Western Himalayan Folk Arts

The western Himalayan region is not only known for its natural grandeur, but it has also been the home of enchanting Folk Arts. Though having passed through the sieve of time, those are still vibrant and colourful in their pristine glory. Located strategically on the northwestern corner of the subcontinent, the Western Himalayan region has been a rendezvous for the multiple of people of various hues and persuasions since the remotest times. While, some of them dispersed to different directions, leaving their imprints behind, many preferred to settle in the congenial ambiance of mountains. Thus, this region has been a home for different ethnic communities. Obviously, it has been veritable nursery for the develop into multiform. These Folk Arts have imbibed diverse racio-cultural influences in them. Those are vividly reflected in them, making them international in spirit content. In our age, despite the incessant incursion of market culture into the religious, socio-cultural life of the people, most of the folk arts are still very much vibrant and living in the Himalayan sanctuaries, preserving the traditional ethos of the people and the finer nuances of their inherited value system. Thus, the Folk Arts of this region are as subtle, propitious and colorful as the salubrious Himanalayan environment is. Thses not only bring out the religio-aesthetic aspirations of the common folks, but also reflect their innate concern for the nature that sustains them. In the present work, Folk Arts of the Western Himalayan region have been studied in the national and global contexts to establish the traditional bonds between different communities and nationalities. To that end, besides discussing the relationship between Environment and Folk Art, the book also delves deeper to study Folksong, Folktale, Folk painting, Folk Images & Sculptures, Folkdance and Folk Theatre. Each of these topics has been dealt very intimately to interpret the finer and subtle nuances of the religio-aesthetic aspirations, the popular belief-systems and the socio-cultural traditions of the people. This work is an honest and in-depth presentation of the religio-aesthetic traditions of Western Himalayan region.