很多人對印度的德瓦達西(Devadasi)好奇, 下面是一段大約在1930年左右的二位德瓦達西的影片, 當時這兩位跳得像是婆羅多舞.
Devadasi 在梵文的意思是<神的女僕>, 在6世紀和13世紀之間， 德瓦達西在社會中享有很高的地位和尊嚴，並且非常富裕，被視為音樂和舞蹈的保護者。 在此期間，皇家貴族向他們提供土地，財產和珠寶等禮物。
據信，據信這兩位舞者隨後被派往Tanjavur Maratha嫁給神。德瓦達西實際上指一個寺廟舞者，他一生虔誠奉獻於寺廟。
Have you seen Devadasi* artists performing Sadir, the dance form that was the forerunner of today’s Bharatanatyam? Here is a very rare clip that has a performance by two hereditary Sadir artists, taken from the silent documentary film, “Maharanee of Baroda” available in British Pathé, the world’s leading historical multimedia resource. This film is dated to have shot between 1930-1935** in the palace grounds of the Maharaja of Baroda. These two artists are believed to have been sent there as dowry from the Tanjavur Maratha court.
The Marathas, warriors from Maharashtra, ruled over the city of Tanjavur between the 17th and 19th centuries. When Sir Sayajirao Gaekwad III was ruling Baroda, he married Princess Maharani Chimnabai of Tanjore. The queen Chimnabai brought the music and art group from Tanjore to Baroda in the 19th century.
The performance has a live musical ensemble consisting of a mridangam player, a harmonium player, two nattuvanars and a tutti artist standing behind the dancers. They are doing an Alarippu that is very similar in content and form to today’s Alarippu of Bharatanatyam. Only the style of presentation looks distinct. Though the clip here shows only this, the performance is longer and goes on for another 4 minutes.
* a loose term today used to call all hereditary dancers before the revival period (1930s). A Devadasi actually means a temple dancer who has devoted her life to the diety in the temple.
**This is the date mentioned in Brish Pathé. But there are theories that it is older, shot even before, in 1926 itself.
