Sarlamkai
One of the most impressive Mizo community dances, Sarlamkai is a variation of Solakia. The two dances are almost identical. The only difference lies in the dress and tempo. No song is sung, only gongs or cymbals or drums are used to beat time. Sarlamkai has been taken up by most of the schools on Mizoram for cultural activities these days.

Par Lam
The land of enchanting hills has yet another dance to its credit - Par lam. Girls attired in colourful dresses, with flowers tucked in their hair, dance to the tune of songs sung by themselves. The principal movement in the dance involves the waving of hands. A couple of boys lend musical accompaniment by playing guitars. This is comparatively a new dance. Nevertheless, it has become part of the Mizo culture. The most popular song sung for the dance is : Far from the mountain the gay little stream, rippling along, rippling along.

Music

Music has always been an integral part of the Mizo way of life. The young Mizos in towns and big villages have mostly taken to western pop music. The guitar has become the musical symbol of
Mizoram whose hills and valleys reverberate with sweet lilting tunes.

The vast popularity of western music not withstanding, the traditional Mizo songs and dances are still sung and performed in remote village areas. What’s more, there has lately been revival trend in evidence even among Mizo youngsters who have begun to evince a renewed interest in their traditional art and culture.

In other words, the songs, dances and festivals which evolved spontaneously out of the age-old Mizo society, seem on a comeback trail. The influence from the west eclipsed them for a time, but could not bury them once and for all.

The drum and the gong are two traditional musical instruments of the Mizos. The flute is another, though it is no longer much in use. There was another musical instrument which was made by inserting hollow reeds into gourds. Blowing through one reed produced a tune. That instrument has fallen completely in disuse.

The usual Mizo drum, made of a hollowed tree trunk covered with the fine hides on either side is about a foot in diameter and two feet in length. The gongs, which came in various sizes mostly from Myanmar. are expensive brassware. Sometimes three gongs, each having a separate note, are beaten simultaneously to produce fine musical tunes.