MANIPUR TEXTILES is a traditional form of narrative art articulating the Hindu Purans- the Mahabarata, the Ramayana and the Manipuri Chronicles (Puyas). WARI LEEBA narrates sitting with one or two bolsters as his props. His gestures are small and limited and the emphasis is on the voice and speech pattern through which he creates visual pictures. The language is Meiteilon (Manipuri) with a fair sprinkling of Sanskrit and Bengali for embellishment. The history of the development of Manipuri traditional WARI LEEBA may be divided into two parts.
The first part will cover the period preceding the entry of Hindu cult into Manipur while the second will cover the Hindu period. Each of the two aspects has its own glory. This narrative art of Manipuri WARI LEEBA which was once popular among the Manipuries for various occasions, religious or merrymaking or which was once required in the services of the king is gradually losing its importance due to the passage of time.
However, a few spirited youngsters keen to preserve their age-old Gurus. WARI LEEBA still enjoys its place of impotance as in the past so far as the great social and ritual festivals.
It plays a great role in the construction of socio-cultural-religio history of Manipur.
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