With a magic wand, the bronze plate sings!

Tribal artists from Trimbakeshwar (Nashik) fill the atmosphere with mystical tunes created on an auto-phonic instrument made up of a bronze plate and a tiny branch of forest plant

Since times immemorial, music has been integral part of tribal lifestyle in Maharashtra. Traditional Bhil Adivasi artists from Harsul village of Trimbakeshwar, on the banks of River Godavari are in the city these days to perform in Orange City Craft Mela and Folk Dance Festival at SCZCC.


Masters of their ancestral art, these artists create mystical tunes from a wonderful instrument named as ‘Thali Vadya’. ‘Thali’ is a bronze plate played by a straight stick. The main instrumentalist moves the stick on the surface of the plate in order to create an auto-phonic sound. With perfect combination of pressure, speed and pauses; the plate starts creating traditional tunes. The singer supports the main instrumentalist by singing some couplets during the pauses.

“It is traditionally believed that someone suffering from stress and pressure could be cured with this traditional musical instrument,” said Laxman Raoji Bhangre, who runs an NGO that supports tribal art. Bhangare coordinates with tribal artists and the institutions like SCZCC those invite these artists for the performances. “Melody that flows from it not just has destressing qualities but can also help cure mental illness,” he added. Traditionally, it is played in tribal parts when someone dies and the whole clan mourns.
“In old times, people used to fear the dead body. Hence, they used to call the instrumentalists to play the ‘Thali’ and sing to distress them. Hence, our couplets are generally in praise of the dead person. We try to elaborate the dead one’s life and times,” explained eighty-year-old Chandardevji Nimbarte, the main artist in the group. Nimbarte remembered that he used to play the instrument non-stop for whole night many a times during his young age.


Art is an ancestral gift for him and he is happy to be the national ambassador of this art. “We have decided to bring this art out of Trimbakeshwar Forests,” the man who speaks fluent Nagari Marathi, said. With the help of NGOs, Nimbarte’s group travels all over India to perform. Sadly, this unique musical instrument is on the edge of extinction. But, Nimbarte is still hopeful as he has over 15 young students in his group learning the art from him.


“The main problem with the tribal artists is addiction to liquor. Many of them are reluctant to come out of their village, just because they don’t perform without liquor,” he said. However, Nimbarte’s group is different. They are devotees of Lord Vitthal of Pandharpur. “We wear ‘Tulsi Mala’ and liquor intake is prohibited for us,” he said.