ਢੋਲ (dhol) is Punjab's double-headed barrel drum and the backbone of Punjabi folk music. The player, called a dholi, strikes its two skins with wooden sticks: a thick bent dagga for the deep bass side and a thin teeli for the sharp treble. It drives bhangra, leads wedding baraats and announces fairs across Punjab.
How it's used
- 1ਢੋਲ ਵੱਜਣ ਲੱਗਾ ਤੇ ਸਾਰਾ ਪਿੰਡ ਨੱਚਣ ਲੱਗ ਪਿਆThe dhol started playing and the whole village began to dance.
- 2ਬਰਾਤ ਦੇ ਅੱਗੇ ਢੋਲੀ ਢੋਲ ਵਜਾ ਰਿਹਾ ਸੀThe dholi was playing the dhol at the front of the baraat.
- 3ਵਿਸਾਖੀ ਦੇ ਮੇਲੇ ਵਿੱਚ ਢੋਲ ਦੀ ਧਮਕ ਦੂਰੋਂ ਸੁਣਾਈ ਦਿੰਦੀ ਸੀAt the Vaisakhi fair, the boom of the dhol could be heard from far away.
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- 4ਢੋਲ ਤੋਂ ਬਿਨਾਂ ਭੰਗੜਾ ਅਧੂਰਾ ਲੱਗਦਾ ਹੈBhangra feels incomplete without the dhol.
ਢੋਲ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਦਾ ਸਭ ਤੋਂ ਮਸ਼ਹੂਰ ਲੋਕ ਵਾਜਾ ਹੈ ਇਹ ਲੱਕੜ ਦਾ ਬਣਿਆ ਦੋ-ਮੂੰਹਾ ਢੋਲ ਹੁੰਦਾ ਹੈ, ਜਿਸ ਦੇ ਦੋਹਾਂ ਮੂੰਹਾਂ 'ਤੇ ਚਮੜਾ ਮੜ੍ਹਿਆ ਹੁੰਦਾ ਹੈ ਇੱਕ ਪਾਸਾ ਮੋਟੀ ਖੱਲ ਦਾ ਹੁੰਦਾ ਹੈ ਜੋ ਡੂੰਘੀ ਆਵਾਜ਼ ਦਿੰਦਾ ਹੈ, ਅਤੇ ਦੂਜਾ ਪਾਸਾ ਪਤਲੀ ਖੱਲ ਦਾ ਜੋ ਤਿੱਖੀ ਆਵਾਜ਼ ਦਿੰਦਾ ਹੈ ਢੋਲੀ ਇਸ ਨੂੰ ਮੋਢੇ ਨਾਲ ਲਟਕਾ ਕੇ ਦੋ ਡੰਡੀਆਂ, ਡੱਗੇ ਅਤੇ ਤੀਲੀ ਨਾਲ ਵਜਾਉਂਦਾ ਹੈ ਭੰਗੜਾ, ਵਿਆਹ ਦੀ ਬਰਾਤ ਅਤੇ ਮੇਲੇ ਢੋਲ ਤੋਂ ਬਿਨਾਂ ਅਧੂਰੇ ਲੱਗਦੇ ਹਨ
What does dhol mean in Punjabi?
ਢੋਲ (dhol) is Punjab's loudest instrument, a double-headed drum at the heart of Punjabi folk music. It is the drum that drives bhangra, leads the wedding baraat and announces the fair, and one who plays it is called a dholi. Its two skins give it two voices: a deep bass on one side and a sharp treble on the other.
How the dhol is played
The dhol is slung over the shoulder on a woven cotton strap and struck with two wooden sticks. The thicker, bent stick is the dagga, which plays the bass skin, while the thin, flexible teeli plays the treble end. The skins are tightened with interwoven ropes or bolts, and loosening or tightening them changes the pitch. A skilled dholi commands dozens of rhythms: bhangra, the old community dance beat; dhamaal, the Sufi devotional rhythm; and kaharva, the dance rhythm that also carries modern Punjabi pop songs.
An old drum with deep roots
The word dhol comes from the Sanskrit word dhola, a term for drum. Drums shaped like the dhol appear in some of the earliest Indian sculpture, and the Ain-i-Akbari, the court chronicle of the Mughal emperor Akbar, describes the dhol playing in the imperial orchestra. In Punjab the dhol stayed big and loud, built to carry its bass across fields and fairgrounds.
Who is a dholi?
A dholi is a person who plays the dhol. Dholis lead wedding baraats through the streets, play at harvest celebrations and village fairs, and today perform on bhangra stages and in recording studios around the world.
Is the dhol only played in Punjab?
No. Drums called dhol are played across the Indian subcontinent, each region with its own shape and style, from the Bihu dance of Assam to the Ganesh festival troupes of Maharashtra. But the big, loud Punjabi dhol, the drum of bhangra, is the best known of them all.
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