KUMUD JENAMANI
Jamshedpur, Oct 9: Percussion of ‘dhaks’ (traditional drum of Bengal and Assam) happen to be an essential part in celebrating Durga Puja, especially at the public Puja organised by Bengalis.
But this time dhak is playing a vanishing act at most of the Puja pandals in the steel city, causing the ‘dhakies’ (the performers of dhaks) to get disappointed.
Several teams of dhakies who used to be booked by the Puja organisers in and around the steel city are sitting in despair outside the Tatanagar railway station with their instruments.
Having travelled from the bordering districts of Bengal and also Chakulia the dhakies are anticipating some Puja organiser or the other may come to pick them up for performing in the grand Puja, though it has been too late by now.
Those waiting outside the Tatanagar railway station were contemplating to return back home by any local train if they are not booked till late in the night.
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No bookings despite reduced rates
One of dhakies, Gautam Rana, said his team was not booked despite he had reduced the rate considerably.
“We came here on Tuesday night only hoping that some Puja organiser or the other will book us like earlier. One of the organisers had contacted us this morning. But the organiser asked to perform at half the cost this time. We refused to do so. Since then we are sitting outside the railway station, ” narrated Gautam Rana while talking to The Jharkhand Story.
Rana who hails from Chakulia pointed out that last year they had taken Rs 16,000 for performing at a Puja pandal in Parsudih.
“Having sensed a drop in the demand for dhakies, we reduced our rate from Rs 16,000 to Rs 13,000. But the organiser who had contacted us this morning asked to do the job by accepting Rs 7,000 only. As the amount offered to us was too little for performing continuously for four consecutive days, we had to refuse the offer, ” said Rana.
Generally, three or four drummers happen to be in a team of dhaki. Like Gautam Rana, several other teams were seen sitting on the ground near the Tatanagar railway station with their dhaks kept beside them.
