Bonalu is a special kind of dance that originated in Andhra Pradesh in honor of the Mother Goddess. The Bonalu Dance derives its origin from the ritual practice of paying homage to Mother Goddess for a splendid harvest and dancing to honor her. It is similar to Garagalu Dance which is also a ritual dance.
There is a subtle difference between these two forms of dances in Andhra Pradesh. The former is a kind of ritual dance that is performed in the temple premises. Bonalu Dance however, is performed elsewhere also. The word Bonalu means Food, and owes its origin to the mother word Bhojanalu. During this dance festival offering is made to the mother Goddess. People cherish the bliss of a splendid harvest and dance in order to pay homage to the Mother Goddess. Therefore Bonalu is a significant form of ritual dance of Andhra Pradesh.
In the Telengana region the Bonalu Dance is performed to offer food to the Mother Goddess. It is generally held in the month of Asada.
There is a history behind the celebration of this Bonalu dance. There was an epidemic in the year 1869.The people of this region were so perplexed that they found no solution to this natural crisis.
Therefore the people of Andhra Pradesh stated appeasing the Mother Goddess considering her to be the sole cause of this epidemic. At last she was pleased and relieved the region from the cruel hands of this epidemic. The way that the tribal people worshipped the Mother Goddess became the general technique of worshipping her.
So, every year she is worshipped by offering meals and this is accompanied by the Bonalu Dance. This meal consists of pickles, cooked rice, water and onion. Thousands of lamps are lit in front of the Goddess and the lamps are arranged from top to bottom in a sequence. This sequence is from bigger to smaller ones. Pots are also placed before the Goddess.
These pots are colored in a variety of colors and impart tremendous visual pleasure. These pots are also dedicated to the Mother Goddess. The women present a colorful paegentry as the water from the pots they carry on their heads splashes over to wash the feet of the mother Goddess. Being intensely possessed by the spirit of the Mother Goddess, they dance in tune with the drummers of Bonalu. In doing so, they get over the pain associated with the long and thorny way, and continue their blissful journey towards the gates of the mother Goddess.
