Dandari-Gussadi, Adilabad’s tribal festival, blends culture and matrimonial traditions

The Dandari-Gussadi festival in Adilabad is a vibrant celebration of tribal culture, dance, and matchmaking. Unmarried men perform traditional dances to attract prospective brides, while rituals and skits reflect both heritage and contemporary issues.

Adilabad: The annual Dandari-Gussadi festival, a major cultural and religious event for tribal communities, also provides an opportunity for unmarried tribal youth to find life partners and take a step into married life.

Tribal habitations across the erstwhile Adilabad district have been witnessing grand dance performances by troupes to songs and drumbeats since Wednesday, as Adivasis celebrate the Dandari-Gussadi festival during Diwali. Elders say the festival remains an ideal platform for bachelors to win the hearts of prospective brides.

Opportunity for bachelors

According to tribal elders, the five-day festival allows unmarried men to attract the attention of girls from nearby villages by showcasing their dancing skills. Interested girls, known as Porikal, observe the performance, which continues through the night and into the following day, and indicate their interest. The mothers then finalise alliances with prospective grooms once the festival concludes.

During the festival of lights, the enthusiasm for the Dandari-Gussadi dance spreads across Adivasi habitations in the highlands of Adilabad. Tribals, including Raj Gonds and Kolams, perform traditional rituals to mark the start of the dance season, worshipping peacock crowns and the musical instruments used by dance troupes.

The tribes also perform skits reflecting contemporary socio-economic issues, portraying characters who exploit or harass Adivasis. The festival concludes with a Lakshmi Puja, revering the goddess of wealth, coinciding with Diwali. Male dance troupes conclude visits to neighbouring villages after Diwali, while female troupes then begin their performances.

As per Gond and Kolam traditions, men, including eligible bachelors, become Ghusarks or Gussadi Tado by performing unique rituals. They wear a Gussadi Topi, a large headgear made of about 1,500 peacock feathers, locally called mal boora, and form a dance troupe known as Dandari.

These troupes visit neighbouring villages at the invitation of community members, performing the Gussadi dance at the residence of the Patel, the village elder. Unmarried youngsters from the troupes often find potential brides through their skillful dance displays.

The festival thus remains both a celebration of tribal culture and a social platform for forming matrimonial alliances among Adivasi youth.