Young generation learning to play Hudko in Baitadi

By Gokarna Dayal,Baitadi, May 10: Three generations of Ganesh Damai of Baitadi have played Hudko, a traditional musical instrument.  

Sarada Damai, 70, has been providing training to her grandson Sahil Damai, 14, to dance to the beats of Hudko. Son Ganesh and daughter-in-law Pushpa have been helping train her grandson.   

Sarada Dami, a resident of Tripura of Dasharathchand Municipality-8, said “I did not want to forget the legacy of ancestors. There are no books from which I can teach the rhythm and lyrics of Hudko. So I am teaching my son and grandson the heroic stories like Hudko and Bhadaha on my own.”

Sarada said, “I have to hand over the craft that I learned during my lifetime to the new generation.”

Although Hudko is an invaluable culture in Sudurpashchim, it is impossible to survive relying on the traditional occupation alone. 

Although there has been widespread concern about the disappearance of Hudko, the concerned bodies have turned deaf ears to preserve them. 

Even in the curriculum prepared at the local level, there is no mention of Hudko, nor has the artist been introduced in the curriculum, said Ganesh Damai. 

He further said, “The practice of asking for grains in the rhythm of Hudko has disappeared among the new generation. Some elderly people have preserved the tradition of singing Chaitlo once a year. We have to do tailoring and work as daily wage labourers for survival.”

Bhadaha is the famous heroic saga of the Sudurpashchim, where the story of heroes on the battlefield is sung. It cannot be sung without a Hudko, but the new generation is hardly able to sing their traditional songs.