Manipuri Songs

About Manipuri Music

Manipuri (Bishnupriya) is spoken in parts of Assam, Tripura, and Manipur in India, as well as in Bangladesh, Myanmar, and several other countriesManipuri dance is one of the major Indian classical dance forms. It originates from Manipur, a state in north-eastern India on the border with Myanmar

Manipur is a region of India. Some varieties of folk music from the area include the rural love songs khullong ishei, the rhythmic Lai Haraoba ishei, which contain lyrics with veiled references to erotic mysticism and pena ishei, which is accompanied by a pena, an instrument made from a bamboo rod and the shell of a gourd or coconut. The pena is an ancient instrument that is a sort of national symbol for Manipuris.

Other songs include the religious thabal chongba, the classical nat music performed at various special occasions, the women's devotional napi pala songs, Gaur Padas, sung in praise of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and dhob, sung accompanied by the jhal, a large cymbal. Manohar Sai is another important class of songs, devoted to a 19th century man of the same name. Khubaishei is a kind of song accompanied entirely by clapping.