In the Indian sub-continent, big cats have a predominant but diverse cultural connection
between humans and their interactions with nature. Tribal communities have coexisted with
tigers since time immemorial and we can see this in examples such as the Kunubi tribes in
Karnataka who believe that tigers hold a divine status. There is a similar belief among the Warli
tribe in Maharashtra who revere big cats in the form of the deity Waghoba., while the Idu Mishmi
tribe in the Dibang valley of Arunachal Pradesh consider tigers to be their brothers. Other
communities revere the tiger as the vehicle of the mother goddess.
These cultural perceptions are often neglected when researching tigers and leopards, leading to the exclusion of local knowledge in conservation measures. There is a greater need for understanding the importance of human attitudes and being inclusive of the traditions of local communities and stakeholders. This led us on a journey to the cities of Mangalore and Udupi to better understand Hulivesha, its evolution and significance in today's world.
Tiger dance of Tulu Nadu
Hulivesha or pilivesha loosely translates as tiger dance, and is a traditional folk art of Tulu Nadu region (comprising Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts) of Karnataka. The dance is performed mainly during Krishna Janmashtami in Udupi district and Dushera in Mangalore. This dance form is part of the spectrum of folklore practiced to appease animal spirits. The stories about the origin of the dance form are multiple and diverse.
According to Kamalaksha Bajilkeri, one of the oldest pilivesha performers, this tradition has roots in the Bajilkeri, where the tiger, a vehicle of the Goddess Durga safeguards the town and repels diseases. Nagaraj, a local resident of Mangalore tells us that the dance would be performed as a victory dance by villagers who thwarted a tiger attack on their village. Another prominent veteran performer of pilivesha, Uday Kumar, associates the origin of the art form to a popularly accepted legend of a mother who sought the help of Goddess Mangala Devi to cure her disabled son and pledged to dress him as a tiger to dance in her presence to show gratitude. Another myth passed down is of how villagers prayed to the goddess to prevent tiger attacks on households with newborn babies, and those children who were spared, were dressed as tigers and performed the dance.
Post harvest tradition
Prof. Praveen Shetty of the Manipal Institute of Technology highlighted that there is no documented evidence of the origin of the folk dance, but one of the prominent myths is that people started performing Hulivesha as an attempt to familiarise local communities with tigers, and men from outside the community or village were asked to perform this dance. A more socio-economic explanation of the origin, highlighted by both patrons and performers, is that after the harvest, landless people would perform the dance by visiting the houses of the landed farmers to protect the harvest from tiger attacks. In return the performers were provided with money or grain, ensuring their sustenance through the non-agricultural season.
Whatever the reason for its origin, Hulivesha is part of the folk tradition to appease animal spirits and safeguard livestock and crops. This can be to express gratitude, or to abate the fear of the unknown and the wild. For agrarian communities surrounded by forests, wildlife, especially big cats, symbolise power and danger. Thus, the villagers dressing as tigers is also seen as symbolic of their strength, and surrender to the almighty to protect their farming animals. This folk dance has come to be an integral part of Tulu culture, dance costume and celebrations.
The performances were mainly localized, where each village had a distinct style and interpretation, and the focus was on storytelling through dance, heavily influenced by oral traditions and local legends. Hulivesha functioned as a vital community-based practice, with typical narratives depicting valour and the people’s connect to nature. This served not just as a form of entertainment but also provided a strong cultural identity.
Primarily associated with Karnataka, similar tiger dance forms exist in the neighbouring states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana, with each having their own variations, inspired by local deities, customs, and the biodiversity.
Changes over the years
Originally the dance was performed for a period of three days, with preparations starting about ten days before, and the performers abstaining from eating meat and staying away from their families. A troupe would consist of a maximum of three dancers, who would perform to the beats of a “taase” (a variant of drum found in Tulu Nadu). The dancers would perform to the rhythm of beating drums, and there were no formalised steps involved. This has now evolved to a dance troupe of 70 to 100 dancers performing in sync to a large band of numerous musical instruments. The performance now has been reduced to just a day and involves fire breathing, headstands and acrobatic movements preferred by the crowds of today. Another important feature of Hulivesha included the act of performers tossing a sheep over their head, using just their teeth. The practice has undergone a change in the last decade where the sheep has been replaced with a stack of rice, which is thrown over the head of the performer.
Similarly, the traditional way of decorating the performers has been completely given up. Uday Kumar, recalls that when he started performing, the practice was to fully shave the performers, followed by a bath using chickpea flour. After this, a mixture consisting of turmeric, ground charcoal, eggshells (to bring in the shine), lime, mud and other herbal roots and fungi was painted on the body in a vibrant base layer, on which stripes or dots were added. This would take a whole day, as each layer would be applied and allowed to dry before the next could be added. This would mean that performers had to stand in the same position for hours, testing their endurance and bringing a sense of sanctity towards the performers. The faces of the performers were painted at the end, and only a select few were allowed to see the process of painting the tiger’s face. This technique ensured that it would last for over a week on the bodies of the performers (throughout the Dushera celebrations). The performers would sleep on the leaves of Macaranga Peltata (Uppalige yele) placed on cut plantain leaves, which would act as cooling agents for the body heat generated due to the application of lime and other herbs.
Today this whole process is simplified with spray paint, which has ensured that performers can be ready in a relatively shorter time and the paint can be removed immediately after the performance.
Breaking barriers
Hulivesha has historically featured male performers who donned elaborate costumes and makeup, symbolising strength and ferocity of tigers. The performances emphasised masculinity, in both roles of the tiger and humans, reinforcing patriarchal values and traditional gender roles. In addition, young girls below the age of puberty were allowed to perform only. There has been a shift in this dynamic in the last decade, with women groups actively participating and performing Hulivesha and thus challenging the traditional system.
The first team to break barriers was the Bannanje Mahila Chande Balaga, an all-women troupe formed in Udupi about 15 years ago. The team faced a lot of resistance, but pushed ahead determinedly, says team leader Vidyalatha Shetty, in an article. The team trained under artists Jagdish Bannanje and Ashok Raj. They designed a new thick fur-like costume and became known as the Bannanje tiger team, performing only in temples. Another team that emerged over time, is Avghna Vyaghras where 4 to 20-year-old girls have trained and performed during Sri Krishna Janmashtami on the streets of Udupi, since 2018. These women groups have earned recognition and appreciation as they perform with the same rigour as men.
Hulivesha has become a matter of identity among the performing troupes. Traditionally in the agrarian community, performers would go house to house in the village collecting money and grains. This has seen a change, where the dance form has shifted to become an urban artform. Prof. Shetty observes that there are very few performances in the rural areas, with most performances now held in the cities of Mangalore and Udupi. This is due to the increasing size and cost of performances, the elaborate costumes, long periods of training, and the accompaniment of sophisticated musical bands. This has led to increased backing by businesses and even sponsorship by political parties. There is now a sense of equality among the performers across religious and socio-economic strata, as Hulivesha has become an inclusive practice where people across the community come together and participate.
New identity and purpose
With the modernisation of society and gradual disappearance of tigers from Tulu Nadu, the Hulivesha narrative has evolved from a celebration of harvest and the appeasing of local deities, to winning sponsorship and funding by businesses in a competitive manner between the teams. Hulivesha has now evolved to be associated with the cultural identity of the region (Tulu Nadu). We see an evolution in the portrayal of the tiger from the initial victory dance and reverence of the tiger's power and strength, to including the tigress with her cubs (appe huli atta) showcasing her protective nature. This new form of Hulivesha has also led to the performance taking precedence over the performer, as the individual artist has become a nonentity, especially with expansion and increasing number of teams. Thus, the artist has become faceless, and the art form has taken the face of popular entertainment.
Edited by Sheema Mookherjee
Special thanks: Rohan Sharma
