Long long ago, there were two villages built on either side of a riverbank. But the villagers of these villages could not travel from one village to the other because of the river.

As a result, all the marriages that were arranged were limited which affected the population. Many in each village remained unmarried and uncertainty for the future hung heavy in the air.

Finally, a monk named Chapjam Wangpu told the villagers that they should build a bridge so that the two villages could socialise.

The villagers agreed that this was a good idea and began to collect materials to construct the bridge. However, every night spirits would come and take away the materials, making it difficult to complete the bridge.

So, the monk arranged for the performance of the Achi Lhamo pantomime. The spirits were curious about the performance and went to watch it. Seizing the opportunity, the villagers took back their materials and constructed the bridge before the pantomime could get over.

When the performance was done, the spirits went back to the river to destroy the bridge but could not do so as it was dedicated to god.

From then on, the two villages regularly met and married their own to the other. The problem of marriage was solved and the population of both the villages increased.

Note: the Achi Lhamo dance is considered auspicious and is performed before major events. It is a masked performance that tells the tale of five mythological characters – Gyeli, Nyapa, Nyaro, Lhamo, and Lhum. It is performed over five days in the forms of dance, song, dialogue and pantomime, accompanied by drums and cymbals.

A Folktale sourced from Fables and Folk-Tales of Arunachal Pradesh by GK Ghosh and Shukla Ghosh.

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