The Forgotten Beauty of Lok Dohori, It Still Matters
Dohori comes from word “Dohorinu” which means to repeat and reply. Similarly, Lok dohori is the genre of traditional Nepali folk music that blends lok geet with back-and-forth battle(dohori).
Dohori means musical back-and-forth conversation. It involves two opposing teams, mainly boys vs girls. They question and answer back and forth like a duel. One sings the line, challenging or teasing the other, while the other responds in rhythm. Dohori can be played humorously, often going on for hours or even days. Deeply rooted in Nepali culture, Lok Dohori isn’t just a song; it’s an art. The art of storytelling, the art of expressing feelings, and the art of communicating.
Traditional Example Of Lok Dohori
The true essence and importance of lok dohori can be shown from traditional Nepali songs. The beautiful banter between two singers(male and female) representing love, tension, and pressure deeply connects us to their voices and lyrics. Do you readers wanna know the prime example of Lok Dohori?
Khahareko Bhel – Raju Pariyar and Bishnu Majhi
This traditional song is filled with love, affection and tension between the singers. The poetic metaphors just touches the heart of listeners. There is use of simple musical instruments like madal, sarangi. The heart broken guy in the song presented with voice of Raju Pariyar just connects with viewers. The pain of losing the girl he loves the most cannot be more painful.
Similarly, the girl unhappy with her life, presented with voice of Bishnu Majhi also connects with viewers. The girl unhappy with her newly married life is beautifully presented in the song. The only left between them is regrets. The banter of words with ” baulauna atya xu” which means ” going to be mad” is nothing but lovely to viewers but tragedy to those lovers.
Photo Firta Leu – Badri Pangeni and Sindhu Malla
The perfect example of love dohori song. This song follows a lovely banter of two lovers. A small fight with words throwing at each other is so wholesome to listen. The repeatative verse in this song ” Byarthai laiyo pirati, kehi na kehi ko cheu” means the love was all in vain with no future to hold. The vocal of both singers is legendary.
The title “photo firta leu” is just a way of saying give me my memories and time back, that I spent with you. The banter between singers almost feel real rather than just music. This songa proves why Lok dohori matters.
Cultural Significance
Lok Dohori isn’t just a song; it’s a cultural heritage. It conserves the history, identity, values, tradition, and experiences of Nepali people. The real voices of people, especially from hilly and rural areas, are included in lok dohori. Its cultural significance expands from storytelling, language, and even social interaction
- Mirror of society: Lok dohori has been a mirror reflecting joy, pain, tensions, and love of the people of rural areas. It also signifies the unity among people and the community. In traditional lok dohori, everyone gathered around to sing and enjoy their moments inside the community. The songs about love at a distance, gossip, and rivalry are common topics of songs. It is also a medium to criticise, mock others in a fun way.
- Preserves Languages: Lok Dohori has played a major role in keeping the mother tongue of different communities alive. It isn’t just sung in the Nepali language but in Magar, Gurung, Bhojpuri, Tharu, and Doteli languages as well. Lok Dohori also helps to transmit slang, culture among the new generation. Schools are for formal language, and dohori keeps alive the expression of people.
- Social Bonding: Lok Dohori also functions as glue inside a community. During village events, jatras and weddings dohori is played as a fun and entertainment medium. People gather not just to sing but to listen, laugh, and learn. Lok Dohori was our Facebook wall to connect people before the internet existed.
Vulgarity in Lok Dohori
Modernization and commercialization have surely given new opportunities and a platform. But they have brought disturbing trends that threaten the integrity of the dohori. Different reasons are behind the new dark side of dohori duels.
- Vulgar lyrics: New Lok dohori songs are full of vulgar lyrics. Double-meaning phrases and sexualizing women’s bodies in music videos have become so common among song producers and writers. The art of lok dohori is missing in new songs. The funny duels, lovely banters are replaced with double-meaning jokes, unwatchable videos, and awkward phrases. The true essence and importance are lost in new songs.
- No depth and creativity: The deeply rooted traditional songs with cultural significance, traditional importance, and emotional depth are not found in new songs. Some bad writers and their vulgarity are ruining the art of Lok dohori. The strong lyrics have shifted into cheap, repetitive metaphorical lines. Predictable love triangles, vulgar lyrics, and staged music videos are disappointing.
- Cultural Devaluation: This ugly trend not only damages the credibility of this genre. But also hampers the legacy of great singers. New dohori with vulgarity is a straight-up mockery of folk artists. Devaluation of culture due to lowly discrimination, multiple marriages in music videos, and creating a false belief among people is epidemic. This is a major issue in reforming Lok Dohori.
Why It Still Matters
Despite the rise of auto-tuned music, new trends, and vulgar remakes, Lok Dohori remains the best and most important cultural treasure. Our old generation still leans towards it. From our grandparents to parents, they are fans of Raju Pariyar, Bishnu Majhi, Badri Pangeni, and Pashupati Sharma. Lok Dohori can also be a medium to connect the new generation to the old generation. It still matters not for what it was, but for what it still can offer us.
- Preserved Nepali Identity: In this modern era, your identity is very important. Nepal and Nepali’s blend in this globalized world with their own culture. No other form of media reflects our village life, social problems, conversation, emotions as good as look dohori. It shows our unique talent, rhythm, and storytelling techniques.
- It Connects Generations: Lok Dohori is the bridge between old and young. The old rhythm is now turning into catchy clips on TikTok and Instagram. Though it’s not the same, but an improvised form of consuming lok dohori.
- It Captures Real History: Lok Dohori is nothing but a history book of people. It is a book of emotion, a book of rhythm, a book of voices, a book of dreams. Dohori not only sings the pain of love but also the pain of failures, the pain of going abroad.
- Medium of Awareness: Even today, it remains one of only few folk songs that openly criticizes politics. In events or festive occasions, the group of people singing lok dohori humorously and satirically sing about the bad politics and social problems of their day-to-day life. It gives people a voice.
Lok Dohori, Still Relevant
Lok Dohori remains an unfiltered reflection of real life even in modern times. In the era where pop songs, rap songs dominate the whole playlist, the raw, emotional lyrics of dohori echo through our hopes and minds. Lok Dohori, it’s personal. Its lyrics speak to the heart of Nepali people. It’s sung with the voices of farmers, laborers, and lovers. The laughter, sarcasm, connection, and communication are what make it feel real.
Though the modern trends have diluted vulgarity in the songs. Still, the core of Lok Dohori remains untouched. The people and their love towards dohori are untouched. People singing with passion, with a purpose, haven’t changed. Lok Dohori still matters.
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