patnaik, Gopal Chhotray, Annada Sankar Das, Bymokesh
Tripathy, Kamal Lochan Mohanty etc. While Gopal Chhotray
excelled in Radio plays, Manoranjan Das created Oriya Nabanatya
Drama. His creations were ‘Amrutyasa Putra’, ‘Aranya Fasal'.
Then followed a large number of dramatists in this line. But
professional Oriya theatre gradually died around sixties. Some
absurd dramas were being experimented during this period.
Some of the young dramatists wrote dramas in popular Oriya
(Loka Natya Sailee) and Group theaters staged them. After
eighties, progressive group of theaters emerged and staged
dramas with lot of experimentation. Today radio and television
plays are popular and Oriya drama has fallen into bad days. But
most significant happening in the present times is the emergence
of Yatra in a new form, which has become immensely popular.
Other Forms (Ramya Rachana)

Belles letteres is a new creation of prose literature and
originated in the west. It is neither an essay nor a feature. !t is
also not a Lalit Nibandha. Ramya Rachana initially stalled in
Oriya covering social problems with lot of humour and satire.
Since then, many experimentation have taken place in this new
form of writing.
in Oriya, development of Ramya Rachana is a post-war

phenomenon. Fakir Mohan Senapati with his ‘Nananka Panji'
was a pioneer in the field. Then came a spate of writers like
Gopal Chandra Praharaj. Govind Tripathy etc. In the post
independence period, the most important writers of Ramaya
Rachana were Krushna Prasad Basil (Akhada Ghare Baithak),
Nityananda Mohapatra (Patra O Pratima), Phaturanda (Maskra).
Others who have received popular approbation in this field are
Mohapatra Nilamani Sahu (Sekala Pakhala), Choudhury Hemakanta
Mishra (Aghatan), Bama Charana Mitra (Anusha Tenusha), Chandra
Sekhar Rath (Mu Satya Dharmi Kahuchi). The author of this

book has written hundreds of Ramya Rachna (Drusti Kona and
Phuturu Phaturu), using a new style with use of colloquial
language and intense humour and satire covering contemporary
problems. Large number of new writers in this field have
emerged of late.
This is a broad and brief survey of Oriya literature. It is not

a catalogue of all writers in Oriya. Oriya literature has now
entered the 21st century with lot of promises. There is, however,
no colossus in the present modern Oriya literature, except the
octogenerian poet Sachi Routray. Writing in Oriya magazine
Oriyan', Sachi Routray, the doyen of Oriya poetry, says that
frequently complaints are heard about shrinking readership of
Oriya books. He says Oriya literary works should set high
standards. After all real judge of the merit of a literary work is
the reader and substantial purchase of books by the authorities
cannot create an excellent literary dispensation — says Routray.
CHAPTER - XI
Changing Cultural Scene
nV ^/ rissa has a very distinctive identity in the Indian Cultural

Panorama. The glorious traditions of dance, drama, music,
sculpture, fine arts and other genres of Orissan art which confer
this distinction, have not only been maintained but recognisably
enriched by the vibrant creativity of the masters of these art
forms, richly supported by the dedication, skill and faith of the
performing artists, as well as the love of the people for the art
forms with which their day to day life is intimately intermingled.
Seen in the backdrop of the sea change brought about in the
cultural attitude of the people by the all-pervading influence of
modern dispensers of artistic culture like cinema, radio and
television, this is no mean achievement. In the hill tracts of
Orissa, the abode of a number of hill tribes, people live with their
distinct cultures. The cultural traits have been kept alive more or
less because of the exclusiveness of the different tribes from each
other and protection from electronic invasion. However, even in
these areas, some changes are discernible.
Over the centuries, when Orissan art and culture had the
patronage of its rulers, people generally enjoyed better economic
status. Art and culture of Orissa with popular support thrived.
There was a period of economic downturn when the impoverished
people could not support the growth and development of the
cultural tradition. This set in a process of decline for a considerable
period. In the post-independence era, efforts have been made by
the government for the revival of abiding interest among the
people in the traditional arts and provision of impetus to regain
their past glory. Institutions to promote art and culture like the
Sangeeta Natak Academy, the Lalit Kala Academy and Handicraft
Board, as autonomous bodies have been established. These

institutions and other non-governmental organisations devoted to
the promotion of performing arts like music and drama etc. aided
by the Government are pursuing the same objectives. Their
success story includes the revival and promotion of many ancient
Orissan art forms which had become moribund or had faded out.
Decline had overtaken the famous artistic handloom industry

of Orissa because of stiff competition from less expensive cotton
and synthetic fibre products of textile mills and powerloom
industries. The dress habits of people and particularly, The
modern generation, have changed remarkably, so much so, that
not only the urban, but even the semiurban and far off rural
markets are flooded with latest denims, jeans, skirts and blouses.
This has affected the livelihood of handloom artisans. The picture
in the handicrafts sector is even gloomier. For revival of these
arts, what is necessary is to enable the products of the sector to
be market friendly.
The modern cultural scene in Orissa reflects more or less

two parallel streams of development. The more visible one is the
epidemic-like spread of what may be called Western pop-culture
or rather poor imitations of it being dished out massively, day
and night, by the entertainment industry through the electronic
media, comprising cinema, radio, audio and video cassettes,
compact discs and cable TV broadcasting programmes in 24
hours channels. The staple fare of this category of entertainment
favoured by the youth is to assail the eyes of viewers with visuals
of youthful male and female bodies unihibitedly exposed with
explicitly erotic and sexual movements and assail the listener's
ears with matching sounds and theme songs. So much so that
even audio cassettes of devotional songs have not been spared of
this kind of defilement. This is debasement of the cultural
tradition. The parallel stream is the dissemination of our
traditional folk and classical dances, classical and folk music,
sculpture and painting, arts and crafts and handloom textiles
among appreciative international and domestic consumers who
are prepared to pay our artists and craftsmen what they richly
deserve. The direction of future development should be to
encourage and promote this within the country so that, the
CHANGING CULTURAL SCENE 71
cultural heritage surviving from ancient times can be given fresh

lease of life by correcting deficiencies with the help of scientific
techniques, tools and presentation and suitably attractive packaging.
Simultaneously, the impact of the modern ephemeral trend of
debasement of cultural taste of the youth should be countered
effectively by making them take pride in their cultural heritage.
This is the real task for the intelligentsia and the master artists
and patrons of both fine and performing arts in Orissa.
I
Orissa has been known for its excellence in art and art form.
Here is a book which highlights the colourful vista of art and
culture of the state in a simple and lucid language. With
supporting illustrations, this book will not only enrich the
knowledge of the readers about the place but will also be a
visual delight to them.
The author, Rabindra Mohan Senapati, is a former civil
servant and is a noted writer in Oriya language.
MINISTRY OF INFORMATION & BROADCASTING
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
ISBN : 81-230-1171-7 Price : Rs. 70.00

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ART AND CULTURE OF

RABINDRA MOHAN SENAPATI

Price : Rs. 70.00

Published by The Director, Publications Division,

Sales Emporia (Publications Division): • Patiala House, Tilak Marg,

Typesetter : Quick Prints, Naraina, New Delhi-110 028.

CHAPTER - I Land and People 1

CHAPTER - II Architecture and 9

CHAPTER - III Orissan Paintings 16

CHAPTER - IV Oriya Music 22

CHAPTER - V Dances of Orissa 28

CHAPTER - VI Oriya Folk-Plays, 35

CHAPTER - VII Handlooms and 41

CHAPTER - VIII Festivals of Orissa 46

CHAPTER - IX Cult of Lord Jagannath 52

CHAPTER - X Oriya Literature 56

CHAPTER - XI Changing Cultural Scene 69

Land and People

vJ rissa is an Eastern Regional State of the Indian Union. It

Physiographically, Orissa has three broad natural regions :

The characteristic climate of Orissa is tropical and monsoonic.

The mean annual temperature of the state hovers around

The coastal districts of Orissa are quite frequently ravaged

The natural vegetation in the state is its forest cover.

Orissa had a total population of 36.7 million living in

Agriculture is the most important occupation of the people.

Oriya is the official language of the State and is the mother

Other linguistic groups also understand and speak Oriya. English

Majority of the population, almost 92%, profess Hinduism

Orissa is the homeland of as many as sixty-two different

People in Orissa, whether rural or urban, live in families.

The history of Orissa has been shaped as much by the

History of Orissa dates back to a remote antiquity. In

at different periods. Each of these comprised large parts of

In the absense of recorded history over long periods,

Political history of Orissa opens with the rule of the Nanda

Udayagiri hills near Bhubaneswar to provide shelter to jain

History of Orissa after Kharavela remains in darkness for

In the eighth century A.D., the most remarkable feature of

During the 8th and 9th centuries, a powerful dynasty

By the end of the 11th Century A.D. and early 12th

After the collapse of the Ganga dynasty, the Suryavansi

The Afghans conquered Orissa when the Mughal Emperor

The Mughals ruled over Orissa for a century. After the

The British (East India Company) seized Orissa in 1803

With the spread of education and publication of Oriya

Orissa was one of the foremost provinces in the freedom

15th August 1947, the 26 feudatory states of Orissa merged in

Traditional Oriya cuisine is very delicious. Cooked parboiled

The traditional dress in Orissa is dhoti and kurta for gents

Orissa, renowned for its exquisite Arts, Crafts, Architecture,

Architecture and Sculpture in

Orissa occupies a distinct place in the Indian art, on account

Edicts were got engraved by him at Dhauli (near Bhubaneswar)

The Budhist heritage of Orissa is rich both in sculpture and

In ancient Orissa, Jainism was in a very flourishing condition,

propagated in Kalinga earlier. But in the first century B.C., during

Kharavela belonged to Chedi dynasty. Apart from being a

The fall of Chedi dynasty probably synchronised with the

Temple architecture : Architecture in Orissa found its supreme