RAS question
The Kalbeliya dance, which received UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage status in 2010, is performed by which community?
Correct answer: (C) Sapera (snake charmer) community.
Kalbeliya dance is performed by the Kalbeliya or Sapera snake-charmer community of Rajasthan.
Explanation
Kalbeliya dance belongs to the Kalbeliya, also known as the Sapera, community of Rajasthan, whose traditional identity was linked with snake handling. The Press Information Bureau, Government of India feature lists Kalbelia folk songs and dances of Rajasthan under UNESCO's 2010 intangible cultural heritage entries and describes them as songs and dances once practised by snake handlers. The performers are the Kalbeliya/Sapera community, and the dance vocabulary imitates serpent-like movement. Women in black skirts emulate serpentine motions while men accompany the performance with traditional instruments such as the khanjari and poongi, reinforcing why the snake-charmer association is central to identifying the correct community.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Bhat community is not tied to Kalbeliya/Sapera snake handlers, who are associated with the dance.
- (B) Langa community does not match the community marker for Kalbelia songs and dances once practised by snake handlers.
- (D) Gaduliya Lohar community is not the relevant community; the relevant clue is the Sapera or snake-charmer identity of the Kalbeliya performers.
Concept
This tests Rajasthan folk performing arts and the community associations behind UNESCO-recognised intangible heritage. RAS repeatedly asks such pairings because art-and-culture questions often hinge on linking a dance form to its practitioner community.