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What is the dhak?

The dhak is a large, barrel-shaped drum that Bengal hears only a few times a year. When it starts, Pujo has started.

The drum

A dhak is a wooden barrel with an animal-skin head stretched across each end and tightened with leather or rope lacing. It is heavy enough that the player, the dhaki, hangs it from his neck or shoulder by a strap or rests it on his knee, and plays one head with a pair of thin sticks. The top is usually decorated with a tall spray of white feathers that sways with every beat, which is why the dhak looks as festive as it sounds.

The dhakis

Most dhakis come from villages in rural Bengal, often from families that have played for generations. In the days before Pujo, many travel to the cities, and committees come looking for a dhaki to hire for the five days. Sealdah station in Kolkata is famous for exactly this: dhakis gather on the platforms, play a few bars to show their skill, and clubs choose their drummer. A young assistant often comes along to play the kasor, a flat brass bell struck with a stick, which adds the bright metallic ring you hear between the drum beats.

When it plays

• Bodhon and every puja, to announce the rituals.
• Arati in the evenings, getting faster and faster as the dhunuchi dancers take over.
• Sandhi Puja on Ashtami, at its most intense.
• Bisarjan on Dashami, as the Goddess leaves, which is the most emotional beat of all.

"Dhaker bol"

Every dhak pattern has a spoken rhythm, its bol, that dhakis learn by mouth before their hands. The best known is "dyang kurakur". That is where this site gets its name. In our Dhak Studio you can play a dhak, a kasor and a shankh yourself, record a greeting video with your name and send it to the family group.