Nocte (Wancho) Dance

Understand

Where Nocte (Wancho) Dance comes from

The Nocte (Wancho) dance is the festival dance of the Nocte (Wancho) tribe of the Tirap district of Arunachal Pradesh, performed at the Ojih festival (the central agricultural celebration of the Nocte) in January. The dance is associated with the celebration of the new harvest and with the cultural identity of the Nocte community. The form is one of the most distinctive regional traditions of the Nocte community and is regularly performed at the cultural programmes of the state and at the Ojih festival.

How it's practiced

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