Puchi

Puchi Dance Orissa
Puchi Dance Orissa

The game dance of Orissa is known as Puchi. It is also a kind of artistic drill performed by girls, especially by those who are unmarried. This dance helps shape the waistline, legs, and hips. There is no choreography for the dance. A group of girls squat on the ground and begin singing particular kind of songs. To the rhythm of the song the girls stretch out alternatively the right and the left foot while maintaining the squatting position. The girls perform Puchi with a competitive spirit to see which girl can outdo everyone in the group. No musical instrument is used with this dance. Although the girls perform Puchi any day and at any time, customarily it is performed on the full moon night of the lunar month of Ashwin. In Orissa this night is celebrated as Kumar Poornima. All the unmarried boys and girls wear new clothes and worship the rising moon. It is believed that if the moon is worshipped later than the time of rising, the marriage will be delayed. The unmarried boys and girls generally do not sleep at night and enjoy themselves by playing different kinds of traditional games. The girls on this night play Puchi, in batches, almost all throughout the night.

There are many game dances in different parts of this country. In Punjab and Kashmir the girls perform Kikli which is somewhat similar to the Phugadi and Jimma of Maharastra. In fact, there are different kinds of Phugadi dances.

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