Gurja villagers preserving art, culture

Thakur Prasad Acharya,Myagdi, May 3: Gurja village in Myagdi is rich in original art, culture and lifestyle. It is said that around 700 years ago, the Chhantyals came to Myagdi from Sinja, Jumla, searching for mining.

Gurja is a remote settlement of Dhaulagiri Rural Municipality-1. The settlement is popular for the houses of traditional style. 

There is a large population of Chhantyal in the village of Gurja. A popular proverb goes about Gurja there is no place above the Tuppi (pigtail), there is no village above Gurja'.

Among 270 households of Gurja, 185 households belong to Chantyals.

The original art and culture of the Chhantyal are still alive in Gurja.

 Gurja has not yet been touched by modern customs and cultures. 

'Purkhyauli' (traditional) dance, which is the main culture of Chhantyals, is still alive and the people of the older generation have handed the traditional dance to the young generation. 

The young generation is also involved in the preservation of the original culture.

Hini Chhantyal, an 80-year-old local, said, "We have also taught the culture that we learned from our ancestors to the younger generation." I am worried that our original art and culture will disappear with the development of modern information and technology."

Bhim Bahadur Chhantyal, vice president of the Gurja Purkhyauli Dance Group, said that when the eldest son of a family turns three years old, 'Purpuro' Dance’ is performed in the village. Likewise,  'Khyali dance' is shown during the festivals like Dashain and Tihar. 

Vice President Chhantyal said, "We have also taught the young generation to prevent our culture from disappearing. We have also taught our children and daughters-in-law who come to our house after marriage to save the original art culture of the Chhantyal."

"To save our ancestral culture from extinction, we, the young generation, are also involved in its conservation," said 22-year-old local Sushmita Chhantyal, "I am proud of our ancestral culture. I learned traditional dance from my parents. The responsibility of protecting the original art culture is on our shoulders.”

Another 26-year-old youth, Resham Chhantyal, also said that he has been perform traditional dance for a year. He said, "I have learned traditional dance from our leading artists."

They dress up in traditional costumes and dance and sing.

Ward chairman Jhaka Bahadur Chhantyal said that the traditional culture, originality, lifestyle, language and dress of the Chhantyals of Gurja are still in use as in the past.

 He said that the original culture, language and costumes should be included in the school curriculum to save it from extinction, he added.