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Dhunuchi naach for beginners

At evening arati, when the dhak speeds up, people step forward with clay burners full of smoking coconut husk and dance. It looks effortless. It isn't, but you can learn the basics in an evening, safely.

What's in the dhunuchi

A dhunuchi is a small clay incense burner with a cup on a short stem. It's filled with dried coconut husk, lit until it glows, and sprinkled with dhuno, a resin that gives the thick, fragrant smoke. The burner gets hot. Very hot.

Safety first

• Hold it by the stem or base, never the cup. Many dancers wrap a folded handkerchief or gamchha around the stem.
• Tie back loose hair and dupattas, and tuck the end of your saree or dhoti so nothing swings into the burner.
• Keep a clear circle of at least two arm-lengths around you. If the crowd closes in, stop.
• Children watch, adults dance, unless a grown-up is right beside them.
• When you finish, hand the dhunuchi back or set it down on the floor, not on cloth or a plastic chair.

The basic grip and stance

1. Feet hip-width apart, knees soft. Your feet do very little; the movement comes from your arms and waist.
2. Hold the dhunuchi in your right hand at chest height, arm relaxed, elbow down.
3. Look at the idol, not the burner. Dhunuchi naach is an offering of the smoke to the Goddess.

Four moves to start with

1. The offering circle. Move the dhunuchi in slow clockwise circles in front of you, in time with the boom of the dhak. This is the arati movement everything else grows from.
2. The sway. Keep circling and add a gentle side-to-side sway from the waist, stepping right–left on every second beat.
3. The switch. When you're comfortable, pass the dhunuchi from right hand to left in front of your chest on a strong beat, and keep circling with the left.
4. The turn. Raise the dhunuchi above your head and turn a slow full circle on the spot. Bring it down as the dhak lands on a boom.

Dancing with the dhak

The dhaki leads and you follow. Arati usually starts slow and steady, then builds. Match your circles to the big booms, add the sway when the rhythm settles, and save turns for when it gets fast. When the dhaki gives that final flurry, finish with the dhunuchi raised towards the Goddess.

Practise at home with an empty, cold dhunuchi or a small steel bowl, playing the Dhak Studio's Dhunuchi rhythm. Once the moves feel natural, light it up at the pandal.

Two-dhunuchi and mouth-held tricks

You'll see experienced dancers holding two or three burners at once, or even one in the mouth. Leave these to people who have practised for years; they're the cause of most dhunuchi burns.