Pichakaree is an Indo-Trinidadian musical form which originated in Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...

. It is named after the long syringe

Syringe

A syringe is a simple pump consisting of a plunger that fits tightly in a tube. The plunger can be pulled and pushed along inside a cylindrical tube , allowing the syringe to take in and expel a liquid or gas through an orifice at the open end of the tube...

-like tubes used to spray abir

Abir

Abir is a dye common in India. It is used during the Holi festival, which is also called the festival of colour, when people throw this colourful powder at each other. Abir is typically sold in markets prior to the festival....

 during Phagwah

Holi

Holi , is a religious spring festival celebrated by Hindus. Holi is also known as festival of Colours. It is primarily observed in India, Nepal, Pakistan, and countries with large Indic diaspora populations following Hinduism, such as Suriname, Malaysia, Guyana, South Africa, Trinidad, United...

 celebrations.

Pichakaree songs are generally social commentary, and are sung using a mixture of Hindi

Hindi

Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...

, English

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

 and Bhojpuri

Bhojpuri language

Bhojpuri is a language spoken in parts of north-central and eastern India. It is spoken in the western part of state of Bihar, the northwestern part of Jharkhand, and the Purvanchal region of Uttar Pradesh , as well as adjoining parts of the Nepal Terai. Bhojpuri is also spoken in Guyana,...

 words. The musical form was devised by RaviJi, spiritual leader of the Hindu Prachar Kendra, as an Indo-Trinidadian counterpoint to calypso

Calypso music

Calypso is a style of Afro-Caribbean music that originated in Trinidad and Tobago from African and European roots. The roots of the genre lay in the arrival of enslaved Africans, who, not being allowed to speak with each other, communicated through song...

. Pichakaree competitions are an integral part of Phagwa celebrations hosted by the Hindu Prachar Kendra. This has been criticised by Satnarayan Maharaj

Satnarayan Maharaj

Satnarayan Maharaj Chaconia Medal is a religious, cultural and political leader in Trinidad and Tobago. He is the Secretary General of the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha, the major Hindu organisation in Trinidad and Tobago. He also writes op-ed contributions in many newspapers in Trinidad and Tobago...

 of the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha

Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha

The Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha is the major Hindu organisation in Trinidad and Tobago. It operates 150 mandirs and over 50 schools. It was formed in 1952 when Bhadase Sagan Maraj engineered the merger of the Satanan Dharma Association and the Sanatan Dharma Board of Control. An affiliated group,...

 (the largest Hindu

Hinduism

Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...

 organisation in Trinidad and Tobago), saying that Phagwah is a religious celebration, and "A sacred occasion like Phagwa must not be used to piggy-back behaviour that is adharamic (anti-religious in the Vedic

Vedic

Vedic may refer to:* the Vedas, the oldest preserved Indic texts** Vedic Sanskrit, the language of these texts** Vedic period, during which these texts were produced** Vedic pantheon of gods mentioned in Vedas/vedic period...

 Tradition)."

There are however Hindus who are open minded to such music and ascribe to the Tantra

Tantra

Tantra , anglicised tantricism or tantrism or tantram, is the name scholars give to an inter-religious spiritual movement that arose in medieval India, expressed in scriptures ....

Tradition of Hinduism.

At the Kendra Phagwa Festival and Pichakaree Competition 2011, the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, the Honorable Mrs. Kamla Persad Bissessar will be the chief guest.