Firkal----A Decaying Tribal Warrior Dance

Those days are over, Firkal- a traditional dance of Bhumij tribe is not heard any more any where in Ajodhya hill tracts. Old tribal  only retrieve their past memories. They say Firkal was a colorful event to them , specifically  on the day of Akhan jatra.  Akhan Jatra is the first day of Mundari almanac.  Earlier,on that  day Bhumijs used   propitiate their Goddess,local deities and took blessings for the dance.
Firkal is basically  a folk-dance of  showing the power of  Bhumij under odds. Needless, this dance is male oriented and a martial art  from time immemorial.  No history,documents are there relating to its origin.The main instruments of Firkal  are swords, arrows, bows and shields. The themes of the dance correspond to their livelihood  styles.  Manik Majhi - an old resident of Silli adjacent to Baghmundi said " In firkal dance, we used to wear traditional attires made of  leaves woven by the family members, dancers use  to paint their  body with natural colors, heads were covered by turbans  and tied with peacock's  feathers,  they all  used to assemble in the Akhra to perform the hunting dance . It was a collective dance, symbolizing the collective hunting process. The dance used to get its high pitch with the beating of Dhols and Madals. In fact how wild animals were haunted in the dense jungles, how did we capture wild animals and did we come back home with animals for feast were displayed through the dance."
Another fellow, Gobinda Sing uttered " We were the warrior of Chotonagpur plateau. Fighting with invaders or Dikus were always there. Thus, the glory of our bravery were represented through Firkal. We used to show our strength to the generation through our bravery actions.".

Spectrum,Sunday, November 20, 2011 mentioned

 "firkal is very much a living art form. It is a martial dance performed by the Bhumij tribes of the Chhota Nagpur area in Jharkhand and is much older than kalaripayattu and other martial art forms like that of Manipur, and even those whose origins can be traced to China and Japan.

The only distressing part is that firkal survives in just one obscure village, Janumdih, of Potka block in East Singhbhum district of Jharkhand. No more than 25 Bhumij families are holding on to it, little knowing that after them, there will be nobody to take the tradition forward."

 Firkal, even though an endangered tribal art form, has received very little support or encouragement from any quarter. With the number of families performing it dwindling, the art could very well have become extinct by now. Says Amitabh Ghosh of TCCAF: "Unlike other martial art forms in the country, Firkal did not receive any help or patronage. Gradually, with the passage of time, it virtually died for want of resources."