Matki Dance is a renowned folk dance of the Malwa region in Madhya Pradesh. The women wear colourful attires on the stage and dance to the beats of the Dhol. The Dhol and other musical instruments are played by the men belonging to the tribe. The dance is performed on the occasions of celebrating birthdays or weddings.
Matki Dance
The meaning of Matki in Hindi is a water pot. The villagers fetch water form a pond or well and the matki is still used by many people for fetching water for household purposes.
Matki Dance Performance
The women wear sari or Ghagas and also adorn themselves with ornaments. One dancer starts the performance as a solo but in the end, others join and dance. The other words for the matki dance are Aada and Khada Nach.
The dancers move in circles and skilfully balance the waterpots using their hands and feet. It takes a lot of time for the dancers to conquer the skill of balance and dance. It requires a lot of patience and an ensemble of colours etc. the dancers adorn themselves with a lot of jewellery. They cover their face with veils. This can be performed in solo as well as a group also.
Delicate balancing is required in this folk dance performed by the nomadic tribes of Madhya Pradesh. The performers have to put in their hard work also should express their joy and excitement in the dance they perform with great perfection.