Props used while playing Garba.

       Navratri is a festival which  comes with the promise of nine days of non-stop fun, dance and festivities. Garba is just not about colourful attires and dance forms , people use various props to make the dance more fun. Here are few of the props that are used while playing garba .

DIYAS

Garba props often involve a lot of fire because it is the festival essentially about garbha deep, which means a lamp representing life. People use LED diyas, thus painting a pretty picture on the garba grounds and yet being absolutely safe at the same time.

 DANDIYA

Dandiyas are the most popular props that are used. The term Dandiya Rass is  what has got garba on global map ,thus these ornamental sticks made of metal, wood, plastic or even silver,are used to play dandiya. Then there are the Raja Rani dandiyas - which have beautiful doll figures carved onto them, which add a whole new level of charm to the dance. Played in twos, dandiya involves people moving in circles opposite each other, playing with different partners at the change of every beat.

MANJIRA

Majiras are fun to dance with and easy to carry around, they make sound when clinked . What more could one ask for from a dance prop!Women and men are seen  carrying huge manjiras on the garba grounds, clanking them to the pulse of the music, increasing and decreasing their pace with the rising tempo of the song.

UMBRELLAS

Beautifully decorated umbrellas are always a hit while playing garba, young and old impeccably dressed in garba attire, flaunt their stunning umbrellas matching them rhythmically with their steps as they sway to the beats of the dhol.

EARTHEN POTS

This prop is the most symbolic of the essence of the entire nine-day festival and signifies what Navratri actually stands for. The term garba comes from the word `garbha' meaning womb and the festival is all about celebrating embryonic life. A lamp is placed inside a perforated earthen pot to signify light within the womb representing the magic of life. Apart from this deep significance, these decorated, colourful and embellished clay pots also make extremely pretty props for the ones dancing! 

MANDAVI

An extension of the earthen pot, the mandavi is customarily a little canopy made of wood or bamboo that is covered in a red bandhani cloth. The lit earthen pot is placed inside this mandavi and women carry it on their heads and dance. the overall appearance of it is that of women carrying the garbha deep, placed safe within a temple, on their heads. Nowadays, manadvis with LED lamps in them, are much more of a safer option than playing with fire.