Woman in green saree performing Lavani dance, popular dance form of Maharashtra India. LAVANI DANCE: Lavani is a famous dance form of the state of Maharashtra. The word Lavani is derived from "lavanya" which means beauty. Charming women dressed in bright costumes and embellished with golden jewelries perform this dance form that is accompanied with traditional songs. The History of Lavani dance dates back to 18th century when it was performed to encourage the soldiers going out for battles. The songs of lavani are based on multiple themes like social awareness, love and romance. Some of the songs are also religious or politics-based. Marathi poets played a major role in popularizing these songs. Honai Bala, Prabhakar and Ramjoshi are a few examples in this regard. The performers of Lavani dance usually dance to the beats of a "dholak". Women's pulsating dances to beats of drums are captivating and enthrall the audience. The Costumes wore by performers consist of nine yard long saris that are silky and gaudy. The breathtaking dance movements that are played by women wearing such huge attires are worth applauding. Source: http://www.traveladda.com/west_india/maharashtra/dance_and_music/lavani_dance.html This footage is part of the professionally-shot broadcast stock footage archive of Wilderness Films India Ltd., the largest collection of HD imagery from South Asia. The Wilderness Films India collection comprises of 50, 000+ hours of high quality broadcast imagery, mostly shot on HDCAM / SR 1080i High Definition, Alexa, SR, HDV and XDCAM. Write to us for licensing this footage on a broadcast format, for use in your production! We are happy to be commissioned to film for you or else provide you with broadcast crewing and production solutions across South Asia. We pride ourselves in bringing the best of India and South Asia to the world... Please subscribe to our channel wildfilmsindia on Youtube for a steady stream of videos from across India. Also, visit and enjoy your journey across India at www.clipahoy.com , India's first video-based social networking experience! Reach us at rupindang @ gmail . com and [email protected]