Paper Title
Barabarse Naach Among The Gopali Community: A Study of Kunchhal Village, Makawanpur District, Nepal

Abstract
Kunchhal is one of the oldest cultural and historical villages consisting of 270 traditional houses situated in Thaha Municipality-1, Makawanpur district of Nepal. Kunchhal was declared as one of the three best places to be in Nepal during the 38th World Tourism Day by VITOF. It is one of the main residences of the oldest ethnic group of Nepal known as Gopali who had ruled as Kings of the Gopal Dynasty over Kathmandu valley for eight generations. The people of the Gopali community celebrate different colorful festivals, Jatras, and folk dances such as Dashain, Gathemangal, Byanjankegu, Gai Jatra, Jugan Charha, Yanya Punhi, Hiley Naach, Barabarse Naach, Bade Pyakha, Swet Vinayak Pyakha, and so on. Among them, Barabarse Naach is one of the ancient and religious folk dances and dramas belong to the Gopali community of Kunchhal village. It is performed and celebrated once every twelve years on the occasion of different festivals and Jatras on two special days Sunday and Thursday. Musical instruments used in this Naach are Khi baja, Dha Baja, Sanai, Murali, and so on. However, the several issues such as about its celebrating procedures, procession, rites and rituals, customs, instruments, and historical significance, specific problems and challenges that are creating obstacles in promoting this dance, the roles and strategies of the concerned authorities in preserving, safeguarding, and promoting this practices are still not adequately addressed. Still, the proper study and documentation of the Barabarse Naach is not done. It is identified as the research problem and gap of the academic field; hence, realizing a strong need for its proper study and documentation this paper has been prepared. Both the primary date and secondary information have been taken and analyzed. It is based on descriptive and analytical research design and qualitative approach as well. Keywords - Barabarse Naach, Folk Music and Musical Instruments, Folk Dance, Gopali Community, Performing Style.