Review- Documentary on Chhau by Ritwik Kumar Ghatak

The great director Ritwik Kumar Ghatak, in his documentary Puruliar Chhau, he explored  the traditional Indian heritage of Chhau. It is a popular mask dance of Eastern India, a Bengali Folk-performing arts. Through his thought-provoking and memorable cinematic narrative, Ghatak attempted to glorify the traditional heritage of this Bengali Folk-performing art which, unfortunately, shows very little evolvement since its hunting or warfare origin due to lack of sustained patronage and guidance. In his interviews, he conveys his deep respect and love for this folk art form and its artists.
Evidently, the first few lines of the documentary indicate that the authentic performing art of Purulia has been going through a tough time and fighting for its existence, while the performers of Chhau are also struggling to keep their art form breathing. In fact, in my opinion, Ghatak has done a marvellous and unprecedented job in 21 minutes and 27 seconds with the least number of technological aid to cover the most of the specialities of this folk performing dance within the scope of a celluloid monochrome film. He had visited the villages of Purulia to shoot his documentary and used no artificial stage or studio to shoot his film. In the film, he has tried to maintain a sequential chain while showing the chhau performance, starting with Ganesh Vandana.
Ghatak also shows in his film that apart from its entertainment value, folk performing arts like Chhau dance serves as a means for recording history by preserving information of past events. In the face of an advancing industrial civilisation, “Chhau” has remained an institution which sends thrill into the hearts of the people of Purulia. In the film, Ghatak also explores the life of the performers, including close shots of eminent dancers like Madhu Ray, Gokul Roy, Adalat, Gambhir Singh, Lal Mahato. All the characters of the documentary are real life rural people and performers, with skinny ribs, depicting their poverty stricken life.
To depict the daily life and hardship of these performers, Ghatak focuses on capturing their feet stepping on mud, hands making plough and heads carrying forest goods, on the screen. Their ornamented masks are highlighted in close shots along with their raw, rustic bodies. The performers are filmed while making mask with clay, advocating an art, which the narrator says, is not their profession but their passion of heart”.
(Reference : Dhiman Mondal) 

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