Tusu Dance: Popular Folk Dance of Natives of Sundarbans

Tusu Folk Dance is a popular dance form of native people of Sundarbans. After a wonderful village tour of Sundarbans during later part of the day we settled for a evening with bonfire and some folk dance program arranged  for the guests of the resort.

The resorts there arrange for such performances by the locals for the tourists. Performed mostly as a group, it is done mostly during the harvest festival. Tusu is a tribal folk dance performed by both male and female members of the community. It is a festival to celebrate the heralding crop. Tusu dance originated during these celebrations.

With simple costumes of white sari with red border, neat hairdo decorated with flowers and feathers, they looked very graceful.

It was mesmerizing to see them perform rhythmically holding hands to ‘never heard before’ tribal songs. After a hectic day of touring around the islands of Sunderbans this was a wonderful treat to our tired nerves.

Tusu Dance Folkdance Sundarbans

Tusu Folk Dance Sundarbans

Meet a Tusu folk dancer here: Faces of India 156

Tusu Festival is celebrated in Sundarbans when Makar Sankranti is being celebrated in rest of India in the month of January. They worship small figurines of Goddess Tusu with offerings of rice. All of them gather at a place and put up dance performances, sometimes competing with each other.

Tusu Folk dancers Sundarbans

This dance is popular in other parts of West Bengal like in Purulia, Birbhum, and Medinipur. At the end of the festival the idol of Tusu Goddess is immersed in water like it is done during Durga Puja.

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