“You must have heard the Shiva chant, Om Namah Shivay, but do you know how we chant in the Charani dialect?” asks 45-year-old artiste Kishoredan Gadhvi, a member of the Charan community of Gujarat, known for its literature and poetry. Gadhvi doles out a fast-paced rhythmic verse, and while the words can’t be deciphered, the foot-tapping rhyme is music to the ears. This evening, Gadhvi, along with three artistes — Kamlesh Barot, Harsha Barot and Nirav Barot — will enthrall city crowds at the ongoing Malad Festival with a three-hour performance. The quartet is a part of the Rang Kasumbal Dayro group. “Earlier, such performances were done in front of the kings. If it was held in the day, it was known as a mehfil, and if it was during nighttime, we called it the dayro,” he shares.

A typical Gujarati dayro setting