Goff


Goff is a curious dance form performed during the Shigmo festival. A bunch of six to twelve ropes are suspended from the roof of a Maatov, (a kind of temporary pavilion) erected in the courtyard of the house or to a tree top. Each dancer holds one dangling rope in his left hand and a Toni or a napkin in his right hand. The dancer begins dancing with his companion. The dance is performed on the rhythm of instruments like the Ghumat, Jodshamel and Jaghaant, sometimes even a Harmonium and a Tabla.The players dance in such a way that all the ropes are woven together to form one thick rope. The dancers then dance move in a reverse direction to unwind woven the ropes.

Careful rhythmic steps to weave and unweave the dangling ropes are the essence of this dance. The dancers have to perform this feat with great concentration and a single error in their step could lead to asymmetry in the dance and improper weaving of the ropes. When such improper weaving occurs, the dance gets halted. Traditionally, there is no specific music accompaning the Goff, but the dancers sing a few lines from Talo or any other popular song, sometimes even a film or a theatre song.

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