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Garia Dance
Garia dance is held during Garia Puja, an important festival for the Tripuri
tribal community of the state. Every day after Garia Puja where Lord Garia or
Lord Shiva is worshipped, rejoicing and dancing follows.
Garia puja is held for 7 days in the month of April (Baisakh) beginning from
the last day of the month of Chaitra. Everyday, young boys and girls of the
community form groups and visit all the houses in the village carrying the idol
of Lord Shiva. They place the idol of deity in the middle of the courtyard of
the house they visit and dance around the idol anti clockwise accompanied by
devotional songs. Most of the dance forms of the Tripuri people are derived from
Garia dance or the dance of Shiva.
The Garia dance is very popular among the Tripuris and the Reangs. Symbolic of the worship of the deities as well as of the socio-economic activities of the households, these dances represent hunting, fishing, food-gathering and various other activities.
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