Bihu is a popular folk dance of Assam is called Bihu. The Bihu dance is
an integral part of the Bihu festival of Assam. The Bihu festival is
celebrated in mid-April, during the harvesting time and lasts for about
a month. Young men and girls perform the Bihu dance together to the
accompaniment of drums and pipes. Love forms the subject matter of the
songs that are sung during the performance. The dances are performed in
circles or parallel rows.
The Zemis, Zeliangs and several other tribes of Assam have a number of
folk dances. Most of these folk dances are performed during the harvest
period. Similarly, the Naga tribals too have their harvest dances and
celebrations. "Khamba Lim" is one such folk dance and is
performed by two groups of men and women who stand in two rows. Another
popular Naga folk dance is "Akhu".
Hajgiri is a famous folk dance of Tripura. Hajgiri dance is performed
by young girls who display a series of balancing skills and instruments
of their kind. In Tripura dances are a part of people's efforts and
ceremony to appease the goddess Lakshmi. It is to ensure good harvest.
Tribal people of Tripura and other adjoining states make use of the
compounds of their own houses as dancing grounds during main festivals.
'Nongkrem' is an important folkdance of Meghalaya. The Khasis tribe of
Meghalaya also celebrates the ripening of paddy for threshing, by dances
One of the instruments that dominate Manipuri dances is the drum. Dhol
Cholom, a drum dance is one of the dances performed during Holi in
Manipur. The Thang-ta dance of Manipur was an evolved from the martial
arts drills promoted by the kings of Manipur. The dance is exciting and
is performed by young men holding swords and shields.
In Arunachal Pradesh, many dance and songs are performed, based on the
stories of Buddha. The performers of these folk dances wear masks of
demons or animals, inspired from Buddha stories. Most of these folk
dances are performed in Buddhist monasteries during festivals.