Dekhni Dance Goa is a form of a Devdasi dance performed by women in temples and social ceremonies. Dekhni is a semi classical Goan dance form. Dekhni represents mixture of Indian melody and Western rhythm, performed by girls adorned in Indian dress. It is a song cum dance popular in Goa. The word 'Dekhni' means 'bewitching beauty' in Konkani language. It is performed exclusively by women-folk to the beat of the Ghumat, a folk drum. Dekhni Dance usually enacts the life of a Devdasi girl meaning servant of God. Their job is to perform dance in temples and social ceremonies like weddings. One of the popular Dekhni songs is Hanv Saiba Poltodi Vetam by Carlos Eugenio Ferreira.
The theme is of a Devdasi girl who comes to a riverbank to take a ferry to reach the other side where she has an appointment to dance in a wedding. She requests the boatman to take her to the other side of the river. The boatman rejects and says as the water id rough it would be unsafe to travel. The Devdasi keeps requesting him and is even ready to offer him her golden earring for taking her across urgently. So the dancers dance for the boatman and this time he ferries them across the river.
The dance is set in combination of western rhythms and Indian melody. The performance becomes graceful by the conversation between the girl and the boatman in the form of a lilting song. The dancers carry pantis which are small clay lamps with a wick floating in oil or even artis. Only two or three dekhni songs that were composed and scored a long time ago are still existent.
This dance is much performed throughout Goa.
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