Nongkrem Dance Festival

An elegant harvest thanksgiving dance of the indigenous Khasi tribe performed by the royal family in heavy gold attire.

In the matrilineal Khasi society, the festival follows the ancestors' tradition of seeking communal prosperity and a good harvest from the presiding goddess Ka Blei Synshar.

Khasi youths in heirloom gold and coral ornaments and ceremonial dress perform the Shad Nongkrem dance, while the Syiem (chief) and his household conduct the ritual observances.

Goats are offered in the Pomblang ritual to honour the ancestors. In the Ka Shad Kynter that follows, maidens of the royal household dance in the forecourt in traditional finery.

The dancing maidens, wearing tall ceremonial crowns, step with extreme gentleness so as not to hurt Mother Earth - the slow, restrained dance is a symbol of communal humility.

The festival belongs to Meghalaya's centuries-old Khasi chieftainship. It is still held at Smit village, centred on the great traditional thatched house known as Ka Sad.

Five days at Smit, the Khasi seat, in November. Unmarried women in silver and gold crowns dance slowly in the centre holding white cloths, while men circle them carrying a sword in one hand and a whisk in the other. The music is the tangmuri, a reed pipe, and drums. It is cold, and it rains.