Fulhun (Fulanga) Dance

Understand

Where Fulhun (Fulanga) Dance comes from

Fulhun (also called Fulanga) is the women's folk-dance of the Minicoy community of Lakshadweep, performed at the social gatherings of the Mahl community of the island. The form is one of the lesser-documented but living traditions of the Minicoy women and is regularly performed at the cultural programmes of the union territory. The dance is part of the broader Lakshadweep folk-dance repertoire and is associated with the social and the cultural life of the Mahl community.

How it's practiced

Fulhun is performed by women of the Minicoy community in a circle at the central courtyard of the village or at the open ground of the festival. The women perform in coordinated steps to the song of the Fulhun cycle and to the rhythm of the small regional instruments of the Minicoy tradition. The dance is gentle, with the small stepping rhythm of the Mahl community. Costume is the traditional Mahl dress of the Minicoy — the colourful lungi and the regional dress. Performances are at the courtyard and at the cultural programmes of the union territory.