Khattak Dance

Khattak is a swift martial sword-dance performed by professional dancers from the Khattak tribe of Pashtuns in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

History of Khatak dance

A journalist of Pashtun origin, Amanullah Ghilzai, traced the roots of Khatak to an ancient Greek dance. According to his theory, Khatak, or Athan, is one of the earliest forms of the ancient Greek dance, Athena. The Greeks brought this dance with them to Bactria (ancient Afghanistan)

(Note by Zarin Khattak. Greeks were at Afghanistan for a war and their stay was too short. So it seems illogical. Russain’s stay at Afghanistan was more than a decade but no one adopted their dances. ath mean hand lath mean leg. athan is exercise of hand musscles so this make it Attanr.when a friend invite other to join him in dance he will say ” raza chi lasoona chag ko=let us raise hands”. In common Pashtu lathen mean donkey’s back leg strike . Poor foot performance is also called lathen.Attan have much similarity with caucasian dances)

Athan, or Attan, has been preserved in one of its earliest forms by members of the Khatak and other Pashtun tribes, including the Ghilzais. There are many regional variations of Athan. In ancient Greece, the dance Athena had the same definition and reverence attached to it as Pashtuns accord to Athan. Athena seems to have disappeared in Greece during the Christian era while Athan survived in Afghanistan and Pashtun parts of Pakistan

Details of the dance form

Khattak is a dance performed very quickly set to uptempo music featuring the piper, clarion, and drums beaten with sticks. Up to forty men dance together wielding swords or handkerchiefs and performing acrobatic feats. The fast tempo of Khattak distinguishes it from other Atanr, which start slow and pick up speed as the dance progresses.

The Khattak dance has a lot of forms: Shahdola, Bangra, Balballah, Qamar Balbala , chatrali, braghda’ona, tamseeli dana ,charri dana and indiviual performance.

Bangra is derived from word Bangrai or Bhangrai (Bengal). This dance have to performed in circle. Bird view of performance look like Bengal so this is why it is called Bangra or Bhangra. this is merely war exercise to warm up body muscles it is slow in rhythm and with pauses to hold sword like today soldiers hold rifle in Musketry.In the Bangra, every member swirls while carrying swords. In 1-3 circles of unlimited number of elder’s young and children, each carrying a sword and a handkerchief, start dancing in circle having band andsurnai in the centre,At the beginning of Bhangra , few performers turn by turn sing love songs or quotations which is called “Takkay” (5-7 Takkay by each, Takkay is commonly popular in sheep herders, they sit on the hills and sing on the top of hill with high pitch, if someone there on other hill he will reply the Takkay in return and some play it with their floats ), at a high pitch, which is meant to convey to the audience that they would like to be tipped for their performance. At the end of the song, the drumbeat increases and the dance goes on.

Balbala is performed immediately by the same group stage with fast rhythm to swet up body. Balballa is staged without swords. while Qamar balbala is exercise to get control on stepping and stable the body balance at the top of hill and it is performed with swords. sword is used to keep balance while moving quickly on uneven surface of the hill.

individual performance of Khattak dance comprises 12 steps, which require great skill on the part of the dancers. The dancer alternates between performing solo and synchronizing with the rest of the troupe. groups of 2 or four performers,carrying a sword and a handkerchief,perform turn by turn. while the rest of the troupe members wait for their turn. In the Laila, a group of four performers holding two swords each perform stunts while moving in a circle.

Braghoni is the fastest and the most adventurous of all the steps: A single dancer performs with three swords. He swings two swords in the air while holding the third in his mouth.