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- Title
Research Note: Living like Chameleons A Bedia Folk Performing Troupe from West Bengal.
- Authors
BANDYOPADHYAY, SUMAHAN
- Abstract
The Bedia, a Scheduled Tribe (ST) community found mainly in eastern India, contains a group of performers within it who live by performing bahurūpī--referring to one who can take many forms--which has been termed as the "chameleon art" in some government documents. Bahurūpī performance is referenced in many of India's historical texts, some of which date back to the pre-Christian era. The present study was conducted among an entire troupe of bahurūpī Bedias living together in a single village. The Bedias constitute a mosaic of groups living according to different economic persuasions, and they can arguably be said to have multiple origins. They present an interesting case on the tribe/caste continuum on the one hand; on the other, they bring before us a unique case of cultural adjustment through occupational specialization. They have gradually transitioned from a nomadic style of life to a semi-nomadic or sedentary lifestyle. In the present article, the performing tradition of bahurūpī has been socio-historically contextualized along with the description of the nature of their performance, performers, training of performers, audience, patronization, and recent changes. The example of the bahurūpī provides us with valuable data concerning the nature of survival among small communities in the Indian context, since they display multiple layers of identities at the economic, social, and political or administrative levels.
- Subjects
INDIA; SCHEDULED tribes (India); ETHNOLOGY; DALITS; BERIAS; INDIC castes
- Publication
Asian Ethnology, 2019, Vol 78, Issue 2, p447
- ISSN
1882-6865
- Publication type
Article