Jaago is a traditional dance of
Punjab, performed on the night before the wedding. ‘Jaago’ literally means ‘wake up’ referring to the night of joy and celebration.
The Jaago dance involves the female relatives of the bridegroom. The women prepare a ‘jaago’ which is a pot containing several rows of lamps molded from the dough of wheat flour. Oil or ghee is used in these lamps, lighted with cotton wicks.
The pot is carried by the bridegroom’s mother and his brother’s wife led by other relatives. The group roams about the village in a festive mood of dancing and singing. They visit each house in the village and perform the ‘gidha’ dance. The residents of the house gift the group in a symbolic manner with food, grain and ghee.
The songs sung while dancing involve social themes, often containing some elements of satire aimed at the elders.
