Chhattisgarh is endowed with the rich and the distinct culture with crispy cuisine, great religion, vivacious dance, lively people, melodious music, and these varied things makes Chhattisgarh stand apart. Along with this, it has a unique approach towards the art, culture, dance, music, cuisine, amiable language and sparkling fest and festivals. This is the sole reason that many sociologist and anthropologist choose Chhattisgarh to study and understand the varied culture. The eastern part of Chhattisgarh is totally influenced by the Oriyan culture.

Cuisine :

Rice being the staple food here, the people here also enjoy pulses, vegetables, cereals, meat and fruits too. “Muhawa” is the most popular and the favorite white creamy fruit that can be seen on the local trees of Chhattisgarh.

Religion :

The major religion of Chhattisgarh is Hinduism. However, it has a significant number of Buddhist and Muslims in this region as well. The tribal group found here enjoy their own culture and tradition. Few of them have converted into Christians due to the influence of missionaries.

People :

Chhattisgarh is encompassed with many of the tribal communities like Kanwar, Gonds, Brinjhwar, Bhaina, Oraon, Bhatra, Kamar, Munda, Baiga, Halba, Kowa, Sanwra, Nageshia, Kharia, Manghwar and Dhanwar. These people are fond of ornaments.

Dance :

Since ages, Chhattisgarh is a reservoir of talent. There are many dance forms and performing arts that has been carried years since many years. Few are Raut Nacha, a folk dance from Cowherds, soowa dance and Panthi ‘Karma’ is most popular all over the states. The state fairs and festivals include the dance forms like Pandavani, Nacha, Gond, Pandavani and Muria. Pandavani is a very ancient form of the story telling or one can say it’s the musical narration of the great epic Mahabharata.

Music :

Music contributed to the large extent to enrich the culture and tradition of Chhattisgarh. The very ancient folk songs include Bihav, Sohar and Pathoni. Sohar is actually associated with the songs of birth, whereas bihav are very well connected to the marriages. Pathoni songs are linked with Gouna.

Fairs and festivals :

Chhattisgarh is associated with the fun elements as it resides on the land of Chhattisgarh. It is bestowed with the various festivals like Bhoramdeo Festival, Bhagoriya festival, Chakradhar festival, Goncha festival, Dussehra festival, Hariyaliu Kora Navkhani, Madai festival, Kajari festival, Rajim Lochan Mahotsav and Sheorinarayan fair. The different communities and group come together and cheer up during these festivals that result in the harmony amongst all the communities.

Arts and Crafts :

Chhattisgarh has a rich heritage of art and culture. Bamboo work or furniture, beautiful wood carving, metal handicrafts, figures of terracotta, paintings and tribal jewelry, clay pieces and paintings are some of the specialist from the state. Chhattisgarh is endowed with the authentic handicrafts, and few elements from these cultures are totally mesmerizing.

Geography :

Chhattisgarh is a landlocked state located in the east central of India. Chhattisgarh shares its border with six neighboring states. The land of about 44 % is covered with forest. This makes Chhattisgarh rich in its flora and fauna. The green land of Chhattisgarh has the densest forests in India. It has rich and varied vegetation, around 200 npon timber forest products, with a huge potential and value addition. The northern part of Chhattisgarh lies in the Indo-gangetic plains. The tributary of the Ganga river, known as Rihand river flow across this region. The western end of the Chota Nagpur plateau and the eastern range of the Satpura Mountain Ranges divide Chhattisgarh into forming an east-west belt comprising of hills that divides the huge Mahanadi from the Indo gangetic plains.

The central Chhattisgarh is located in the fertile plain of the river Mahanadi with the rich cultivation of the crops. The southern end of the Chhattisgarh meets up with the Deccan Plateau that lies in the watershed and joins river Godavari and its tributary known as Indravati.

The state is enriched with the minerals like iron - ore, bauxite, coal, limestone, diamonds, dolomite and other precious stones, tin and gold. In all, it has 19 % of the deposits of iron ore. The deposits found in the Bailadali mines are exported in huge amount to Japan because of its rich content in ferrous. Chhattisgarh has 17% of coal that is contributed to India. The state is also counted for the 49 % of the diamond deposits from the entire India. The state is also blessed with the largest deposits of the quartzite and amongst the second largest manufacturer of the iron or, dolomite and coal in the country. Huge amount of limestone can be deposited in the form of Bilaspur, Durg, Raipur and Bastar region. 35% of the Chhattisgarh is under the cultivation. More that 75% of the state population rely on agriculture for its income. Rice, wheat and maize contributes to the large extent and is the staple food for Chhattisgarh.

History :

The history of Chhattisgarh which is well known as south Kosala dates back to the 4hth century AD. It is decorated with the mythological history that can be traced from the days of Ramayana and Mahabharata. The Haihaya Empire ruled the state of Chhattisgarh for around 6 centuries around the 14th century. During the middle period, Chalukya empires were successful in grabbing the land of Bastar. The first Chalukya ruler was Annmdev who has established his rule on the land of Chhattisgarh in 1320. In 1714, this kingdom was grabbed by Marathas from the Haihava Empire. Raghunath singh ji was the last emperor of the Empire. Chhattisgarh was occupied by the Marathas and Bhimhji Bhosle was the new ruler. After the death of Bhimji, there was a sub system followed by Marathas. Few Maratha officials had compromised the region of Chhattisgarh to the British and this was strongly opposed by the gond communities. This kingdom was attacked by the Pindaris during the 19th century.

In the period of 1818, the region of Chhattisgarh was under the British rule. After this, the region of Nagpur was included under the British rule. Then, it was declared under the deputy commissionership. The headquarters for the same are situated in Raipur.

There are many strong rebellions which is the result for the separation of Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh.