1.6.4 Entertainment
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When the Yeravas feel happy, during the weekly holiday, the festival day, the day of marriage or any other day of celebration, they dance and play music on the instruments. Most of the Yeravas living in the forest are adept at these. |
They use two musical instruments, a blow pipe 3 to 4 feet long and a small drum. The Paniya Yeravas call the dram tu i and the Panjiri Yeravas call the same as tu i. Both of them call the blow pipe as  i:ni. These two are part and parcel of their culture. |
After food, most of the Yerava men and women of the hamlet assemble in front of one of the houses which has a bigger open ground before it They would light fire in the middle of the ground. One side of the fire place is for boys and another side of the fire place is for girls. The boys and girls form separate circles and stand in a position to dance. Three drums and one blow pipe are essential for the programme. The man with i:ni sits on the pavement of the house. One of the drummer stands in the middle of the boys' circle, other two form a part of the boys' circle. The audience, that is, the people who are not joining the dance, would sit on the pavement and observe. Both instruments are played once. Often the dancers keep shouting all at once h , h, h. It continues till late midnight and even early morning hours, depending upon the mood of the participants. When a person feels tired he can come out of the circle and relax and join, again whenever he or she intends to rejoin. Boys and girls do not mix and dance. Rarely one can find a Yerava house without the musical drum. But, one or two i:ni only would be available in a hamlet In Panjiri Yeravas it is the duty of the father to procure one tutdi for every son and give it to him. |
The diagram given below explains the positioning of the groups of dancers. |
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