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Nepal Mahato


After Gambhir Singh Murah the next legendary chau persona was Nepal Mahato. Besides being an Chau artist he was also a Guru. He played a massive role in spreading Chau worldwide. He was born in the Abadan village of  Purulia on 17th June 1954. Nagendra Mahato and Tushtha Mahato were his parents. He showed his competency in all the three traditional Chau forms;  Purulia, Mayurbhanj and Seraikella.
His initial exposure to Chau Dance was at a very early age when he was in the sixth standard in Shikshashatra High school. His first guru was Anil Mahato. He had a vast range of interest ranging from Jhumur song, Nachni Dance and cock fighting. He loved to play football but his love for Chau was beyond everything else which led him to his destiny. Nepal Mahato passed his school final examination in 1993.
During his academic years in Shikshashatra his cultural talents became exposed in front of the eyes of Secretary Ajit Mitra and Dulal Chowdhury. Under the patronage of Ajit Mitra he began to perform Chau dance in different programs. He built his troupe in 1975. And in 1980 his troupe won the competition organised by Academy of Folklore. After his performance in ICCR Nepal Mahato's fame spread the boundaries of nationality.

His First international exposure was to London in 1982. After Gambhir Singh Murah Nepal Mahato was the second person to internationally spread the traditional dance form of Chau. His main themes were against the distortion of the dance form. For this he received the Padmashree in 1983.Apart from London he performed in Sweden, Canada, France and Switzerland. Nobody can deny his contribution in  the world of Chau. In 1994 he became the supervisor of  Dr. Ambedkar Folk Art Fellowship. To keep the art form alive and carry forward his lineage Nepal Mahato established a Chau training centre in 1982 in his village where he trained more than 500 artists. In 16th March 2019 Nepal Mahato passed away in a hospital in Kattak at the age of 66 leaving his art to flourish through his students.

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