The traditional folk dance of Gujarat, Garba, has been included to UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
Garba is a devotional and ceremonial dance that is especially celebrated for nine days during the Navaratri festival. Shakti, the feminine energy, is worshipped during the festival. Homes, temple courtyards, village public areas, city squares, streets, and expansive open spaces are all venues for Garba. As a result, Garba turns into a comprehensive community event that involves participation.
Garba has been an essential and vibrant part of Gujarati culture in India and the Indian diaspora worldwide for many years. Apart from its theological significance, Garba promotes social equality by weakening inflexible sect, gender, and socioeconomic hierarchies. Community ties are strengthened by its continued inclusivity and participation by marginalized and diverse communities.
On December 6, during the 18th session of UNESCO's Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, Garba was inscribed in Botswana. In addition to other nominations made by State Parties for inclusion on the Convention's Lists, the session is considering 45 applications for inclusion on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
This week's latest additions to the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, in addition to Garba, include opera singing (Italy), a folk music event called Junkanoo (Bahrain), and rickshaws and rickshaw painting in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
The 2003 UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage established the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in order to protect the intangible cultural heritage of communities around the world by promoting the sustainability of cultural practices and knowledge.
During the Hindu festival of Navaratri, which is devoted to the worship of the feminine element, or "Shakti," the ceremonial and devotional dance known as "garba" is performed. The dance is performed around an image of the mother goddess Amba or a perforated ceramic pot that is illuminated by an oil lamp. The dancers sing and clap their hands in unison as they make a counterclockwise circle around the center using basic moves. The tempo gradually increases to a frantic whirling after beginning with gentle circular movements. From the dancers to the musicians, social groups, crafters, and religious leaders participating in the celebrations and preparations, the practitioners and bearers of Garba are diverse and inclusive. In both urban and rural settings, garba is passed down through the generations via performance, imitation, practice, and observation. Several educational institutions provide expert classes and seminars in dance, music, landscape design, costume and ornament design, sound design, and light design, all of which influence Garba creations. NGOs, government organizations, dancers, musicians, and the media also spread the practice. By weakening gender, religious, and socioeconomic structures, Garba promotes social equality. Social ties are strengthened because it remains inclusive of marginalized and diverse communities.
Gujarat's Garba is the fifteenth Indian ICH feature to be added to this list. This inscription emphasizes how important Garba is as a unifying factor that promotes gender and socioeconomic inclusivity. People from many walks of life participate in garba, a dancing style with strong ritualistic and spiritual roots that is still thriving as a dynamic living tradition that unites communities. The inscription also emphasizes the dedication and work of the Indian government's Ministry of Culture in preserving, promoting, and protecting our intangible cultural heritage.
In its assessment this year, the 2003 Convention's Evaluation Body praised India for its dossier, which included excellent supporting documentation, and for identifying a component that promotes social equality and harmony among diverse cultures. This recognition of Gujarat, Garba's intangible cultural heritage element by UNESCO will greatly increase its international visibility and genuineness.