Culture and Art of Bihar

Culture

Festivals
Chhath, also called Dala Chhath - is a major festival in Bihar, and is celebrated a week after Deepawali. Chhath is the worship of the Sun God. Wherever people from Bihar have migrated, they have taken with them the tradition of Chhath, and now this festival is known even in a metropolis like Calcutta, or New Delhi or Mumbai. Teej and Chitragupta Puja are other local festivals celebrated with fervour in Bihar.
Among other festivals the Shravani Mela of Sultanganj is of great importance. Shravani Mela is organised every year in July-August. Bihula-Bishari Puja of Anga region also is a great festival of Bihar.
Apart from Chhath, all major festivals of India are celebrated in Bihar, such as Makar Sankranti, Sarasawati Puja, Holi, Id-ud-Fitra, Id-ud-Joha (Bakrid), Muharram, Ram Nawami, Rath yatra, Rakhi, Mahashivaratri, Durga Puja, Divali, Laxmi Puja, Christmas, Mahavir Jayanti, Buddha Purnima, and several other local festivals as well.

Folksongs and music

Bihar has a very old tradition of beautiful folk songs, sung during important family occasions, such as marriage, birth ceremonies, festivals, etc. They are sung mainly in group settings without the help of any musical instruments.

Bihar also has a tradition of lively Holi songs, filled with fun rhythms.

During the 19th century, when the condition of Bihar worsened as a rule British misrule, many Biharis had to migrate as indentured labourers to West Indian islands, Fiji, and Mauritius. During this time many sad plays and songs called biraha became very popular, in the Bhojpur area, and dramas on that theme continue to be popular in the theaters of Patna.

Dances of Bihar

Dance forms of Bihar are another expression of rich traditions and ethnic identity. There are several folk dance forms that can keep one enthralled, such as dhobi nach, jhumarnach, manjhi, gondnach, jitiyanach, more morni, dom-domin, bhuiababa, rah baba, kathghorwa nach, jat jatin, launda nach, bamar nach, jharni, jhijhia, natua nach, bidapad nach, sohrai nach, and gond nach.

Language and Literature

Bihari, Hindi and Urdu are the major languages spoken in Bihar. Major regional languages of Bihar include Angika, Bhojpuri, Maithili, and Magadhi (Magahi). These languages are collectively referred as the Bihari language.

Angika is the only one of the Bihari languages which can be used in the Google Search Engine, Google-Angika has been available since 2004. The oldest poetry of the Hindi language (e.g., poetries written by Saraha, also known by the name Sarahapa, were written in the Angika language during the 8th century.

Bihar has produced a number of writers of Hindi, including Raja Radhika Raman Singh, Shiva Pujan Sahay, Divakar Prasad Vidyarthy, Ramdhari Singh ‘Dinkar’, Ram Briksha Benipuri. Different regional languages also have produced some prominent poets and authors.

Devaki Nandan Khatri, who rose to fame at the beginning of the 20th century on account of his novels such as Chandrakanta and Chandrakanta Santati, was born in Muzaffarpur, Bihar.

Folk Theatre

Theatre is another form in which the Bihari culture expresses itself. Some forms of theater with rich traditions are Reshma-Chuharmal, Bihula-Bisahari, Bahura-Gorin, Raja Salhesh, Sama Chakeva, and Dom Kach. All of these theatre forms originate in the Anga or Ang area of Bihar.

Cinema

Bihar has a robust cinema industry for the Bhojpuri language. There also is a small Maithili film industry.

Cuisine

The cuisine of Bihar is predominantly vegetarian. However unlike Gujarat or some communities of the South, non-vegetarian food has been acceptable in the society of Bihar, as well, with even some sects of Brahmins such as the Mithila accepting fish as a food item. Traditional Bihar society did not eat eggs and chicken, although other types of birds and fowls were acceptable.

The staple food is “bhat, dal, roti, tarkari and achar”, prepared basically from rice, lentils, wheat flour, vegetables, and pickle. The traditional cooking medium is mustard oil. “Kichdi”, a broth of rice and lentils seasoned with spices and served with several accompanying items, constitutes lunch for Biharis on Saturdays.