The Art of Tawaif: A Tradition Lost to Colonial Moralities
Words by Konkana Ray
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The Art of Tawaif: A Tradition Lost to Colonial Moralities by Konkana Ray
“In aankhon ki masti ke mastaane hazaaron hain…”
(There are thousands intoxicated by the beauty of these eyes)
As Rekha dances to this iconic song in Umrao Jaan, she seems to epitomize the Tawaif- elegant, graceful, mysterious, and sensuous with a touch of poignance.
For the majority of us, our exposure to tawaifs and their way of life has mainly been through their depiction in popular Bollywood cinema. When we come across the word ‘Tawaif’, the first image that comes to our mind is that of a sensual seductress, equivalent to prostitutes. Iconic movies like Devdas, Umrao Jaan, Pakheeza, and Mughal-E-Azam portrayed the tawaif as the fallen woman, wrapping up their stories with admonitory diktats on morality. Their existence in these narratives was limited to arousing either desire or pity in the heart of the audience. However, the lives of tawaifs were much more nuanced than their Bollywood portrayal.
A tawaif was a highly sophisticated courtesan of the Indian subcontinent, proficient in music and dance. Etymologists believe that the word Tawaif comes from the Arabic word ‘tauf’ or ‘tawaf’, which means circling around and has no derogatory connotation attached to it. The word ‘tawaf’ or circumambulation of the holy Kaaba also comes from the same word ‘tauf’. Traditionally, tawaifs were treated and seen as the custodians of elite art and culture, and the greatest epitome of etiquette. These brilliant performing artists were entertainers of the royal court and nobility, particularly during the Mughal era, and were at the centre of art, aesthetics and local culture. They enjoyed a relatively autonomous lifestyle with a respected place in society. They owned property, controlled their own wealth and lived flamboyant and luxurious lives; were fluent in reading and writing, and were well versed with literature and politics; unlike the purdah-bound women of the time, who had to their name neither property nor literacy in the patriarchal Indian society.
As historian and professor, Veena Talwar Oldenberg, wrote in her book- The Making of Colonial Lucknow, "To relate tawaifs to prostitution is an extremely corrupt portrayal of the institution.” The use of the word prostitute to characterize the world of 16th-19th century Tawaifs blurs the multiplicity of their identities and emotionally extensive character imbued within a cultural economy. The history of how the preservers of the rich Indian culture and arts, classical dance and music ultimately were relegated to the status of prostitutes and stigmatized as social outcasts is a story that needs to be told.