With the advent of autumn and until April, Purulia district, to the west of West Bengal, wakes up to a flurry of travellers who come here to enjoy the scenic Ajodhya Pahar, the dams, and thearchitectural legacy.

The district is also home to the Purulia style of Chhau dance, a legacy it shares with Jharkhand and Odisha.

Chhau, which was inscribed on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2010, has three distinct styles, identified by the places they originate from, namely, Purulia (West Bengal), Seraikela (Jharkhand), and Mayurbhanj (Odisha); the first two known for their use of masks.

Skill Development Centre and Chhau Museum, Bamania.

The Museum

Located in the Bamania (Bamnia) village of Jhalda II subdivision, the museum is said to be the first of its kind, showcasing the history and legacy of the traditional Chhau dance.

Spearheaded by banglanatak dot com, a social enterprise working across India, the museum is part of the Chhau Skill Development Centre, a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) project of Coal India Limited.

Renowned chhau artist and local resident Binadhar Kumar donated the land for the skill development centre and the museum.

Veteran Chhau artist and Sangeet Natak Akademi awardee Bhuban Kumar is also from this village.

Artefacts inside the Chhau Museum.

Apart from text panels and photographs, the museum displays artefacts, such as masks, dresses, musical instruments, etc.

The museum remains open between 10am and 6pm, free entry; photography is allowed but it is desirable to obtain permission.

The skill development centre, in line with banglanatak’s aim to foster inclusive and sustainable development using culture-based approaches, will help the active performers of Chhau as well as novices to hone their proficiency through training and workshops among other things, and is a key step to enhance Purulia's rural economy through Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) based tourism.

A bird's eye view of Bamania.

Getting There

Bamania is about 40km away by road from Purulia town (a convenient base to explore the district and connected by road and rail with Kolkata).

The quaint village of Bamania is an example of typical rural Bengal and often a photographers’ delight (but remember to ask for permission before taking pictures of people and their homes).

The museum can be added to the trip to Murguma Dam (about 15km away from here by road) and Charida village (about 40km away), the latter home to Chhau mask makers.

Also known as Mukhosh Gram (mask village), the craftspeople not only make the elaborate masks for performing artists but also miniature versions which can be bought as souvenirs or decorative artefacts.

(Images: banglanatak dot com)