J&K Culture MCQ: Folk Dances, Festivals & Handicrafts for JKSSB
J&K GK · 2026-09-30 · 6 min read
J&K Culture is the GA topic where one-word answers dominate: name the dance, the festival, the craft or the instrument. Learn the items in groups — JKSSB often builds all four options from the same group, and only one matches the description.
Folk dances and theatre
- Rouf — Kashmiri women's dance in facing rows, around Eid and harvest time
- Kud — ritual night dance of the Jammu hills, honouring local deities (lok devtas)
- Dhumal — performed by men of the Wattal community, in long robes with a banner
- Hikat — young people dance in pairs, holding hands and spinning
- Bacha Nagma — boys dressed as girls, Kathak-like
- Chajja — Jammu boys during Lohri, with a decorated umbrella-like 'chajja'
- Jagarana — sung and danced by women of the groom's family on the wedding night
- Bhand Pather — Kashmir's satirical folk theatre, by the Bhand community
Music
- Chhakri — the most popular Kashmiri folk form (rabab, sarangi, nout earthen pot, tumbaknari)
- Sufiana Kalam — Kashmir's classical music; its signature instrument is the santoor
- Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, born in Jammu, took the santoor to the classical concert stage
Festivals and fairs
- Jhiri Mela (near Jammu) — in memory of Baba Jitto
- Mela Kheer Bhawani — Tulmulla, Ganderbal, on Jyeshtha Ashtami
- Bahu Mela — Bahu Fort temple, during Navratri
- Purmandal (Samba) — Shivratri celebrations
- Baisakhi and Lohri — major Jammu festivals; Urs at Sufi shrines across Kashmir
Handicrafts: the most repeated group
- Pashmina — fine wool of the Changthangi goat
- Kani shawl — woven with small wooden bobbins called kanis
- Sozni — fine needle embroidery
- Papier-mâché, walnut wood carving, hand-knotted carpets (woven from a coded script called talim) — all GI-tagged
- Khatamband — ceilings of interlocking wooden pieces
- Namda — felted wool rug · Gabba — rug from reused woollen blankets
- Basohli painting (Kathua) — Jammu's best-known miniature school
Language and everyday culture
- J&K Official Languages Act, 2020: Kashmiri, Dogri, Urdu, Hindi, English
- Dogri added to the Eighth Schedule in 2003
- Pheran (long gown) and kangri (fire pot worn under it)
- Wazwan — multi-course feast by cooks called wazas, ending with gushtaba
Written and fact-checked by the MockNPrep team · Questions on this page are original · Editorial policy · Report an error
Practice questions
Q1. Which folk dance is performed by men of the Wattal community?
- Rouf
- Dhumal
- Kud
- Hikat
Show answer
Dhumal — Dhumal is performed by Wattal men in long robes, carrying a banner. Rouf is a women's dance; Kud is a Jammu ritual dance.
Q2. Bhand Pather is a traditional form of:
- Embroidery
- Folk theatre
- Devotional singing
- Wood carving
Show answer
Folk theatre — Bhand Pather is Kashmir's satirical folk theatre, performed by the Bhand community.
Q3. The Jhiri Mela is held in memory of:
- Baba Jitto
- Baba Budha Amarnath
- Sheikh Noor-ud-din
- Raja Mandlik
Show answer
Baba Jitto — The Jhiri Mela near Jammu commemorates Baba Jitto.
Q4. A Kani shawl gets its name from:
- The village where it originated
- The small wooden bobbins used in weaving it
- The goat whose wool is used
- The embroidery stitch
Show answer
The small wooden bobbins used in weaving it — 'Kani' refers to the small wooden bobbins used to weave the pattern.
Q5. Khatamband is associated with:
- Carpets
- Ceilings of interlocking wooden pieces
- Copperware
- Felted rugs
Show answer
Ceilings of interlocking wooden pieces — Khatamband is the craft of geometric ceilings built from interlocking wooden pieces. Felted rugs are Namda.
Q6. In which year was Dogri included in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution?
- 1992
- 2003
- 2011
- 2020
Show answer
2003 — Dogri was added in 2003 (92nd Amendment). 2020 is the year of the J&K Official Languages Act.