The love, joys, sorrows and hopes of the people are reflected in folk art form of Himachal Pradesh through traditional symbolic patterns. Folk theatre in Himachal has been playing significant social role in the cultural history of the state. In most of the dances, men and women perform the dance in coordination in a close formation and these theatrical performances are known by different names in different parts of Himachal: Karyala in Mahasu & Sirmour, Banthra in Mandi, etc. all these folk art forms reflect the simple thought patterns of the rural folk.

Namagen
The autumnal hue is celebrated in the month of September in the Himachal and for the celebration of this festival the Namagen dance is performed. The most striking dance performance amongst these is the Gaddis. The costumes that are used in this dance are of woolens and women wear richly studded ornaments of silver. The dancing steps & rhythm of the dance is wonderfully mixed with each other. Drum plays an important part in this dance performance.

Karayila
The most interesting and equally popular folk drama of Himachal Pradesh is Karayila. This drama includes an entertaining series of small playlets, skits, variety shows and parodies. This form of shows present sharp and pungent satires about the bureaucracy and social issues very boldly.

Losar Shona Chuksam Dance
The Losar Shona Chuksam is an agricultural festival dance performance. Losar refers to the New Year of the Tibetan people and it is performed by the Kinnauris in their typical style. The dancing steps depict all activities that are related with farming from sowing to reaping barley and phaphar (a local grain). The dance performance also includes innovative performed in the form of mime.