Maruni dance to be performed on World Culture Festival by Art of Living

Writes: Prashant Acharya

A host of traditional Gorkha 'Maruni' dancers from Sikkim, the Darjeeling hills and the Dooars are set to create a world record by performing at the World Culture Festival on Saturday that is being organised by the Art of Living Foundation at Mayur Vihar in New Delhi.

Three hundred and fifty dancers and their team leaders have already reached New Delhi for performing on Saturday evening on a giant stage sprawled across 7 acres of land. Prime Minister Narendra Modi today inaugurated the function in the presence of officials from 155 nations.

The Maruni dancers from Sikkim and north Bengal have undergone rigorous practice over the past two months and will mesmerize an estimated audience of 35 lakh people during the three-day festival, aimed at celebrating diversity among world cultures and uniting peoples across geographical boundaries.

Ramkumar Lama, the dance coordinator from the Dooars, said, "The almost forgotten Nepali folk dance will see a grand revival and get promoted across the world. We intend to make it into the Guinness Book of world records."
Maruni dancers from Darjeeling, Sikkim, and Dooars en route to create world record
Maruni dancers from Darjeeling, Sikkim, and Dooars en route to create world record
Meanwhile, Raj Sharma, the coordinator from Sikkim, said 118 dancers from the state’s West, East and South districts are participating and a huge contingent of Art of Living volunteers from Sikkim have already reached New Delhi to be part of the extravaganza.

“In the days of yore, men used to adorn women’s attire and enact female roles while performing the Maruni dance because women were forbidden to perform in public. But this has changed now, of course,” said Karuna Pradhan, the coordinator from Darjeeling. She said the song for the Maruni folk dance is in the 'Samala' beat and has been written by Rajen Ghimire while the dance choreographer is Lhamu Sherpa.


Via: ECOI


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