Women from Miji tribe of Arunachal Pradesh dance beautifully!

  • 5 years ago
This dance is from the Sajalung community in the West Kameng district in Arunachal.

According to our viewer Karma Khunjuju, "this song is from the Miji tribe and not Aka. The name of the song is Ho Daimo which means "welcome"." Thanks for your inputs, Karma!

Pretty girls from Arunachal Pradesh put up a slightly plains and non-Arunachal inspired dance and music show for a New Delhi audience... 26th November 2012.

The Miji, also known by the names of Sajolang and Damai, inhabit the districts of West Kameng and East Kameng in Arunachal Pradesh, India. Their population of 5,000 are found near the lower parts of the sub-Himalayan hills bordering Assam; they speak the Sajalong language.

Combining Tibetan and Assamese ancestry, most Miji possess a reddish-red and fair complexion. Isolated from the rest of the world, they sustain their livehood through Swidden agriculture.

The traditional costume of Miji women consists of an ankle-length white garment with a beautifully decorated red jacket. Like the Akas, the Miji wear silver ornaments and glass-based necklaces. Indigenous cosmetics are made from pine resin.

Most Miji are adherents of Animism, although a few have adopted Christianity. Like the Akas, the Mijis share religious affinities with the Donyi Polo faith and thus are considered adherents of Donyi Polo, although other gods are given higher veneration than Abotani. There is some Buddhist influence as a result of long-standing cultural contacts with Buddhist tribes to the west, and the celebration of Losar as well as the usage of prayer flags are some indicators of this.

Khan is the most celebrated festival of the Mijis. It is an occasion for reunion among the local community. The significance of the festival lies in a ceremony whereby the priest ties a piece of wool around everybody's neck. The belief is that the enchanted thread will bring good luck to each one of them.

Source: Wikipedia

They were earlier known as the Hruso tribe.

This footage is part of the professionally-shot broadcast stock footage archive of Wilderness Films India Ltd., the largest collection of imagery from South Asia. The Wilderness Films India collection comprises of thousands of hours of high quality broadcast imagery, mostly shot on HDCAM 1080i High Definition, HDV and XDCAM. Write to us for licensing this footage on a broadcast format, for use in your production! We are happy to be commissioned to film for you or else provide you with broadcast crewing and production solutions across South Asia. We pride ourselves in bringing the best of India and South Asia to the world... Reach us at wfi @ vsnl.com and admin@wildfilmsindia.com

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