Culture of Maharashtra

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Ganesh Chaturthi, a popular festival in the state

Maharashtra is the third largest state of India. It has a long history of Marathi saints of Varakari religious movement, such as Dnyaneshwar, Namdev, Chokhamela, Eknath and Tukaram which forms the one of bases of the culture of Maharashtra or Marathi culture.[1] Maharashtra had huge influence over India under the 17th-century king Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj of the Maratha Empire and his concept of Hindavi Swarajya which translates to self-rule of people.[2]

The state of Maharashtra spans multiple cultures which includes cultures related to Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, Sikhs, Christians, etc. Lord Ganesha, Maruti, Mahadeo in form of Shivlinga, Khandoba , Kalubai devi, and Lord Vitthal are some of the deities worshipped by Hindus of Maharashtra.

Maharashtra is divided into various regions, such as Marathwada, Vidarbha, Khandesh, and Konkan. Each has its own cultural identity in the form of different dialects of Marathi language,[3] folk songs, food, and ethnicity.

Overview[]

Statue of Shivaji opposite to Gateway of India in South Mumbai
Ambedkar Jayanti procession at Chaitya Bhoomi, Mumbai

About 79% of Maharashtrians are Hindu, and there are significant Muslim, Christian and Buddhist minorities.[4] The Maharashtrian culture consists of people from all a vast majority of religions. Due to it being huge areawise, many sub-regional cultures also exist in Maharashtra. The sub region of Vidarbha, was earlier a part of Madhya Pradesh, hence it has that influence upon its culture.[5] There are many temples in Maharashtra, some of which are thousands of years old. These temples are constructed in a fusion of architectural styles borrowed from North and South India. The temples also blend themes from Hindu, Buddhist and Jain cultures. The temple of Vitthal at Pandharpur is the most important temple for the Varkari sect. Other important religious places are the Ashtavinayaka temples of Lord Ganesha, Bhimashankar which is one of the Jyotirling (12 important Shiva temples).[6][7]

Near Aurangabad are UNESCO World Heritage Sites and famous tourist attractions.[8][9] Mughal architecture can be seen in the tomb of the wife of Aurangzeb called Bibi Ka Maqbara located at Aurangabad.[10] Mumbai is the capital of Maharashtra and has humid climate throughout the year. The Gateway Of India, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, Shaniwar Wada, Agakhan Palace and Deekshabhoomi are some of the historical monuments.

Maharashtra has a large number of hill, land and sea forts.Forts have played an important role in the history of Maharashtra since the time of the Shivaji.Some of the important forts in Maharashtra are Shivneri, Raigad, Vijaydurg, Pratapgad, Sinhagad.The majority of the forts in Maharashtra are found along the coastal region of Konkan and the adjoining Sahyadri ranges.[11]

Religions, castes and sects[]

Religion[]

Main article: Religion in Maharashtra
Household shrine in a Maharashtrian home

Marathi Hindus revere many religious figures. Among the figures who originated in the region are Banka Mahar, Bhagu, Damajipanth, Kanhopatra, Karmamelam, Nirmala, Sadna, Sakhubai, Satyakam Jabali and Soyarabai.[12]

According to the 2011 census, Hinduism was the principal religion in the state at 79.83% of the total population, while Muslims constituted 11.54% of the total population. Maharashtra has the India's largest Buddhist and Jain populations. Buddhism accounted for 6% in Maharashtra's total population, with 6.53 million followers, which is 77% of all Buddhists in India. Jains, Christians and Sikhs constituted 1.2%, 1.0%, 0.2% of the population respectively.[13]

Caste[]

The traditional caste hierarchy was headed by the Brahmin castes-the Saraswats, Deshasthas, Chitpavans, Karhades, and the Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhus.[14] In Mumbai during British rule, this included the Pathare Prabhu and the Daivadnyna Brahmin communities.[15][16][17] The Marathas are 32% in Western Maharashtra and the Kunbis were 7%, whereas the Other Backward Class population (other than the Kunbi) was 27%. The other castes in the intermediate category include: Gujjars and Rajputs who migrated centuries ago to Maharashtra from northern India - and settled in north Maharashtra. The population of the Mahars was 8%.[18]

Lifestyle[]

The people of Maharashtra have a rich traditional heritage. Maharashtrians have a very simple life style and believe in hard working.[citation needed][peacock term]The Marathas of the state do not believe in having too many spacious palaces and mansions in-fact these people have lived a hard life and were inclined towards freedom struggle.[citation needed] The rustic lifestyle of the people can also be observed in the country-side of the state where people have a belief on universal cult of brotherhood, where the people of all religions lives as a one community.[citation needed] A place where the revered saints like Sai Baba, Osho and Haji Ali preached the religion of peace and prosperity.[citation needed][peacock term] The people of the state wear different colorful types of costumes, and there is variation in dance and music according to people's specific localities. Dance forms like Powada, Banjara Holi Dance, Lavani, and Koli are popular in Maharashtra.[19]

Clothing[]

Maharashtrian women in traditional attire

Traditional clothes for Maharashtrian males include the dhoti, also known as Dhotar, and pheta, while a choli and nine-yard saree locally known as Nauwari saadi or Lugda is for women. Traditional clothing is famous in rural areas while traditional people from cities also wear these clothing. These clothes are worn by Maharashtrians while performing various festivals.[20]

Cuisine[]

Main article: Maharashtrian cuisine
Vada Pav is one of the original dishes of Maharashtra.
Pav Bhaji

Marathi cuisine is the cuisine of the Marathi people from the Indian state of Maharashtra. It has distinctive attributes, while sharing much with other Indian cuisines. Traditionally, Maharashtrians have considered their food to be more austere than others.

Maharashtrian cuisine includes mild and spicy dishes. Peanuts and cashews are often served with vegetables. Meat was traditionally used sparsely or only by the well off until recently, because of economic conditions and culture.

Distinctly Maharashtrian dishes include pitla, bhakri, bharleli vangi, ukdiche modak, aluchi patal bhaji, thalipeeth, pav bhaji, Puran Poli, shrikhand, basundi, vada pav, nashik chi misal pav, and Mumbai chaat. Puneri missal, nagpuri, sambar vada, and selucha chanaare also considered to have originated from Maharashtra.[21]

The Konkan, Varadi, Agri and khandeshi cuisines are popular with tourists. The specialty dishes of Maharashtran cuisines are often strong in pepper and spice with a twist of curry leaves, coconut and peanuts; well-known dishes include vada pav, misal pav and Mumbai chaat and puneri missal, selucha chana.[21]

Typical breakfast items include misal, pohe, upma, sheera, sabudana khichadi and thalipeeth. In some households leftover rice from the previous night is fried with onions, turmeric and mustard seeds for breakfast, making phodnicha bhat. Typical Western breakfast items such as cereals, sliced bread and eggs, as well as South Indian items such as idli and dosa are also popular. Tea or coffee is served with breakfast.

Urban lunch and dinner menus[]

A Maharashtrian vegetarian meal with a variety of items Vegetarian lunch and dinner plates in urban areas carry a combination of:

  • Wheat flatbread such as round chapati or ghadichi poli (layered triangular chapati)
  • Boiled rice
  • Salad or koshimbir based on onions, tomatoes or cucumber
  • Papad or related snacks such as sandge, kurdaya and sabudana papdya
  • Dry or fresh chutney, mango or lemon pickles
  • Aamti or varan soup based on toor dal, other dals or kadhi. When usal is part of the menu, the aamti may be omitted.
  • Vegetables with gravy based on seasonal availability such as egg plants, okra, potatoes, or cauliflower
  • Dry leafy vegetables such as spinach
  • Usal based on sprouted or unsprouted whole legumes

Apart from bread, rice, and chutney, other items may be substituted. Families that eat meat, fish and poultry may combine vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes, with rice and chapatis remaining the staples. Vegetable or non-vegetable items are essentially dips for the bread or for mixing with rice.

Traditional dinner items are arranged in a circular way. With salt placed at 12 o'clock, pickles, koshimbir and condiments are placed anti-clockwise of the salt. Vegetable preparations are arranged in a clockwise fashion with a sequence of leafy greens curry, dry vegetables, sprouted been curry (usal ) and dal. Rice is always on the periphery rather than in the center.

Rural lunch and dinner menus[]

A typical simple Maharashtrian meal with bhaaji, bhakari, raw onion and pickle. In the Konkan coastal area, boiled rice and rice bhakri, nachni bhakri is the staple, with a combination of the vegetable and non-vegetable dishes described in the lunch and dinner menu.

In other areas of Maharashtra such as Desh, Khandesh, Marathwada and Vidarbha, the traditional staple was bhakri with a combination of dal, and vegetables. The bhakri is increasingly replaced by wheat-based chapatis.

Architecture[]

Main article: Architecture of Maharashtra


Fair and festivals[]

Gudhi Padwa is one of the most important festival of Maharashtra

Gudhi Padwa is also important festival in Maharashtra. It is the first day of the Hindu year. Gudhi is symbol-characterized by bamboo stick with a coloured silk cloth and garlanded with flowers and sweet a top. Ganesh Chaturthi is the most important festival in Maharashtra. It is celebrated for ten days with huge fun fare.[22]

Banganga Festival, Bhaubeej, Elephanta Festival, Ellora Festival, Ganga Dashahara, Jivti Puja, Kalidas Festival, Kojagiri Pournima, Maharashtra Day, Naga Panchami, Narali Pournima, Pola, Shiv Jayanti and Vat Pournima are some of the important festival of Maharashtra.[23]

Sport[]

Main article: Sports in Maharashtra

Sports is an important part of the culture of Maharashtra. Kabaddi, hockey, kho kho, badminton, and table tennis are the popular sports in the state.[24] The wrestling championship like Hind Kesari, Maharashtra Kesari are very popular in the rural regions of Maharashtra.[25] The cricket craze can be seen throughout Maharashtra, as it is the most widely followed and played sport.[26] Maharashtra has produced many Iconic cricketers of India lsuch as Sachin Tendulkar and Sunil Gavaskar.[25] Children's games, including gilli-danda and pakada-pakadi (tag), are also played in Maharashtra. Horse riding, wrestling, fencing, archery, and shooting were popular among the former rulers of Maharashtra.[24][27] Maharashtra has various domestic-level, franchise-based leagues for hockey, chess, tennis, and badminton.

The Sporting activities in Maharashtra are governed by the Commissioner of Sports and Youth Services, Pune.

Performing arts[]

Music[]

Main article: Music of Maharashtra

Lavani, Powada and Tamasha are the most popular folk songs in Maharashtra. Bhaleri, a folk song is sung to cheer the farmers in Maharashtra. Village women of Maharashtra sing a folk song called Owi describing husband's home. Suvasinis sing folks songs at the halad and ghana ceremonies in a marriage. Palane is a lullaby in Maharashtra.

Bhajan, Bharud, Gondhal, Kirtan, Lalita, Abhangas and Tumbadi singing are the other forms of community. Entertainment based on folk songs found in Maharashtra.[28]

Dance[]

Lavani, a traditional dance of Maharashtra

The folk music and dances of Maharashtra are Koli, Powada, Banjara Holi and Lavani dance. Lavani dance form showcases many topics such as romance, tragedy, politics, society,etc. The word 'Lavani' derived from Marathi word Lavanya meaning beautiful and beauty. Powada dance form shows achievements of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Koli dance originated from Fishermen community of Maharashtra.[29]

Theatre[]

Main article: Marathi theatre
A Marathi theatrical group, Mumbai, 1870.

It was starting in the middle of the 19th century, it flourished in the 1950s and 1960s, and includes forms like Sangeet Natak (Musical drama) and Tamasha (folk dance). Today, it continues to have a marked presence in the State of Maharashtra with a loyal audience base, when most theatre in other parts of India have had tough time facing the onslaught of cinema and television. Its repertoire ranges from humorous social plays, farces, historical plays, musical, to experimental plays and serious drama of the 1970s onwards, by Vijay Tendulkar, P. L. Deshpande, Mahesh Elkunchwar and Satish Alekar, which have influenced theatre throughout India.[30] In the post-independence era, Bengali theatre, and Marathi theatre have been at the forefront of innovations and significant dramaturgy in Indian theatre.[31]

Cinema[]

Main article: Marathi cinema
Raja Harishchandra

Marathi cinema is the oldest form of Indian cinema.[32] The first Marathi movie released in India was Shree Pundalik by Dadasaheb Torne on 18 May 1912 at Coronation Cinematograph, Mumbai.[33]

Dadasaheb Phalke is known as the first pioneer and founder of cinema in pre-Independence India. He brought the revolution of moving images to India with his first indigenously made film Raja Harishchandra in 1913, which is considered by IFFI and NIFD as part of Marathi cinema as it used Marathi dialogues while shooting and had a fully Marathi crew.[34]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ "Sant Bhumi Maharashtra". Archived from the original on 21 November 2015. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
  2. ^ "Shivaji Maharaj, Founder and an Ideal ruler of Hindavi Swarajya". Retrieved 21 November 2015.
  3. ^ "Languages in Maharashtra".
  4. ^ "Maharashtra latest caste/religionwise population demographics". July 2016. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  5. ^ "Important facts about Vidarbha".
  6. ^ "Temples of Maharashtra". Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  7. ^ "Top 12 Shiva temples in Maharashtra". Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  8. ^ "Ajanta Caves". Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  9. ^ "Ellora Caves". Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  10. ^ "Bibi Ka Maqbara". Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  11. ^ "Top 25 monuments in Maharashtra". Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  12. ^ Shepherd, P. 111 Gurus Rediscovered:
  13. ^ "Population by religion community – 2011". Census of India, 2011. The Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Archived from the original on 25 August 2015.
  14. ^ Sharmila Rege (2013). Writing Caste/Writing Gender: Narrating Dalit Women's Testimonies. Zubaan Books. p. 28. The traditional caste hierarchy was headed by the brahmin castes-the deshasthas, chitpavans, karhades saraswats and the chandraseniya kayastha prabhus.
  15. ^ Rosenzweig, Mark; Munshi, Kaivan (September 2006). "Traditional Institutions Meet the Modern World: Caste, Gender, and Schooling Choice in a Globalizing Economy". American Economic Review. 96 (4): 1225–1252. doi:10.1257/aer.96.4.1225. (page 1228)High castes include all the Brahmin jatis, as well as a few other elite jatis (CKP and Pathare Prabhus). Low castes include formerly untouchable and backward castes (Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Castes, as defined by the government of India). Medium castes are drawn mostly from the cultivator jatis, such as the Marathas and the Kunbis, as well as other traditional vocations that were not considered to be ritually impure.
  16. ^ Bidyut Chakrabarty (2003). "Race, caste and ethnic identity". Communal Identity in India: Its Construction and Articulation in the Twentieth Century. Oxford University Press. p. 138. ISBN 978-0195663303. Of the six groups, four are Brahmins; one is high non-brahmin caste, Chandraseniya Kayashth Prabhu (CKP), ranking next only to the Brahmins; and the other is a cultivating caste, Maratha (MK), belonging to the middle level of the hierarchy.
  17. ^ V. B. Ghuge (1994). Rajarshi Shahu: a model ruler. kirti prakashan. p. 20. In the Hindu social hierarchy the privileged classes were Brahmins, CKP's and others. Similarly, other elite classes were Parsis and Europeans.
  18. ^ Christophe Jaffrelot; Sanjay Kumar, eds. (2009). Rise of the Plebeians?: The Changing Face of the Indian Legislative Assemblies (Exploring the Political in South Asia). Routledge India. p. 216,217. ISBN 9781136516627.
  19. ^ "Folk dance forms of Maharashtra". Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  20. ^ "Vidhi Jhaveri" (August 2017). "Traditional Maharashtrian dresses". Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  21. ^ Jump up to: a b "Food diaries: Maharashtra food and cuisine". Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  22. ^ "Festivals of Maharashtra". www.maharashtraweb.com. Retrieved 2021-07-29.
  23. ^ "Maharashtra Festivals - Festivals of Maharashtra India, Popular Festivals & Fairs in Maharashtra". maharashtratourism.net. Retrieved 2021-07-29.
  24. ^ Jump up to: a b "Sports of Maharashtra". Indfy.com. 2011-10-04. Archived from the original on 2013-11-01. Retrieved 2013-10-20.
  25. ^ Jump up to: a b "Culture of Maharashtra - Sovereign Maharashtra". Maharashtramaza.info. Archived from the original on 2013-10-20. Retrieved 2013-10-20.
  26. ^ "'Parallel Journeys' - Celebrating Indian cricket craze - CoolAge". Coolage.in. Archived from the original on 2013-10-20. Retrieved 2013-10-20.
  27. ^ "History of Maharashtra". Scribd.com. 2010-11-20. Retrieved 2013-10-20.
  28. ^ "Folk Music of Maharashtra-Bhaleri-Palane". Maharashtratourism. Retrieved 2021-07-28.
  29. ^ "Culture of Maharashtra - Festivals, Art & Traditions - Holidify". www.holidify.com. Retrieved 2021-07-28.
  30. ^ "Modern Marathi theatre had milestones, limitations." The Times of India. 7 June 2011. Archived from the original on 7 May 2013.
  31. ^ Rubin, p. 196
  32. ^ Goldsmith, Melissa U. D.; Willson, Paige A.; Fonseca, Anthony J. (2016-10-07). The Encyclopedia of Musicians and Bands on Film. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. pp. XXVI. ISBN 978-1-4422-6987-3.
  33. ^ Kadam, Kumar (24 April 2012). "दादासाहेब तोरणेंचे विस्मरण नको!". Archived from the original on 8 October 2013.
  34. ^ "Marathi cinema can surpass Hindi cinema". Yahoo. Archived from the original on 12 February 2010. Retrieved 2 December 2010.
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