The folk dances of Uttarakhand are very important for the people of this state. It is almost as important as wearing clothes. It is literally a must for the life here. According to the people of Uttarakhand, Gods can be influenced by dances.
Some of the most famous dance forms of Uttarakhand are the following:
Choliya Dance
The Choliya dance is a dance form which is more than 1000 years old, and has its origins in the Khasiya Kingdom of Khasesh. The Rajputs perform this dance at their weddings as a part of the marriage processions.
Jhora Dance
Jhora is a kind of community dance which is performed in the villages where the higher and lower castes perform. It is danced at fairs. This kind of dance is generally performed during the morning or evening, at the coming of spring.
Langvir Nritya
The Langvir Nritya is a famous dance form of the state of Uttarakhand. It is mainly performed in the Tehri Garhwal region of Uttarakhand.Ramola Dance
The onset of spring is announced by bards who, roaming from place to place sing of its charms on a sarangi or dholak. During the Holi festival, forgetting their worries, the people join in the festivity, which lasts more than a month and hundreds of songs of classical, semi classical, and folk variety are sung by both men and women to the tune of the Harmonium, tabla, dholak and manzira.
Ramola Dance
The onset of spring is announced by bards who, roaming from place to place sing of its charms on a sarangi or dholak. During the Holi festival, forgetting their worries, the people join in the festivity, which lasts more than a month and hundreds of songs of classical, semi classical, and folk variety are sung by both men and women to the tune of the Harmonium, tabla, dholak and manzira.
Barada Nati
The Barada Nati folk dance is a famous dance of the Jaunsar Bhawar area of Chakrata Tehsil in Dehradun. This type of folk dance is mainly performed on the evening of some special religious festival or on the occasion of some social functions. In this type of dance, both boys and girls take part, dressed in colorful traditional costumes.
Pandva Nritya
Pandva Nritya is mainly related to the story of Mahabharata and is very popular particularly in the Garhwal Region. It is a simple narration of the story of Mahabharata in the form of dance and music.
It is enacted on the special occasions like 'Dusshera' and 'Diwali'. It is especially popular in the Chamoli and Pauri Garhwal district of Uttarakhand state.
