Luivat Phezak is a traditional dance performed by the
Tangkhuls, a tribal community inhabits the
Ukhrul District of
Manipur. This dance form depicts the various stages in the cultivation of crops.
This dance is performed in almost all the festivals and important occasions of the tribe. It is marked by the absence of any music, the only sound being the murmuring in different pitches. The dancers move their legs and hands in a very gentle manner.
The highlight of the Luivat Phezak dance is the colorful costumes of the dancers. The male dancers wear haora (shawl), hao kashan (short cloak), pheishanra (an ornament worn between the knee and calf), kachao (a thick brass bangle) and a decorated head gear called Mayong-Pasi (Sash), a cloth containing traditional motifs. The female dancers wear a crown shaped head gear made from reed, a white cotton blouse and a ‘salhu' - a piece of black cloth worn round the chest.
