The tradition of faag music

This story was originally reported and written in Hindi. Contributors from across India report, write and illustrate for us in a language of their choice.

“Mothers would sing faag to their children to put them to sleep, so that when they grew up, they would continue this tradition,” says Roobsi Devi. The 54-year-old is one of the few people in the Nanakmatta village who still sings faag – the traditional songs of the residents of hilly regions in Uttarakhand.

“No matter what the work, singing faag is considered very important. No one knows when or why or who sang the first faag, but now it is a part of our rituals and tradition,” adds Roobsi. Set in the Kumaoni language, faag is sung by women in the community on the occasions of marriage and birth.

Roobsi grew up in Thal village of Pithoragarh district where she learned faag by listening to her mother sing with other women in the village on different occasions and celebrations. Even after the family migrated to Nanakmatta village in Udham Singh Nagar district, the music of faag never stopped. “Faag has been going on for many generations,” she adds.

As more and more young people leave the mountains to find jobs outside, Roobsi fears that the sound of faag may die out.

The Kumaoni language is listed as vulnerable in UNESCO’s Atlas of the World’s Languages in Danger, published in 2010. As per the report, vulnerable languages are spoken by most, but not all, children or families of a particular community as their parental language, but this may be restricted to specific social domains. 

“If no woman in a house is available to sing faag for an auspicious occasion, then women from other homes in the village can be called to sing,” Roobsi adds. However, there are strict caste hierarchies on who can and cannot sing faag. For example, Roobsi explains upper castes don’t sing for lower castes and only women considered ‘auspicious’ are allowed to sing. Many in the community consider it a taboo for menstruating women and widows to sing faag.

The faags recorded here by Roobsi Devi originate in the Champawat district of Uttarakhand. They are sung during the vidaai ceremony – a newlywed bride leaving her parent’s home. It speaks about parents bidding farewell to their daughter and her tears as she leaves her family to go to her married home. The last faag in this series concludes the story and is sung when the marriage procession is about to reach the bride’s house. 

With new functions replacing traditional wedding ceremonies, the occasions for Roobsi to sing faag have declined. She now spends her days collecting fodder for her cattles, looking after the kitchen garden and doing housework.

With no written material, faags are taught from memory and passed down. “Now our children will learn this and start singing or the tradition of faag will disappear.”