Nati (Dance)

Nati word is used for the traditional folk songs sung in the Western and Central Hills of the Indian subcontinent. It is primarily native to the states of Himachal Pradesh and Uttrakhand. Nati is traditionally performed in the Kullu, Mandi, Shimla, Sirmaur, Chamba, Kinnaur, Uttarkashi, Dehradun (Jaunsar-Bawar) and Tehri Garhwal districts. However, due to high immigration of ethnic paharis in the plains, this has been made popular in the plains too. Now a days many consider pahari dance as nati but actually it corresponds to pahari songs. Traditionally, locals dance to the beats of percussion instruments called Dhol-Damau. Pahari dance is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as largest folk dance.