While town life provides larger scope for varied activities, villages offer greater opportunities for community life. There are occasions when the entire village may rise to a man, for instance, when there is a crisis or calamity like a cyclone or flood. During festivals and ceremonies, the villagers feel like a single community. In Orissa festivals come periodically round the year: Raja; Dasahara, Nuakhai or Navanna, Karma, Kumar Purnima, Diwali, Rasa Purnima, Makar, Holi, Chait Parab and so on. During the- festivals, both in the villages and towns, the larger society operates as a cohesive unit, but more so in the former.

There are reading rooms, cultural or sports clubs in advanced villages as in towns; but even where they do not exist, recreational activities are nonetheless carried on round the year., The young people play a number of out-door games like football, volleyball and of course kabadi or ha-do-do. The tribal boys play guli-danda, kabadi and go in for other rural sports. Of late cricket has caught the juvenile imagination and is becoming popular in villages too. Majority of the village girls play, in addition to modern sports where facilities are available, games like bahuchori or hide-and-seek, jumping games like bichha or hopping one-legged through squares and movement exercises like puchi Adults indulge in playing cards, chess and other indoor games involving chance. On festivals like Raja, Dasahara, Malrar, etc. wrestling, stick play and athletics are organised. Kite flying and cockfight are common pastimes on the day of Makar Shnkaranti. The people of Orissa in general are lovers and connoisseurs of art. The festivals which are celebrated round the year provide them occasions for organizing the performing arts. Musical soirees are arranged in the temple premises on festivals like Jhulan Purnima, Rasa Purnima, Shivaratri, etc.  when  the  budding artists get their cherished  opportunities  for self-expression and the audience for enjoyment. As regards the tribal society, singing is an integral part of their life end every song is almost always accompanied with a dance. There are so many forms of folk dance in Orissa that is difficult to  mention them here. There are the Chhau dance of Mayurbhanj resembling ballets; Dandanata, an active dance form in honour of Lord Siva; Paikanacha, which is a martial dance of foor soldiers,  Ghodanacah, th dance of the fishermen, one of the troupe dancing with a horse form, and so on. Finally, there are the historic activities in the form of folk drama called Jatra, Suanga, Deshiya nata performed e.g. Ranmanela, Kurshnaleela, etc. and the musical and interpretive renderings of mythological of Puranic episodes loke Pala and Daskathia. The vriocoloured web of Oriass's social life if relived and toned up by recreative and creative activities all though.

Contributed By:

Late Prof.Bidhubhusan Das

Prof.Trilochan Mishra

Prof.Prabhat Nalini Das