Sri Lankan Dance
Kulu Natuma - The Harvest Dance of Sri Lanka
Kulu Natuma (koo-loo nat-ooma) is a popular Sri Lankan folk dance symbolising the harvesting and winnowing (separating the grain from the chaff) of rice paddy.
The dance is performed, typically by young girls, to the accompaniment of light drumbeats and music from a flute. A slow, rhythmic chant would normally add context to the performance.
The primary prop is the winnowing basket, a tool that is in common use in rural Sri Lanka where traditional farming is still practiced. Workers pour the threshed rice off the basket from a height, normally against a wind source, in order to separate the grain from the chaff.
The dance is popular amongst Sri Lankan schoolgirls as it has a simple structure, with clear indigenous meaning.
The dance is performed, typically by young girls, to the accompaniment of light drumbeats and music from a flute. A slow, rhythmic chant would normally add context to the performance.
The primary prop is the winnowing basket, a tool that is in common use in rural Sri Lanka where traditional farming is still practiced. Workers pour the threshed rice off the basket from a height, normally against a wind source, in order to separate the grain from the chaff.
The dance is popular amongst Sri Lankan schoolgirls as it has a simple structure, with clear indigenous meaning.