Paiki dance
Folk dance of Jharkhand, Odisha and Chhattisgarh / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Paiki (also known as Painki and Paika) is a Sadani Nagpuri martial folk dance of the Chotanagpur plateau region of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Odisha.[1][2][3][4] In the dance, people wear dhoti, a turban with peacock feathers in it. They hold sword in their right hand, a shield in their left hand and dance to the tune of musical instruments of Nagara, Dhak, Shehnai and Narsingh.[3][5] It is done by men and reflect valour. It is performed at weddings and functions.[6][7] Paik were foot soldiers during medieval period.[5][6] It is primarily performed by Rautia, who used to be soldiers during reign of Nagvanshi dynasty in Chotanagpur.[1] It is also performed by some Munda tribe in Khunti and Mayurbhanj district.[8][9]