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Home › Arunachal Pradesh › Arunachal Pradesh Artists

Arunachal Pradesh Artists

Arunachal Pradesh is home to more than twenty major tribes, and almost every one has its own songs, dances, weaving patterns and crafts. Much of this art is still made in villages for festivals and daily use rather than for galleries.

Dance and music

The masked Aji Lhamu dance of the Monpas, the Ponung dance of Adi women at harvest time and the dances of the Wancho, Nyishi and Galo people are performed at festivals such as Losar, Solung, Nyokum and Mopin. Folk songs are sung in the tribes' own languages, and a new generation of musicians, such as the singer-songwriter Taba Chake, mixes them with modern styles.

Crafts and painting

The Monpas of Tawang make thangka paintings, wooden masks and Mon Shugu, a handmade paper from the bark of a local shrub that is used for Buddhist scriptures. The Wanchos of Longding are known for wood carving, and the Apatani, Adi and Galo weavers for their colourful handloom cloth. Cane and bamboo work is found in nearly every district.

Writers

The poet and novelist Mamang Dai and the writer Yeshe Dorjee Thongchi have both received the Padma Shri for bringing the stories of Arunachal's people to readers across India.

Sources