Sacred Moves

As Manjiri Bhagwat performs Mangalagaur games onstage,she can give a complex to women in their 20s or even younger. The way this 53-year-old twists,turns and stretches her body while doing acrobatics as a part of the Mangalagaur games,captivates viewers. “When I am on stage,I don’t feel more than 25,” says Bhagwat,who established a Mangalagaur games group called Manaswini in 2008.

A traditional religious festival of Maharashtra,Mangalagaur is celebrated by married women in the month of shravan according to Hindu calendar. After observing several rituals as part of the festival,the women indulge in playing Mangalagaur games like Fugdi,Zhimma,Hodi and so on; a ceremony observed every Tuesday of the fasting month. “Each game is like a physical exercise; the only difference is that it is done with a group of women while singing traditional songs. Each game has several varieties and can be done in various ways,” explains Bhagwat. For instance,Padmasana Fugdi is done sitting in padmasana and moving in circles,holding hands with a partner. Kombda is done squatting,entangling legs with one another and racing around. Gathoda is done sitting with folded legs and rotating on the floor in formations and Vadali Hodi is performed with entangled formations of participants portraying a ship battling a storm. “Then we have Zhimma,which is a rhythmic,clapping game. Kikicha Paan is a fast change-over of movements from standing formations to leaning and sitting steps with similar neck moves,” says Bhagwat.

Though the members give their performances dressed in a nine-yard navvari ,according to Bhagwat,the acrobatics games can be performed in other attires as well,such as salwar-kameez,jeans or even a simple sari.

When the club Manaswini was started,Bhagwat had 15 members. In 2009,the group performed in Paris as part of a cultural exchange programme between France and India. “The next year,the number of members rose to 70,” says Bhagwat,who works at IDBI bank and has taught the tricks of the games to around 500 women till now.

However,she adds that the number of members keeps fluctuating. Currently,the club has 30 members between the age group of 18 and 70 years. “Last year,we had a member who was 73 years old,” says Bhagwat.

The group works on non-profit basis and whatever they earn through their performances across the state is donated to NGOs. In the past,the group has donated their earnings to NGOs working for cancer patients and senior citizens. “Our aim is to keep the age-old tradition alive and not to earn money,” she says.

In the ongoing month of shravan,the members’ hands are full with performance requests. “Each presentation of Mangalagaur games lasts for over an hour and involves 50 different games. But the games are so interesting that one doesn’t find them physically taxing; instead they are rejuvenating,” says Bhagwat,adding that by the end of shravan,women tend to lose weight as well.