Dhol-tasha troupes see new brand of owners

Kank and Agashe represent a new breed of young professionals who have started their dhol-tasha troupes,traditionally restricted to Ganpati mandals and voluntary organisations.

“I founded the Shaurya troupe in December last year with an investment of about Rs 9.5 lakh that largely went into buying 190 dhols and 35 tashas. I used to play in another troupe a few years ago and thought of starting my own to experiment with rhythms,” says Agashe. What began with eight committee members of Shaurya in 2011,swelled to 470 in less than a year. About 300 to 350 people between 22 to 27 years of age regularly show up for practice.

“Shaurya is registered as a charitable trust. We have decided to buy grocery for voluntary organisation Manavya to serve HIV-affected children with money that remains after deducting our input costs,” says Agashe who adds he ventured into this field to give the traditonal dhol-tasha troupes a touch of professionalism and expand their scope. While the returns are good,Agashe insists he is not in it for the money.

Kank’s Shiv Vardhan troupe does not have the tag of a charitable trust. He is in it for sheer pleasure. “We are new to the field and as of now,it is my responsibility to see the troupe’s expenses like rent for place of practice,transportation,food for volunteers are taken care of,” says Kank who does not play the dhol but concentrates on coordination of the troupe.

“An important aspect of our troupe is we have flexible practice timings. Any newcomer with some sense of rhythm can join for practice between 5 pm and 7 pm and we make sure he/she gets a dhol or tasha to play. 7pm to 8pm is when seasoned members practise,” said Kank.

His troupe has more girls,about 55 per cent,than boys and all of them are aged between 19 and 28 years. Kank practised law in the Bombay High Court before moving to Pune,his home,as a company secretary.