Samartha Sena in a Jhakri performance in Mauritius

Back in the nineteenth century, over 3.5 million Indians were shipped off to various colonies of the European powers as labour on sugarcane fields. These included a few workmen from the Konkan region, who migrated to Mauritius, the island in the southeast coast of Africa, famous for its pearly white beaches and turquoise sea. In an attempt to keep their tradition alive, they would perform Jhakri, a folk dance originating in the coastal belt of Maharashtra.