Aka Galuk (Galo dance)

Understand

Where Aka Galuk (Galo dance) comes from

Galuk is the community-festival-dance of the Aka (also called the Aka-Bo and the Hruso) tribe of the West Kameng district of western Arunachal Pradesh. The dance is performed at the central festivals of the Aka community and is associated with the celebration of the harvest. The form is one of the documented regional traditions of Arunachal Pradesh and is regularly performed at the cultural programmes of the state and at the regional Aka community festivals.

How it's practiced

Galuk is performed by men and women of the Aka community in a circle at the central courtyard of the village or at the open ground of the festival. The men and women perform in coordinated steps to the song of the Galuk cycle and to the rhythm of the dhol and the small regional instruments. The dance is gentle, with the small stepping rhythm of the Aka tradition. Costume is the traditional Aka dress — the colourful wrap and the small regional headdress. Performances are at the village festival and at the cultural programmes of the state.